The Web of Stories
While I was drawing this, all I could think of was “DANGER! DANGER! (Genocide!) DEATH, THE CRISIS! DANGEROUS ZOMBIE!”
Kamen Rider Rogue! Stand and deliver!
No, this is NOT to be confused with Kamen Rider Rogue from Build’s series! I thought this guy up in early 2017 while Kamen Rider Build was broadcast in late 2017!
Presenting Hiro Adachi, former denizen of Hongo’s universe, and the guy who discovered the Rogue Driver, which gave Shocker the necessary knowledge about transformation belts.
Bio: Wandering around for a while in Japan of K-A-M-3-N-R-1-D-3-R, Hiro was employed by Shocker, a covert terrorist organization hellbent on conquering Earth. During his scouting, Hiro found a young woman and brought her in.
She had amnesia, self-induced, evidently, as she had a note saying that she WANTED to forget her unhappy marriage and life. She was altered and became known as Igura.
During a date, Igura and Hiro found a device that came with a pair of pistols. The device identified itself as the Rogue Driver, a transformation device that gives the user special powers and armor. Hiro was intrigued and brought it to Shocker. After messing around with the internal mechanics, Shocker made their own belt and tried it on different people, even their cyborgs. The attempts were failures until they got ahold of Takeshi Hongo.
After Hongo’s escape, Hiro was blamed for failure and so was about to be executed. He slapped on the Rogue Driver and they escaped to another universe. He slept for a while until the belt got him up in the 90’s. He then married a woman named Akiko, but slew her when she gave birth to Megumi. He altered the crime scene to make it look like a random person killed her so he could be free to watch as the 9 year old Megumi escaped the hellhole that was the orphanage she grew up in.
When Haruna Hishikawa adopted her, Hiro jumped in and tried to take her under his wing. The legal battle ended in defeat for Hiro, with him finally in prison, but he was not without his own tricks.
He learned about a person called Lord Vortech with powers to travel the dimensions and so used the Rogue Driver to contact him. He made a deal that Vortech would give him the power to create a new dimension if Hiro would help in conquering the other dimensions. Hiro agreed and so helped Vortech find Foundation Prime.
After that, he went on a hunt for the Foundation Elements as Kamen Rider Rogue, but his daughter constantly got in the way. Now, he’s hellbent on tearing his flesh and blood apart with his fiancé, his first girlfriend, Igura.
“So, now that we’ve got the Sources,” remarked Richard the next day, “what now?”
“…I’m honestly not sure,” I replied. “Maybe the Horsemen might have something?”
“…You’re still thinking about what X-PO did,” observed Richard.
“I’m still thinking about what X-PO did,” I confirmed. “I’m not sure if I can trust him anymore. He really hurt us. I’m not sure if Alesandro and Victor are gonna stay with us after this.”
“I think they are,” replied Richard.
“What makes you so sure of that?” I quizzed.
“Well, Alesandro asked me to help him unpack,” replied Richard, “so I’d say it’s a safe bet he’s staying with us. Colleen and Victor talked and he decided on staying, so we’re good there.”
“Excellent,” I answered, feeling that much better. “All the same, I really need to apologize to them. The results may have been altered but we still made the choice to hide my emotional collapse from them.”
“Actually, Alesandro asked us to stop,” revealed Richard. “He gets that we regret it and will do what we can to make sure we don’t make that mistake again.”
“…Inundated with apologies from everyone?” I guessed.
“Yep,” confirmed Richard. “By the way, X-PO’s been arrested by the After Academy police for willful endangerment of students.”
“When’s the trial?” I asked.
“In two weeks,” replied Richard. “Miles Edgeworth is the prosecutor.”
“And X-PO’s defense attorney?” I quizzed.
“A Mr. Elkrandek from Tarlax 14,” answered Richard.
“Not exactly the most scrupulous lawyer,” I replied. Just then, alarms sounded throughout the base. “WHAT NOW?!” I snapped. Elphaba’s voice then came over the comms.
“All Riders, we have multiple vessels inbound!” she reported. “They’re cloaked, so we can’t get a good i.d. on them!”
“That’s too suspicious for comfort,” I declared as I took over the broadcast. “All hands, red alert! Assume battle stations and raise shields!” I then morphed into Tora-Onna (Tiger Woman) as I strode towards the Gateway Room to coordinate the action. Richard followed close behind.
“Why are you going fuzzy?” he asked.
“I never really had a chance to use this form,” I answered. “Sure, I turned into it on occasion, but never fully used it. Might as well ‘go fuzzy’ if it means an edge in battle if we’re boarded.” We arrived at the Gateway Room. Elphaba and her team were finishing up in locking down the Gateway. They didn’t want anyone trying to take advantage of any weakness in battle, much less anyone trying to go through and sneak up from behind.
“All of our codes have been locked into the Gateway,” reported Rusty. “We await yours.” I then leaned towards the mic.
“Computer,” I directed, “this is Queen Megumi Hishikawa. Lockdown 2-7-8-7-4-7-3-7. No one uses the Gateway until all codes have been verified and all voice patterns confirmed.”
“All Gateway functions disabled,” reported the secondary computer as it took over for X-PO. “Full functionality will not be restored until authorized personnel give the necessary codes.” I then made a secure call to the Virginia. Since Emily was needed in Sick Bay, Hiroki took command of the ship.
“Nee-san, ship status,” I requested.
“All lights are green,” reported Hiroki. “Liam’s back in Engineering with Dell and R9, Michael and Irina are manning the weapons, Tanisha’s the pilot again, and Crescent and Jason are working Communications.”
“Good to know,” I replied.
“Megumi,” called the Brigadier, “we’re receiving a transmission from the Hammer of Tarlax.”
“Scorpainia’s ship and the Tarlaxian flagship,” I replied. “What does she want?”
“She’s requesting to aid us as Shocker Rift has managed to steal Famine’s source and has reason to believe the cloaked vessels are of Shocker Rift origin,” explained the Brigadier.
“Tell her we happily accept and will offer any aid to get the Source back,” I directed. “Have the Tarlaxian fleet form up on the Virginia.”
“Understood,” replied the Brigadier as he saluted. He relayed my message. The Tarlaxian fleet arrived out of the large portals that ships need to go through the Rift safely and formed up on the Virginia.
“All stations report ready,” reported Elphaba.
“All ships standing by,” called Hiroki.
“Now comes the fun part,” I mused. “Who will make the first move?”
“That fleet must have followed us from Tarlax,” muttered Igura.
“They’re just sitting there,” observed the Joker. “We should have our fun now!”
“The instant we beam down,” I argued, “the fleet will know where we are. No. Hold position.”
“I say, that can’t be right,” muttered Michael.
“Is something the matter?” asked Hiroki.
“I’m reading Sontaran ship transponder codes,” explained Michael. “Using cloaking devices? That’s not like a Sontaran.”
“Why would Sontarans join Shocker Rift?” I asked.
“Megumi,” interjected Scorpainia, “if it pleases you, I have an idea on finding our targets.”
“Brigadier Stard,” reported the Sontaran Communications Officer, Lieutenant Krek, “we are receiving a broad transmission on all frequencies.”
“Put it through,” barked Brigadier Stard. Scorpainia’s face appeared.
“This is Queen Empress Scorpainia of the Tarlaxian Fleet!” she snarled. “Vorton is under my protection! Withdraw or be destroyed!”
“Ignore,” ordered Stard. “Hold position.”
“If there are Sontarans stupid enough to think they can win against me,” continued Scorpainia, “permit me to remind you that the last time you invaded Tarlax, before we moved to a new Tarlax, you required help from a god-like being. It’s clear enough that you are afraid of us. Why else would you hide behind a cloaking device?”
“…Make the call two-way!” snarled Stard. Scorpainia’s head twitched a bit, indicating that she had Stard on her viewscreen. “HOW DARE YOU!” roared Stard. “Scorpainia, you impugn my honor!”
“Whatever passes for Sontaran honor,” dismissed Scorpainia.
“Evidently,” hissed Stard, “you are unfamiliar with Standing Order 44 Subsidiary Clause 2! Mockery of a Sontaran Officer is to be considered an act of war!”
“A war where you will not receive a glorious death!” warned Scorpainia. The transmission ended.
“All ships, disengage the cloak and engage the enemy fleet!” ordered Stard.
“The Sontarans are disengaging the cloak and moving towards the enemy fleet!” reported Dalek Drone 2248292.
“What are those fools doing?!” shouted Sauron.
“Fleet Marshal Skrag,” I ordered, “get them to return to formation and reengage the cloak!”
“They’re not responding, Sir!” reported Skrag. “Battle had been joined!”
“Idiots, this is too early!” I roared.
“Hiroki, the Sontarans took the bait!” reported Michael. “Good thinking, Scorpainia!”
“All ships, open fire!” I ordered.
“Assist the fleet in taking down the enemy,” I ordered.
“Yes, Your Majesty,” called Richard as his fingers danced across the weapons console. A brilliant, multi-colored display of weapons fire illuminated the battlefield. Just then, the rest of Hiro’s fleet de-cloaked and moved to aid the Sontarans. Their weapons fire added to the display, affecting shield integrity in the process.
“We can’t keep this up much longer!” warned Lukas. “Any more and we’ll lose them!”
“Hongo, what’s your status?” I called on the comms.
“We’re ready and waiting,” replied Hongo. Vorton rocked again and the slightly blue tinge of the shields faded.
“We’ve lost shields!” called Lukas.
“Target shields down!” reported Dalek Drone 2248292.
“Tell the boarding parties they may begin,” I ordered, grinning all the while.
“We’re being boarded!” reported Richard. Combatmen shimmered into view.
“Now’s the time, Minna-san!” I called as I extended my claws. There was a TREMENDOUS fight on Vorton. This time, it wasn’t going to be so easily blind-sided. I clawed and bit my enemies as my friends kept the rest at bay.
“That’s funny,” I mused as visual data from the Daleks she had killed came to my ship, “she hardly uses that form.”
“Is there any progress on locating the Sources?” grumbled Igura.
“Source Team is encountering heavy resistance,” reported Dalek Drone 2248292, “from Batman, Wyldstyle, Gandalf, and Ichigō.”
“They’re not that strong,” I muttered. “How could they be encountering resistance?”
“Okay, my turn!” called Batman.
“All yours!” I replied as I delivered a Rider Punch.
“Shift Keystone, activate!” announced Batman. “Yellow, on the wall left to me! Magenta, on the wall right of me! Cyan, on the ceiling! Shift! Cyan! Ichigō!” I went to the ceiling and tackled a Combatman to the floor. A Dalek brought its gunstick to bear on me! “Shift! Yellow! Batman!” Batman delivered a side kick as he came through the yellow portal. “Shift! Magenta! Gandalf!” Gandalf ran his sword through a Sontaran as it turned to face him. Wyldstyle built a large machine that ran a large pillar through the hall and knocked down the enemy forces. They just kept beaming on board! I leapt into the air and extended my foot towards a Combatman.
“RIDER KICK!” I announced as I kicked him. That wasn’t enough!
“There’s too many!” called Wyldstyle.
“We’re not letting them near the Sources we have!” insisted Batman as he slammed a Sontaran through a Dalek. A Combatman spoke in its usual noises to a Sontaran. The Sontaran gave hand signals to a yellow Dalek, the commander, that bobbed its eyestalk in some form of understanding. It faced us and a flipper came out of the gunstick, moving in and out and causing pain to us, but not enough to kill us. We fell to the ground, unable to move, only observe and listen.
“All enemies disabled!” reported the Commander Dalek.
“Safecrackers, move in!” barked the Sontaran to his subordinates. They came in with explosives and set the timer. “Move back!” shouted the Sontaran commander. The enemy got to a safe distance. “THREE! TWO! ONE!” The explosives blew the vault open. A Combatman issued orders to his subordinates. They were wearing metal gloves as they entered the vault. They managed to find the sources and pick them up, suffering no ill effects. They reported some form of success in their noises. “Excellent!” cheered the Sontaran commander.
“Dalek Commander 8734739 to Fleet Flagship, Dominus,” called the Commander Dalek.
“Sources safely retrieved!” reported the Dalek Commander at the Vault. “Requesting immediate pickup!”
“Get everyone out of there!” I ordered, a grin crossing my features. The teleporter operator obliged and got everyone out of Vorton. He reported that everyone that survived made it. “Get us out of here!” I commanded. “We move to Foundation Prime!”
“Er, Megumi,” called Emily from Sick Bay, “I’m looking on my screen and I see the enemy fleet pulling out even though they reduced ours to a fourth of its original size. What’s going on?”
“Vault, what happened?!” I called.
“This is…Batman,” strained the Dark Knight. “The enemy managed to…disable us…long enough…to get the Sources. They had…some way of…safely…handling them.” My heart sank at the report. They’re going to Foundation Prime and we didn’t have the numbers to stop them or pursue them.
“That was a general broadcast, Batman,” Emily chimed in. “None of my patients liked hearing that.”
“Orders, Megumi?” asked Guard. I sighed.
“Contact Tarlax and After Academy,” I resolved. “See if they can spare any ships. Emily, continue treating the wounded. We need all fighters to be at their best.”
“The enemy fleet is not pursuing us!” reported Dalek Drone 2248292. It stood next to Skrag as we sat in my ready room. Igura looked on.
“Splendid,” I praised. “Resume your post.”
“I obey!” answered Dalek Drone 2248292. As it left, my expression hardened as I turned to Skrag.
“The actions your ships have taken have halved our fleet, causing considerable disruption!” I snarled.
“The men were experiencing withdrawal symptoms from lack of battle!” replied Skrag. “This was a matter beyond my control!”
“Your orders,” hissed Igura, “were to hold position until the command was given!”
“That was impossible!” pleaded Skrag. “The men have been out of action for too long!”
“The responsibility was yours!” I roared. “You have failed! I cannot, WILL not, accept failure! Since you pleaded, you will NOT look upon your death!” I turned him around and shot him in the back of the head, the worst form of death for a Sontaran.
“I’ll have Fleet Marshal Strench and his ships report to our position, shall I?” offered Igura.
“Do so,” I answered. “Then, return to our quarters. We need to unwind on the way.”
“I have an outfit that may help in that regard,” purred Igura. We kissed.
“Listen, about what I said yesterday,” I muttered, “I’m sorry. That was unlike me to overlook your talents. I should have planned for Heather to disregard the Source.”
“Well, I DO know a way you can make it up to me,” chuckled Igura as she wiggled her eyebrows. I’ll probably be making it up to her for…maybe 20, 30 minutes.
“How go repairs?” I asked Liam as I arrived on the Virginia’s bridge.
“I really wish you’d stop asking that every two minutes!” he hissed. “We still don’t know the extent of the damage!”
“…Very well,” I sighed. Emily finally caught up to me.
“Rest! Now! Doctor’s orders!” she snapped. I opened my mouth to protest but she grabbed my arm and dragged me to the Virginia’s sick bay. “Now lay down!” she ordered as she pointed to the bed.
“I can’t do that!” I insisted. “Not while Hiro’s doing god-knows-what to the Sources while on Foundation Prime!”
“You can’t command a damn thing while crashing into walls!” argued Emily. “This whole thing is stress-related and, as the resident doctor, I’m prescribing rest!” I didn’t move. “…Look, I get that Hiro managed to snatch victory from us,” she sighed, “and I get that you feel responsible, but we can’t exactly achieve victory if you’re fighting fatigue. Now, please, get some rest.” I stayed for a minute, then sighed before finally lying down.
I breathed a sigh of relief when she shut her eyes. “Majel, make sure she gets, at least, an hour of rest,” I ordered.
“Alarm set for one hour,” reported Majel. “By the way, Hiroki’s on the bridge.”
“I’ll meet him,” I replied. I headed off to the bridge and found him working on the Communications console on the lower level. I headed down and cleared my throat. That got his attention.
“Where’s Megumi?” he asked.
“Taking a much-needed nap in Sick Bay,” I reported. “She’s been stressing out about this whole thing that she’s practically crashing into walls.”
“Not surprised,” muttered Hiroki. “She’s not too happy with what X-PO did either.”
“Did this ever happen before you came to America?” I asked.
“Once, in school,” replied Hiroki. “She said something that could have been put into better words to a friend and almost lost that friend. Her studies weren’t at their usual best during the time she stressed about it.”
“Her friends are her power,” I guessed.
“If you want to use an anime trope, then yeah,” confirmed Hiroki. “Anything that risks the bond, she freaks out about it. Hence the emotional collapse after Hill Valley. She felt guilty for fracturing that bond. Now, she feels betrayed that the same mistake has been made.”
“Well, stressing about it won’t do her any good right now,” I affirmed. Just then, Liam came up.
“What’s up?” asked Hiroki.
“Right now, the amount of studs needed to fix this thing,” replied Liam. “The warp core needs restabilizing, the threshold between exterior and interior dimensions is just being held together with the equivalent of duct tape, the weapons need shoring up…”
“Give us the short version,” interjected Hiroki. “Can this be fixed in any reasonable time?” Liam winced before shaking his head. “…Damn,” sighed Hiroki.
“I’m sorry, guys,” muttered Liam, “but the damage Heather gave us was only patched up. The repairs were just supposed to hold until we could get it to a decent shipyard. That recent fight really stressed the Virginia to the point of it not going anywhere until it’s fully fixed. Flying this thing now will only serve to turn it into our tomb.”
“All right, thank you, Liam,” I sighed. Tanisha, Chell, and Elphaba beamed onto the bridge after Liam gave his report. “How’s Vorton?” Chell signed her answer.
“Could be better,” translated Tanisha. “Some of the systems are shot.”
“I wouldn’t say it’s ALL bad,” countered Elphaba. “We feared the Gateway’s systems were totally fried, but some functions, like basic life support, are still operational. However, a good chunk of the stabilization programs that require the Keystones to power are hurt a bit and require a fair amount of work.” Chell signed again.
“Not to mention,” translated Tanisha, “the security programs are subpar now, considering the recent invasion. On top of that, power distribution needs work.”
“Maybe…maybe we can reroute power to…” I guessed.
“Chell and Elphaba are being needlessly optimistic!” interrupted Tanisha. “I got the whole damage report from Lukas! This isn’t something we can slap some duct tape on and call it a day! Some of the systems are tied solely to X-PO’s presence on Vorton! With him gone, the seven person limit on the Gateway is back! We ALL can’t go to Foundation Prime without Megumi’s power! Now that things are damaged, trying to bypass them would be next to impossible without X-PO!” Hiroki kicked the pilot’s chair in anger.
“Hey, don’t take it out on them!” I snapped. “NONE of us are happy this happened!”
“He knew we scrambled them!” hissed Hiroki. I only guessed he was talking about Hiro.
“What, Vorton’s new coordinates?” I asked.
“Exactly!” replied Hiroki. “He somehow managed to deduce that we would try to scramble the coordinates if we wanted to be any safer! So he waited until we were vulnerable and so self-assured of our victory! With him having all five Sources now, we don’t stand a…”
“He didn’t know Vorton’s new coordinates until yesterday,” interjected Elphaba.
“…Nani?” asked Hiroki.
“A Tarlaxian ship did some scouting during the space battle,” explained Elphaba. “The only reason he could find us was because we didn’t shield the Sources’ energy signatures properly. He still had a fix on them. Originally, just after the Vortech Wars, he went to Vorton’s old coordinates. He only just found it yesterday.”
“…I repeat, WHAT?!” yelped Hiroki.
“The Sources gave off an energy signature that drew him in like a beacon,” elaborated Tanisha. “He must have kept records on them. We didn’t account for that and didn’t think to shield them.”
“…Megumi will be kicking herself again and stressing out after her nap when she hears about this,” muttered Hiroki.
“Well, not telling her will only make it worse,” I declared. “I’m going to tell her what we’ve discussed.” Hiroki was about to object when I put my finger to his lips. “Doctor’s prerogative,” I hissed. I turned to return to the Sick Bay when Lukas came onto the Bridge, cheering in his native German. “…Okay, what’s got you so happy? And I mean happy in the borderline lunatic asylum sense.”
“Meine Freunde,” (My friends) he began, “Tarlax came through! While After Academy can’t spare any ships, they don’t even have a shipyard, the Tarlaxian fleet that helped us was just a fraction of their full might! Just 1/32nd of the Tarlaxian Imperial Navy!”
“That was over 800 ships that helped us yesterday!” yelped Hiroki.
“They’re making more ships to replace those that were lost,” continued Lukas, “and have a backway into Foundation Prime that can overtake Shocker Rift! At current projections, they’ll be arriving there within three days! We can use our shortcut to get there a day ahead of them!”
“Subarashi!” (Wonderful!) cheered Hiroki. “A chance of victory! Liam, how long will it take to fix the Virginia?!”
“With things as they are and with Tarlaxian Engineers helping me,” mused Liam, “as well as Lukas, Moon-kyung, Lacey, and Dell, five hours at minimum.”
“Get to it!” directed Hiroki. “We need this ship ready for battle soon.”
“Aye,” obliged Liam. He turned to Dell. “All right, let’s… HOO MONY TIMES DAE AH HAE TAE TEEL YE?! TH’ REIT TOOLS FUR TH’ REIT JOB!” He stomped off and told Dell off as they got to work.
“I don’t think I’ve seen him so happy,” I chuckled.
I woke up an hour later. Emily and Hiroki were sitting there with big grins on their faces. “…Did I miss the beatdown on Shocker Rift?” I asked.
“No, it hasn’t happened yet,” replied Hiroki. “Bad news first, we found out how they figured out our position. We didn’t think to shield the Sources, so they tracked it easily.”
“Not to mention, we don’t have the original shortcut since, without X-PO’s presence on Vorton,” continued Emily, “we can only throw seven people there.”
“…Original shortcut?” I asked, picking up on what she said.
“That’s where the good news comes in,” replied Emily as a smile crossed their features. “Shocker Rift is taking the normal, three day route. The Tarlaxians found a way for us to get ahead of them and arrive a day early!”
“They’re also sparing more ships to help us in case we have another space battle,” supplied Hiroki. “We’ll be ready to go in about four hours now.”
“Now THAT’S something to wake up to!” I cheered as I leapt from the bed. “We leave once everything’s ready.”
“Got it!” replied Hiroki as he headed off to relay my decision. I stretched to get rid of any sleepiness. After that, I turned towards the door.
“Ah AH!” called Emily. I stopped in mid-step, my foot still off the floor. There was a bit of a tense moment. “…Okay, you’re cleared for duty,” chuckled Emily.
“Har har,” I grumbled. I then left the Sick Bay and headed off to Main Engineering to find Liam and Dell arguing.
“You’re all hardhat and no cattle!” snapped Dell.
“Cannae ye say anythin’ ‘at ISNAE related tae Texas?!” snarled Liam, his accent coming in thick.
“You just ain’t doing it right!” argued Dell.
“I’ve bin thes ship’s engineer lang afair ye sit fit oan thes hin’!” ranted Liam. “Ah ken whit aam daein’! Ye cannae jist smack th’ weapons systems wi’ a wrench an’ caa it a day!”
“Hey look, buddy, I’m an Engineer. That means I solve problems,” replied Dell. “Not problems like ‘What is beauty?’, because that would fall within the purview of your conundrums of philosophy. I solve practical problems. For instance, how am I going to stop some big mean mother-Hubbard from tearing me a structurally superfluous new behind? The answer: use a gun, and if that don’t work, use more gun.” He then indicated the blueprints for the Sentry. “Like this heavy caliber, tripod-mounted, little ol’ number designed by me, BUILT by me, and you’d best hope… not pointed at you.”
“Gentlemen,” I called. The two men yelped and jumped two feet in the air.
“Don’t scare us like that!” protested Dell.
“I trust things are going well?” I asked.
“He’s trying to add Sentries to the outer hull!” snapped Liam. “You can’t achieve that by whacking the weapons systems with a pipe wrench!”
“It’s worked fine as frogs’ hair for me!” snapped Dell.
“Have you ever been on a spaceship before?!” argued Liam.
“Gentlemen!” I shouted. Both men turned to me. “Now is NOT the time. Look, Dell, save the Sentries on the hull until AFTER we beat Shocker Rift. Liam, you DO realize the wrench is coated in self-replicating, self-destructing nanites?”
“How in Sam Hill did you know that?!” yelped Dell.
“Lukas gave me the results of the time he examined the wrench,” I explained.
“…That boy’s more invasive than the Medic!” hissed Dell.
“Kill him later,” I directed. “Look, the nanites are programmed to upgrade any piece of technology when enough metal is absorbed and they’re struck with enough of an impact to shake some off the wrench.”
“They tend to shut off and destroy themselves quietly once they’ve done their job,” continued Dell.
“…Do you even have enough metal to fulfill the kind of upgrades you’re proposing?” asked Liam. Dell opened his mouth…then realized he didn’t.
“Darn,” he muttered.
“Like I said, just focus on getting basics up and running,” I replied.
“All righty then,” answered Dell. He and Liam then went back to work.
“Great Leader Hiro, Sir,” called my Sontaran Adjutant as he brought the people I wanted to meet into my Ready Room, “presenting Ambassador Hell and Metalran, Sir, as instructed.”
“Splendid,” I praised. “That will be all, Tunk.” The Sontaran left and I addressed my former boss and Tarlaxian ally. “So wonderful that you could bolster our numbers back to their original size.”
“We aim to please,” replied Metalran as he bowed.
“Maybe YOU do,” grumbled Ambassador Hell.
“It looks like he does,” I answered. “I know, deep down, you wish to please, so why not…?”
“Before you speak and try to incorrectly guess my motives,” interrupted Ambassador Hell, “let me tell you this: I don’t like the fact that you managed to usurp our Great Leader, I don’t like the fact that you’ve expanded Shocker to ideas above our station, and I don’t like you! You place your emotions above the needs of Shocker! You constantly obsess over a child! You manage to keep us from our goals of conquering our planet! Quite frankly, you are the most inefficient leader Shocker has had and should have stepped down!”
“…Well, since you wish to be unpleasant to me, it’s only fair I’m the same way to you,” I growled. “I don’t like you. You say I obsess over a child when you obsess over one man. You never expand your thoughts to long-term goals, only short-term ones. You say I place my emotions above Shocker’s needs, yet you constantly waste resources to defeating the Kamen Riders. To be blunt, Ambassador, the Great Leader made a mistake in pulling you from our American branch and making you the leader of our armies. Hence my usurping him. Now, if we’re all done being unpleasant with each other, I’d like for us all to get back to work. Dismissed.” The two left the Ready Room and I sat down, wondering what would happen if Ambassador Hell met with an…accident.
I could not have asked for smoother sailing. We were approaching Foundation Prime and Megumi was nowhere in sight. I toured the Dominus, looking at each bulkhead, each door, each tiny rivet that propelled me to victory. It was a leisurely tour, no need to rush victory. A couple of Engineers saluted me as I passed. I returned the salute and they returned to the minor maintenance needed to make the ship more efficient. A Combatman approached me.
“YEE! YEE!” (We’re approaching the coordinates. All Sources have unlocked the way for us.) he reported.
“Splendid,” I praised. “I shall be on the bridge to witness our victory. Once we enter, begin a sweep for the Foundation Element pedestal. It should be intact.”
“YEE!” (Yes, Great Leader!) replied the Combatman. I strolled to the bridge as he hurried off to relay my instructions. When I arrived, the bridge crew was hard at work.
“Time to Universal Entrance?” I asked.
“Universal Entrance will occur in 20 rels!” reported the Dalek Operator at the helm.
“One minute,” translated Igura.
“Excellent,” I chuckled. Who needs Foundation Elements? The Sources will provide me the Foundation of All Universes far better than random trinkets.
“10 rels!” barked the Dalek Operator.
“30 seconds!” giggled Igura.
“Ah, I can just smell victory in our hands!” I sighed. “I tell you now, my sweet eagle, we shall…”
“Alert! Alert! Enemy fleet detected!” called out the Dalek Strategist. “Flagship has been identified as FNSS-01, Virginia!”
“WHAT?!” I shouted. The enemy fleet was projected onto the main viewscreen.
“A ground force is guarding the Foundation Element pedestal!” called Metalran. “It’s the Vortex Riders!”
“How did they get ahead of us?!” shouted Igura.
“Save the speculations for later!” I ordered. “Raise shields and charge weapons!”
“Er, guys!” I gulped as I saw the enemy charging their weapons.
“We see them!” replied Scorpainia on her ship. “All ships, engage the enemy!” Our fleet unleashed a volley of laser and torpedo fire. I looked at everyone on the ground with me.
“Minna-san,” I began, “if, by some random chance, we don’t get out of this alive…”
“Then we still make sure we continue the fight!” insisted Emily. I smiled.
“Hongo-san, if you please,” I directed. Hongo struck his pose.
“Rider…” he began.
“HENSHIN!” we all announced. The Chronicle Drivers of our new members went through their jingles.
“Open! Turn! Imagine! The Hammer of Slam!”
“Open! Turn! Imagine! The Roller of Turf!”
“Open! Turn! Imagine! The Crossbow of Striker!”
“Open! Turn! Imagine! The Keyblade of Lux!”
“Open! Turn! Imagine! The Shield of Highland!”
“Open! Turn! Imagine! The Scepter of Crown!”
“Open! Turn! Imagine! The Rifle of Range!”
“Open! Turn! Imagine! The Wrench of Construct!”
“Open! Turn! Imagine! The Spear of Lance!”
“Open! Turn! Imagine! The Staff of Crescent!”
“The enemy ground forces have changed into their Rider Personas!” reported Tac Ops.
“Then prepare our own,” I ordered. “All Riders, we’re going in!” Cyber-Leader Gi dialed in the first three prime numbers on her phone and held it to her ear, I drew my guns, Gorshagh grabbed the Kiri Zecter, and Igura struck her pose.
“Nova…” she began.
“Henshin!” we announced.
“Henshin!” repeated the Kiri Zecter.
“Adaptus: online,” reported Cyber-Leader Gi’s phone as she turned it into her buckle. We all became our Kamen Rider personas.
“All ground forces ready!” reported Tac Ops.
“Beam us down!” I ordered.
“They’re coming your way!” warned Scorpainia.
“Welcome back to Foundation Prime!” I greeted Rogue. “You know, lately, there’s a new Rider from Build’s era with the same name as you. Wouldn’t you say that would cause confusion?”
“Last I checked,” remarked Rogue, “that Kamen Rider is dead.”
“Not what I saw in Build’s show,” chuckled Sengoku. “I think a guy called Killbas restored his memories once the Build Riders came to the main Kamen Rider world.”
“I’ll take care of him later,” dismissed Rogue. “Right now, I have major annoyances to deal with! Kamen Rider Rogue! Stand and deliver!”
“Kamen Rider Adaptus,” announced Cyber-Leader Gi. “Hostile elements will be deleted.”
“Kamen Rider Kiri!” growled Gorshagh. “I shall bring ruin to you!”
“Kamen Rider Talon!” called Igura. “You will pay dearly!”
“If it’s catchphrase time, it’s catchphrase time!” I declared.
“Kamen Rider Outback!” called Joshua. “Better watch your backs, mates!”
“Kamen Rider Claw!” announced Sheela. “My weapons shall turn you into ribbons!”
“Kamen Rider Swing!” cheered Tonje. “I’ll be taking your legs!”
“Kamen Rider Hunt!” declared Tanisha. “I shall always get my prey!”
“Kamen Rider Clash!” proclaimed Livia. “A duel with me shall end in your defeat!”
“Kamen Rider Climb!” cheered Irina. “Mountains are a warrior’s best friend!”
“Kamen Rider Gallop!” declared Mikhail. “My riding skills are unmatched!”
“Kamen Rider Sengoku!” called my brother, Hiroki. “You shall get a taste of Feudal Japan!”
“Kamen Rider Royal!” I announced. “Evil will ultimately bow to me!”
“Kamen Rider Guard!” proclaimed my fiancé, Richard. “None shall harm my friends, family, and lady!”
“Kamen Rider Touché!” cheered Emily, my future sister-in-law. “En Garde, thing of evil!”
“Kamen Rider Zhànshì!” declared Haitao. “Try and stop my quest!”
“Kamen Rider Arch!” called Emmanuel. “My skills outdo Robin Hood!”
“Kamen Rider Kämpfer!” cheered Lukas. “Your defeat will be certain at my hands!”
“Kamen Rider Seeker!” proclaimed Xiomara. “It’s not gold I seek, but your end!”
“Kamen Rider Battle!” announced Michael. “For friends and family, I shall be victorious!”
“Kamen Rider Slam!” shouted Colleen. “I’ll be bringing the pain!”
“Kamen Rider Turf!” called Jason the Inkling. “I shall claim this turf in victory!”
“Kamen Rider Striker!” proclaimed Alesandro. “None shall delay victory!”
“Kamen Rider Lux!” announced Mickey Mouse. “The light of imagination shall show the way!”
“Kamen Rider Highland!” cheered Liam. “It shall be a fine day for winning!”
“Kamen Rider Crown!” declared Princess Peach. “My strength will upend your tyranny!”
“Kamen Rider Range!” called Victor. “I’ve got you right where I want you!”
“Kamen Rider Construct!” declared Dell Conagher. “Let’s do this Texas style!”
“Kamen Rider Lance!” cheered Moon-kyung. “The softest bloom can be the deadliest!”
“Kamen Rider Crescent!” announced Neo Queen Serenity, Usagi Tsukino I. “In the name of the solar system, I will punish you!”
“Kamen Rider Herald P!” called Flora.
“Kamen Rider Herald Y!” proclaimed Brenden.
“Kamen Rider Herald O!” cheered Charline.
“Kamen Rider Herald G!” announced Amelia.
“Kamen Rider Herald B!” shouted Sophie.
“We bring news of your defeat!” they called together.
“Kamen Rider Death!” whispered Death. “You cannot delay your appointment with me!”
“Kamen Rider War!” shouted War. “This battlefield is mine!”
“Kamen Rider Pestilence!” wheezed Pestilence. “You shall be infected with losing!”
“Kamen Rider Famine!” declared Famine. “I shall starve you of victory!”
“Kamen Rider Apocalypse!” announced Lacey. “Your world shall end!”
“I am Gandalf the Grey!” proclaimed Gandalf. “Prepare to see some fireworks!”
“I’m Wyldstyle!” cheered Wyldstyle. “Time to think outside the box!”
“I’m Batman!” rasped Batman. “The Dark Knight rises!”
“I am the start of a group of warriors!” finished Hongo. “I am Kamen Rider!”
“KILL THEM!” ordered Rogue. Our armies clashed as we struggled to keep the Sources away from the pedestal.
“Alert! Alert!” called Operator 5579898. “Propulsion systems disabled!”
“Main Fusion Cannon power cells now recharging in 7!” counted Drone 7427983. “6! 5! 4!”
“Battle computer suggests immediate withdrawal!” advised Strategist 3345987. Retreat?! From the Tarlaxians?!
“We will not retreat from inferior life-forms!” I, Supreme 0720974, declared. “Daleks conquer and destroy!”
“Daleks conquer and destroy!” repeated all Daleks aboard the Dalek-only saucer, the Jewel of Skaro.
“Fusion Cannon now online!” reported Drone 7427983.
“Open fire!” I ordered. “Immediately! IMMEDIATELY!”
“I obey!” confirmed Drone 7427983. The Fusion Cannon causes the individual atoms of the target to come together before a small particle of anti-matter makes the target detonate in a display that humans would call dazzling. I suppose I would call the destruction of the Tarlaxian ship beautiful as fire burned away that which was impure. While it was by a small fraction, the multiverse THAT now that much cleaner.
“We’ve lost the Armadillorg,” reported my tactical officer, Glaciandro.
“Status of enemy shields?” I asked.
“What enemy shields?” replied Glaciandro, his voice indicating he was ready to avenge those who gave their lives to protect Tarlax and the multiverse, especially since his sister was on that ship.
“Destroy them!” I ordered. He wasted no time in obeying my command. The enemy ship was destroyed, along with its fellow ships in the enemy fleet. They were at 400 when they arrived on Foundation Prime, now that number has been halved! We’ve only lost 100 of our ships and we were going to ensure that their sacrifices were NOT in vain!
“Well, well!” I taunted Rogue as we clashed. “Looks like things are crumbling around you, Oto-san!” (Father)
“I see it differently,” replied Rogue as he converted his guns into shōtō (Japanese short sword) mode.
“Have you gone senile?!” I yelped as I converted my gun to sword mode. “Rogue, your fleet is halved, your ground forces are halted, and your attempt to get to the pedestal is going up in smoke! Surrender while you can!”
“I don’t think so!” replied Rogue. “My fleet will still win the day, your ground forces are only 40 strong while mine are 600 strong, and you idiots didn’t check to see if the Sources have reached the pedestal!” I turned to see if what he was saying was true. …It was! The Sources were aligned with the pedestal! They powered the thing just like the Foundation Elements did and revealed a newly constructed green square! The Foundation of All Universes was back! “Perfect!!” cheered Rogue. “Bring the Apocalypse Riders to their respective sources!” The Combatmen then managed to wrangle the Apocalypse Riders and get them to their respective Sources. …Well…three out of five were successful. “Wait, what are you two doing?” asked Rogue.
“YEE!” (Putting the Apocalypse Riders at their respective Sources.) replied a Combatman.
“No, you’re not! Death is supposed to be at the blue one, not the purple one!” answered Rogue.
“YEE!” (They’re both blue!) argued the Combatman.
“…Can you two not see red?” asked Rogue. The Combatmen looked sheepish. “Look, just switch them, okay?”
“YEE!” (I told you we needed those optic upgrades!) snapped the other Combatman as they obeyed.
“YEE!” (Shut up.) grumbled the first Combatman. I struggled in trying to get the Combatmen holding me down off.
“Off!” I growled! “I said…”
“We don’t need to move, not yet,” interjected Batman.
“…Dude, WHY?!” I argued.
“Oh, yeah!” mused Lance in a faraway voice.
“You too?!” I hissed.
“Well, they MUST have seen it done,” replied Battle.
“What are you…oh…OH!” I realized the mistake Shocker Rift made! Unfortunately, so did Adaptus!
“Disconnect the Apocalypse Riders!” she called.
“Are you malfunctioning?!” shouted Rogue.
“Disconnect them NOW!” insisted Adaptus. Just then, with just one hand, all Apocalypse Riders threw the Combatmen holding them aside!
“It doesn’t matter now!” laughed Rogue. “The Foundation of All Universes will be mine!” He continued laughing and laughing and laughing.
“The Horsemen are in total control of the Sources!” elaborated Adaptus. “They have some plan to set you back!”
“Impossible!” dismissed Rogue. “If they value their friends’ lives, they will obey!”
“NOW!” called Death.
“DAI SUPER CHARGE!” I announced. I managed to get a hand free and spun the wheel twice. My armor bulked up and exploded off of me to get my captors off while revealing my new form as Kamen Rider Vortex! My former captors were knocked into Batman and Gandalf’s, so they got up and fought off the others so everyone could be freed. Death and her friends put both hands on the Sources and gave more energy to them.
“WAIT! NO! STOP! THAT’S TOO MUCH!” wailed Rogue. Too late. The energy the Sources were putting out separated the Foundation of All Universes into four fragments once again and scattered them to four different directions. “No! No! Nonononono NOOOOO!” wailed Rogue before he slumped to his knees. “…What just happened?!” he asked uselessly.
“Did you really think we’d let you have the Sources without having a back-up plan?” asked Apocalypse.
“We had our suspicions that you would try and control us with a hostage situation,” explained Death, “so we asked Megumi, during prep, to keep her Vortex form on standby.”
“I have to admit,” I supplied, “I was a little confused when they asked that, but I can’t argue with the results!”
“So, when the time came,” finished War, “we’d upend your plans and cause some severe damage to your tiny empire!”
“I’VE HEARD ENOUGH!” roared Rogue as he performed his poses. “DAI SUPER CHARGE!” His armor then changed into dark purple and black as it bulked up before exploding off of him, turning him into Kamen Rider Rift! He summoned his Rift Breaker as I summoned my blade and we clashed viciously! “Why do you insist on interfering?!” roared Rift. “We are bringing order to chaos!”
“Have you learned nothing from Vortech?!” I protested. “You can’t have order without chaos! Read some Berlin! You might learn a thing or two!”
“I presume you’re talking about the idiot that babbled on about ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ liberty?!” growled Rift.
“Hey, that man got away from Stalinist Russia and got a safe distance away from the Nazi invasion of Britain!” argued Guard.
“I may need to read his work,” mused Kämpfer.
“You’re not going to survive that long!” roared Rift. He holstered his guns before pulling the triggers and leaping into the air. I then spun the wheel and leapt into the air; my target identified.
“Final attack!” announced my belt.
“RIDER VORTEX KICK!” I shouted.
“RIDER RIFT KICK!” shouted Rift. He was aiming for the Sources while I aimed for his belt. Our feet temporarily connected as we pushed against one another in the air.
“How do modern Riders DO that?!” asked Ichigō.
“Still trying to figure that out,” replied Sengoku. We continued pushing and pushing and pushing until…my foot went past his and smashed the Rift Driver! He fell, exploding, then tumbling out of the explosion as Adachi Hiro. The ruined remains of the Rift Driver fell after him. He scrambled to pick them up in a panic.
“Driver! Driver, say something!” he wailed.
“Hiro…”groaned the Rift Driver, “these are…my last words. …First of all…screw you! You never…valued my advice. Second…I should never have…found your universe. It looks like I just caused…chaos all around the place…by you reverse-engineering…me. Third…you ARE obsessed with her! As such…you no longer deserve…my power!” The Rift Driver then, for lack of a better term, died. Hiro still cradled the remains of his old belt.
“I say this only one last time,” I declared, “surrender!”
“…Abandon Foundation Prime,” Hiro ordered over the comms. His men looked at him. “All ground forces, return to the ships. We cannot take this universe with the Vortex Riders as they are with the numbers we have. Abandon Foundation Prime.” They were beamed aboard their remaining fifty ships. The ships then departed Foundation Prime as we were beamed aboard the Virginia. Turretorg was commanding the vessel while we were on the ground.
“Vortex, Touché,” he declared, “I return command to you.”
“Thank you, Turretorg,” I bid.
“A very fine command,” praised Touché.
“Thank you, Ma’am,” replied Turretorg.
“I believe that’s Foundation Prime all safe and sound,” mused Guard.
“Let’s not declare that until we confirm it,” advised Clash.
“Scorpainia,” I called over the channel, “any analysis on the enemy fleet?”
“They’ve retreated,” replied Scorpainia. “As Guard mentioned, all is well.”
“…How did you…?” I asked.
“The Communications Officer left the channel open,” answered Scorpainia.
“Ah,” I replied. I then turned to my friends. “Minna-san, it looks like our work is done.” We all powered down as I took command. “Helm, set course for Vorton, all possible speed.”
“All possible speed, you got it,” replied the helmsman. The fleet then took off for Vorton. Richard looked a little concerned.
“Hey, are you okay?” I asked.
“My thoughts drifted to X-PO’s trial,” explained Richard.
“…Yeah, way to remind us,” I grumbled. “How’s the trial going to play out?”
“Similar to the Japanese system,” replied Richard, “but there will be a jury of 12 Cendeberons.”
“The best jurors in the multiverse,” I recalled. “Remind me who Elkrandek is? All I heard from you is that he’s a Tarlaxian.”
“Actually, he’s an immigrant,” corrected Richard. “I think Joshua would know him better as the Deer Imagin.”
“The WHAT?!” I yelped, recalling the time Heather went to various universes to make a new body for herself with functioning ovaries. The attempt failed, but it DID leave the Imagin with a chance to stay alive even though she doesn’t remember him. “WHY would Scorpainia…? Get me Scorpainia!” The Communications Officer got her. “Scorpainia, I DID tell you about the Deer Imagin, right?”
“Elkrandek, as he prefers to call himself,” replied Scorpainia, “is trying to get away from such dark thoughts. He’s passed the Bar Exam and has been an excellent defense attorney. He’s defended Turretorg when he was accused of murder and resorted to stay clean in his pursuit of defending his client.”
“…Well, if he’s changed, there’s nothing I can say about it,” I resolved.
It was a new day in our new Castle Nerd Skull outside After Academy’s city limits. The Horsemen, their heralds, and our newest members had joined us as we sat down. Our new members were from the same universe the original F.N.S came from. We went from 16 to 31 almost overnight, 18 girls and 13 boys. Our new members were Lady Colleen Doyle of Waterford, Ireland, Lord Alesandro Ortiz of Fortaleza, Brazil, Sir Liam McIntyre of Scotland’s capital, Edinburgh, Duke Victor Young of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and Duchess Deung Moon-kyung (Asian name order, so, in the western name order it would be Moon-kyung Deung) of Jeju-si, South Korea. They were wearing a newer transformation belt, similar to a Vortex Driver, called the Chronicle Driver. Much like a Vortex Driver, it summons armor based on a character, but uses something called an Armor Bio, a small, book-shaped trinket that tells the story of the person it’s based off of. The Chronicle Driver pops a shelf out from the top with a small space for the Armor Bio to fit. The Rider then inserts the Armor Bio into the space and slides the shelf down into the Driver. It won’t summon the suit until the Rider presses a button on the Driver’s top. If it’s the Rider’s personal Armor Bio, or Armor Auto-bio, the Rider would say “Henshin!” before pressing the button. Pressing the button again would initiate the final attack. Colleen was Kamen Rider Slam, Alesandro was Kamen Rider Striker, Liam was Kamen Rider Highland, Victor Was Kamen Rider Range, and Moon-kyung was Kamen Rider Lance. Colleen adjusted her braid as Michael’s cat, Kit-10, scooted by. “Colleen?” I asked. “Your report?” She snapped out of her reverie as she shook her head.
“Sorry, My Lady,” she apologized. “The Chronicle Riders haven’t heard a peep out of them.”
“Quite frankly,” sighed Liam, “I don’t think we’re gonna find anything.”
“I know Hiro of old,” I replied, prompting the Scotsman to roll his eyes.
“Och, haur we gang!” he protested, exaggerating his usual accent.
“I beg your pardon?” I asked.
“Every time we say Hiro’s not gonna do anything,” explained Liam, “you go on about how Hiro doesn’t let things go that easily, how he will stop at nothing to have the multiverse under his rule. Well, I’ve been looking everywhere, and I have NO proof that he has something in the works!”
“Always a contentious one, aren’t you?” sighed his House Head, Pestilence.
“The Vortech Wars are over!” protested Liam. “Hiro’s learned not to mess with powers outside his understanding! We can relax! YOU, of all people, can relax!”
“Hiro is NOT one to be underestimated,” Death argued in her usual whisper. “I will not let you go through with being so lax about this.”
“Come on, you can’t be serious!” countered Liam. Moon-kyung just sighed, deciding to defuse the situation with a question unrelated to our conversation.
“Could the pizza guy be any later?” she sighed.
“They ARE taking their sweet time,” remarked Kit-10. “However, I don’t think we should be TOO harsh on them. They’re rather swamped, what with the two-year anniversary celebration of Vortech’s defeat coming up.”
“Oh, yeah, that,” I remembered.
“Well, it looks like we’re starting Bad Movie Night WITHOUT pizza,” sighed Richard. “Let’s kick things off with Michael Bay.”
“What have you got to offer?” I quizzed.
It was Revenge of the Fallen, the second Bayverse Transformers movie. “Well, that was something,” I remarked.
“Rather tame, compared to other bad movies I’ve seen,” commented Emily.
“As a feline-based robot,” observed Kit-10, “built by a Time Lord and a flying box, I can safely say that it was the most unrealistic thing I’ve had the ‘pleasure’ of gracing my visual sensors with.”
“Was Devastator’s wrecking ball scrotum really necessary?” asked Victor.
“Were Skids and Mudflap necessary?” quizzed War. “I swear they existed to be nothing but black stereotypes, UNNECESSARY black stereotypes.”
“My turn!” called Colleen.
“It’s not gonna be Monty Python’s Life of Brian, is it?” asked Hiroki. “I STILL feel let down after that whole thing.”
“No, it’s actually a movie from Japan,” replied Colleen. “Shuriken Sentai Ninninger vs. ToQger The Movie: Ninjas in Wonderland.”
“WHY?!” wailed Hiroki.
“Please, no!” I begged. Just then, there was a knock on the door. “Great, the pizza’s here!” I cheered.
“Two and a half hours!” protested Emily. “And we’re pretty far from city limits!”
“Cold pizza’s better than no pizza,” remarked Richard as he got up. Alesandro snorted.
“You only say that because you have no taste buds,” he snarked. Richard approached the door and opened it.
“Okay, my good man, what do I owe you?” he asked.
“Your ears,” remarked the voice.
“…You’re not pizza,” replied Richard.
“A PO robot’s saucier than pizza,” boasted the voice. “We need to talk.”
“Guys, X-PO’s here,” called Richard.
“Let him in!” I bid. Richard and X-PO entered the t.v. room. X-PO had various documents in his claws. “Good to see you again, X-PO!” I called.
“Nice to see you too,” returned X-PO. “I wish the circumstances were better.”
“What’s up?” asked Emily. X-PO laid out the documents.
“Let’s just say that Shocker Rift may be up to something,” he began. “Scorpainia sent out some explorers to gather data on five key universes. I’ve been monitoring for the reports but, for whatever reason, neither side has contacted each other.”
“So? It could be background interference,” I countered.
“I thought so too,” replied X-PO, “until Batman reported seeing Shocker Rift Saucers fly through one rift and out another.”
“I don’t see Shocker Rift,” guessed Tanisha, “as people who would just buzz a populated area.”
“No, they aren’t,” I agreed.
“And you’d be right,” confirmed X-PO. “I’ve managed to get ahold of why the Tarlaxians were exploring other universes. Turns out, they’re scouting for a potential Tarlax 15 in case they need to move again.” He waved a claw over the documents to indicate that what he talked about was in them.
“Should we even be looking at this?” asked Victor. “This seems like top secret stuff.”
“They’re marked with the Secret Seal,” observed Famine as she munched on a chocolate bar. “Not even we Horsemen have the clearance needed to see it. Only the reigning monarch and a few trusted Tarlaxians are allowed access.”
“I wouldn’t worry so much,” whispered Death. “It’s not like anyone’s gonna post this on social media.” Charline’s eyes went wide as she hit the back button on her tablet. “…Seriously?” asked Death.
“As I recall, you guys have the most experience in travelling the multiverse and have a new ship that can go between dimensions,” remembered X-PO.
“Yes, the Virginia can go to other universes,” I confirmed. “You were there when we remodeled it from its sphere to an actual ship.”
“When do we leave then?” asked X-PO.
“I don’t recall inviting you,” I remarked.
“Megumi, the multiverse has a vested interest in seeing that it’s protected,” argued X-PO. “As someone who wants that interest to succeed, I’m coming with you.”
“That’s nice, X-PO,” I countered, “but I’m a little worried about a portal operator abandoning his post.”
“Megumi, did you really think I wouldn’t get my replacement as I went with you?” asked X-PO. “Elphaba, Chell, Rusty, the Brigadier, they want to see Vorton again.” I opened my mouth to argue again, then sighed.
“I suppose you can do more on this adventure,” I conceded. “In fact, I think we all need our robots. Kit-10, see if you can get Lexicon, Pup-X5, and R9-D7. Veterans of the Vortech Wars, who wants another journey around…?”
“WAIT!” called Moon-kyung. “Who said anything about JUST you veterans? I wanna go!”
“Wait a minute!” I began.
“There may be people in need of help,” interjected Victor. “I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to see them hurt.”
“Nobody does,” I agreed, “but…”
“And you’re gonna need someone who knows their way around weapons,” interrupted Liam.
“I’ve used weapons!” protested Richard.
“Besides, we want to see what the multiverse is like!” called Alesandro.
“You can see it just fine in…” argued Livia.
“And I SO want to meet Batman and the others!” cheered Colleen.
“GUYS!” I finally called. Everyone quieted down. “I appreciate that you new guys want to see the multiverse but we don’t know what’s going on in those universes. This could all be for nothing.”
“I have to side with the newbies,” interjected Emmanuel. “This may be the perfect opportunity to show the multiverse off if there’s nothing going on. The last time we went through the dimensions, it wasn’t exactly ‘happy-fun-time’. I’d like to go when we’re not being shot at.”
“Besides,” remarked Death, “if it IS nothing, then we just fix the trouble and help the explorers reestablish communications with Tarlax 14. And, on another note, we’ve been getting a…feeling.” That caught my attention.
“Feeling?” I asked.
“Yeah,” confirmed Lacey. “The five of us have had a feeling that the aspects we represent, war, plague, chaos, starvation, and death, are going out of whack. Sometimes it’s because of some interdimensional power, other times, it’s just someone not in their universe. We’d like to check if it’s the latter as we hope.”
“…All right,” I decided, “we’ll split up into teams according to our houses. X-PO, you’re with my house. Kit-10, once Gandalf joins us, you’re going with War and her students. I want R9-D7 to go with House Pestilence when Hongo arrives. Pup-X5 and Wyldstyle will go with Famine’s house. Lacey, do you mind taking Batman and Lexicon?”
“Don’t mind at all,” replied Lacey.
“Then let’s get Batman, Hongo, Wyldstyle and Gandalf,” I declared. “I have a feeling we’ll need them.”
I was hosting a party at Wayne Manor, my birthday party, to be exact. 35 years, and still a member of Gotham’s high society. A woman with a distinctive feline feel to her dress approached me. It was Selina Kyle, AKA Catwoman. “Hey, lover,” she purred. “Happy Birthday.”
“Thanks,” I replied. I noticed the necklace she was wearing, a ruby inside a distinct cat’s eye design. “Which museum did you ‘borrow’ that from?”
“Har har,” hissed Selina. “Babs gave it to me. Check with her if you don’t believe me.”
“I may do that…later,” I remarked. “Where’s Harley? I thought she was coming with you.”
“She was,” answered Selina, “but something came up. Some sort of emergency with Pamela. She called in the entire Suicide Squad. From what I heard; it was something to do with Little Shop of Horrors.”
“She’s probably mad the plant didn’t win,” I guessed. We then danced for a while, then the party started winding down. Alfred was bidding the guests goodbye, thanking them for coming. Selina stole a kiss before leaving.
“She’d make a fine Mrs. Batman,” sighed Alfred.
“Maybe,” I dismissed. I headed up to my study to see a rift open. “Okay, what now?!” I protested. Just then, Tonje stepped through.
“God kveld,” (Good evening) she greeted.
“At least you aren’t a saucer,” I remarked. “What’s going on?”
“There’s some multiversal trouble going on concerning Tarlaxian explorers,” explained Tonje. “The Horsemen are thinking that it’s putting their respective aspects out of whack. Want to come?”
“Sure, crime’s been at an all-time low since the Joker stayed with Hiro,” I answered. “Let me just get changed.” I stepped into a wardrobe and let machines change me into my costume. Once I had my cowl adjusted, I stepped out as the Dark Knight. “Let’s get going,” I rasped.
“May I persuade you to take a sandwich, Master Bruce?” asked Alfred.
“I’ll get something on the way,” I replied. My father-figure sighed.
“Then, good luck,” he bid.
Sitting on the outskirts of Bricksburg isn’t my idea of fun. When all the realms in my universe finally came together, I thought it would mean something more, but there were those that don’t want to build something new, sound a little too similar to Lord Business. I idly looked around to see numbers around objects and just made a small motorcycle that didn’t even make noise. I sighed. Somehow, it was more fun during the Vortech Wars. “Maybe I SHOULD be a DJ,” I mused to myself.
“I’m sure you’d be good at it,” called a voice. I whirled around, constructing a giant staff with a boxing glove on both ends, and leveled my new weapon at the person behind me. “…Bonjour,” gulped the guy.
“Emmanuel?!” I yelped. “What are you doing here?!” I lowered the staff, letting Emmanuel relax.
“Trouble in the multiverse,” he replied. “Want to come?”
“Let me just let my friends know where I’m going,” I answered. I quickly found a paper and pencil and scrawled a note, then built a machine that carried the note to my friends. “Let’s get going! I was getting bored!” I urged Emmanuel.
“We French call it Ennui,” chuckled Emmanuel as he led me to the rift he used.
I was enjoying the clean air of the Shire. After Sauron and Saruman stayed on with Shocker Rift, Mordor was left empty. Gondor easily claimed it and made it into something better. Frodo enjoys his life as a former Ring-bearer, although the wound he received from Weathertop still smarted. There was peace in Middle-Earth, a peace long enjoyed by all races. The Elves no longer saw a reason to move to the Undying Lands. I was enjoying a pipe of Longbottom Leaf, a favorite of Merry. I then heard footsteps coming towards me, the footsteps of someone of the race of Men. Hobbit footsteps are highly distinctive. I turned around to see an old friend from the Vortech Wars approach me. “Good Morning, Young Hiroki,” I called. Hiroki arched an eyebrow.
“What do you mean?” he asked. “Do you wish me a good morning; or mean that it’s a good morning whether I want it or not; or that you feel good this morning; or that it is a morning to be good on?”
“…I can see why Bilbo paused after I said that 60 years ago,” I muttered. “In any case, his answer’s the same as mine, all of them at once. And a very fine morning for a pipe of tobacco out of doors.”
“I would join you in just contemplating the scenery,” replied Hiroki, reminding me that he doesn’t smoke, “but I’m afraid I have pressing business that requires your help. We think we’ve found Shocker Rift.” At that point, I became alarmed. Not wanting to show it on my face, I emptied my pipe and accepted Hiroki’s help in standing back up.
“I presume your sister sent you,” I guessed.
“Exactly,” confirmed Hiroki.
I was still getting used to that new…“Rider Check-in” that Sento had made. It’s a social media platform for Kamen Riders. I could never seem to get it to sync with my phone. As I was fiddling, I heard the familiar “YEE!” of a Shocker Combatman. I then heard a crowd screaming in terror and saw the crowd running from an old Shocker Monster I once fought, Shiomaneking, a fiddler-crab based cyborg with a massive claw for a left hand. “Why do YOU always come back?!” I snapped when I saw him.
“Shocker obviously sees a use for me, Takeshi Hongo!” laughed Shiomaneking. He commanded various Combatmen to attack. I knocked a few aside, then put my left fist to my hip as I thrust my right arm to the other side. I slowly rotated the arm to the right.
“Rider…” I began. I then closed my right hand and placed it at my hip while thrusting my left arm to the right. The shield around my belt opened as the fan started turning. “HENSHIN!” I called. I jumped and the suit formed, changing me into Kamen Rider Ichigō, the first Kamen Rider! I knocked more Combatmen aside and went straight for Shiomaneking. He fired his flammable foam, almost setting me on fire, but I rolled out of the way. Shiomaneking raised his claw, ready to strike.
“HENSHIN!” announced a voice. We looked up to see Touché tackle him. She then got him into a headlock. “Konnichiwa!” (Hello!) she called.
“Konnichiwa, Touché-san,” I returned. “Social call?”
“I wish!” replied Touché. “What animal is this guy based off of?”
“The fiddler-crab,” I answered.
“Mmm, crab!” she sighed. “Really good with butter. Now, I’ve only heard of people keeping fiddler-crabs as pets, so I guess this mook won’t be good.”
“YOU’RE INSANE, GAIJIN!” (foreigner) shouted Shiomaneking as he broke the hold and flung Touché aside. Touché had her foil out in ranged mode and fired, keeping Shiomaneking from regaining balance.
“My turn!” I called as I leapt into the air. I then stuck my foot out. “RIDER KICK!” I shouted as my foot connected with Shiomaneking. He started sparking as I landed behind him.
“Shocker Gundan BANZAI!” (Long live the Shocker army!) he proclaimed before exploding.
“Wow, he was THAT dedicated to the cause,” muttered Touché.
“And this isn’t the first time I’ve beaten him,” I remarked as we cancelled our transformations. Emily’s dress expanded as her armor disappeared and she adjusted her hairpiece. “Last time I fought him was with Takeru. Even then, he fought him with a Super Sentai team, Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger, (Animal Squadron Beast King Ranger) I believe they were called.”
“Much as I’d like to hear about past Kamen Rider battles,” interjected Emily, “I’m afraid we don’t have the time. Like I said, this isn’t a social call. Shocker Rift is making a move. Want to fight them like old times?”
“Delighted,” I replied.
“Then, let’s go!” cheered Emily as she led me to the rift.
“Report,” I ordered from the saucer.
“Sources located,” reported Dalek Drone 2248292.
“Projections indicate,” supplied Metalran, “that key forces will reveal where the sources are.”
“And the journey through Hell?” I asked.
“YEE!” (The girl has been located!) reported a Combatman.
“Excellent,” I praised. Igura then entered the bridge.
“The device is prepared,” she reported.
“More good news,” I replied.
“Battle computer estimates an 87.4% chance,” called Dalek Drone 2248292, “that the Vortex Riders will intervene.”
“If I know Megumi,” I countered, “we can, at least, up that to 97.3%. However, I give you my word, there’s a 0% chance of victory for her!” I activated the comms to the transporter. “Sauron, proceed to conquer 5-P-L-4-T-0-0-N! Dalek Drone 8872345, move off to D-1-5-N-3-Y! Joker, proceed to T-3-4-M-F-0-R-T-R-3-5-5-2! Cybermen, you’re cleared for 5-4-1-L-0-R-M-0-0-N! Once Hell’s been cleared, she will…”
“Danger!” warned Dalek Drone 2248292. “Danger! Target is stronger than believed!”
“YEE! YEE!” (ALERT! HEATHER IS SLAUGHTERING HER WAY OUT OF HELL!) reported the Combatman.
“More than that, she’s flown by our fleet!” called Igura. “She’s caused an energy shockwave! This fleet is now in danger!”
“Spatio-temporal feedback building!” warned Dalek Drone 2248292. “Two of our ships have been destroyed! Three more losing hull integrity!”
“Advise our base that Heather has gone rogue!” I ordered.
“YEE!” (At once!) called the Combatman.
“Deploy an escape rift!” I ordered Dalek Drone 2248292. “Activate full shielding and advise the remainder of the fleet to do the same!”
“I obey!” obliged Dalek Drone 2248292.
“Order all forces to hold off on conquest until we’re at a safer location!” I directed Igura.
“Yes, Great Leader,” she replied as she relayed the instructions.
“Escape rift passes through shockwave,” reported Dalek 2248292. “Stability not guaranteed!”
“Three more ships gone!” reported Igura. “five more failing in hull integrity!”
“Advise the remaining ship to follow us,” I ordered. Dalek Drone 2248292 transmitted the instructions to the remaining ship.
“YEE!” (Escape rift collapsing behind us!) called the Combatman.
“Increase speed!” I ordered. A transmission from the last ship came through.
“Trapped in rift!” called the Dalek on the other end. “Alert! ALERT! GYAAAGH!” The ship was destroyed as we escaped to our base.
“Report!” I barked.
“Hull integrity at 75%,” called Dalek Drone 2248292. “We are the only survivor of Heather’s journey past us.”
“What kind of rage is she packing?!” yelped Igura.
“YEE! YEE!” (Her trajectory has been calculated. She’s making a beeline to 5-U-P-3-R-M-4-R-1-0.) reported the Combatman.
“Even though she’s going to the universe we want her to be in, she’s most likely too focused on Emily,” I muttered. “Inform the invasion forces that we proceed as normal.”
“I obey!” obliged Dalek Drone 2248292. It transmitted the necessary instructions to our invasion forces. If Heather manages to bungle this, no biggie. We’ll still have that universe’s source in our grasp. More stable than a Foundation Element.
“Your Majesty?” asked Turretorg as he entered my office. I turned to him.
“Is there any word?” I quizzed.
“No, Ma’am,” replied Turretorg. I groaned in desperation.
“We were supposed to hear back from them over two hours ago,” I muttered. “Are we receiving ANYTHING?”
“We got OUR communications systems up,” reported Turretorg. “We just received a signal from each ship. They’re delayed, of course, but we’re gotten readings from the ships and their crews.”
“And my call to After Academy?” I inquired.
“X-PO already made them AND the Vortex Riders aware of the situation,” explained Turretorg. “During the little security blackout an hour ago, he snuck in and stole the documents relating to this problem.”
“I’d turn him into scrap for that,” I snarled, “but we don’t have the time. What about my proposal to Sludgiona to make more Keystones?”
“For now, it’s at your discretion, if you want them made,” replied Turretorg.
“Contact some observatories,” I ordered. “Give them the coordinates. See if we can’t get a better picture of what’s going on out there. If we haven’t heard back in a couple hours…I want production on the new Keystones to begin.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” confirmed Turretorg. He hurried off to obey.
It took an hour of deliberation for the Cendeberon jury before they returned with their decision. “Does the jury have a verdict?” asked Legowltor.
“We, the Jury,” answered one of the Cendeberons, “find the Defendant, the Experimental Portal Operator of Vorton, guilty of willfully endangering students of After Academy.”
“Then, as Judge presiding over this case,” boomed Legowltor, “I sentence X-PO to the maximum prison sentence. A full century in Multi-Max with no chance of parole.” The resounding bang of his gavel echoed throughout the courtroom, affirming his decision. “Court is adjourned.” The Bailiff disabled X-PO’s ability to move on his own and carried him off to Multi-Max, where the worst criminals of the multiverse were incarcerated. We filed out after him, our heads hanging low. Never had I felt so betrayed. Richard had his hands on my shoulders in reassurance. X-PO was taken into the police car and it sped off, disappearing into a portal. Legowltor then approached us. “I understand how hard it is,” he sighed. “His role in the Vortech Wars is known to me. I do regret what I had to do…”
“Like you said,” I mumbled, “you had to do it.”
“…Yes, I did,” confirmed Legowltor sadly.
“Oh, for the love of…!” groaned a voice. It was Edgeworth’s.
“Is there a problem?” asked Legowltor.
“My multiversal plane has been cancelled due to a convergence of two universes about to occur!” explained Edgeworth.
“Well, my ship can get you home safely,” I offered.
“Hold it!” called Edgeworth. “Does it have a cloaking device like a multiversal plane would?”
“Well, we haven’t installed one yet, but it WILL get you home,” I replied.
“Objection!” dismissed Edgeworth. “Any vessel outside of my native universe that has no means of getting me there discreetly is a no-go!”
“Objection overruled, Mr. Edgeworth,” I replied. “It’s better than the alternative.”
“I don’t see how,” remarked Edgeworth.
“Well, it involves this first class ticket on a plane that CAN get you home…” I began.
“Now that sounds delightful!” interrupted Edgeworth. “Why wouldn’t I want that?”
“Because you’d be sitting next to the person who bought it for the entire trip,” I answered.
“Edgy-poo, I’m here!” called a voice. “Come to Wendy!”
“Permission to come aboard!” decided Edgeworth.
“All traffic will end!” barked a Dalek’s voice. A couple of people were then shot with a Dalek gunstick! They fell as us Riders got ready.
“Rider…” began Hongo.
“HENSHIN!” we called. As we transformed, we dashed towards the source of the shots. There was a new Dalek themed Kamen Rider, but the belt looked different to Caan’s. It had a miniature version of a Dalek’s limbs that stuck to the side of a wheel while the Dalek Gaia Memory rested behind the wheel. I could guess who was wearing the suit.
“Metaltron, I presume,” I guessed.
“I am Kamen Rider Ex!” barked the Rider in a Dalek voice. “Multiversal traffic will cease unless you surrender the Experimental Portal Operator!”
“I hate to spoil your fun…actually, no, I don’t, X-PO’s on his way to Multi-Max,” I replied.
“Bring him to me!” commanded Metaltron, Kamen Rider Ex.
“Not a chance!” I declared. “He’s betrayed my trust in him, he’s going to suffer the consequences!”
“…Then you are of no use!” barked Ex as she leveled her new gun. Just then, she was tackled by Elkrandek! As she picked herself up, Elkrandek stood in defiance of her.
“Trying to get my former client under your wing?” he hissed. “I think not!”
“You are a Defense Attorney!” barked Ex. “Your duty is to your client, no matter its verdict!”
“My duty is to the truth!” argued Elkrandek. “Given what X-PO revealed about himself in court earlier today, I see no reason to continue this farce!” He took out a belt similar to Den-O’s and fastened it to his waist. Mountaineer music played as he held out his pass. “Henshin!” he called. He then swiped the pass.
“Rampage Form!” called the belt. His armor appeared and a moose traveled down the face before folding in such a way that the antlers became his eyes.
“The truth above all!” he declared. “You face Kamen Rider Stampede!”
“EXTERMINATE!” shouted Ex as she fired. We all got out of the way, then managed to get in close so she wouldn’t use that gun of hers. Elkrandek, Kamen Rider Stampede, swung a punch to her gut while Batman kicked her head. She was momentarily disoriented until she took her Gaia Memory out and inserted it into the gun.
“DALEK! MAXIMUM DRIVE!” called the gun. She pulled the trigger and a large blast of energy hit behind us, knocking us off our feet!
“This is getting us nowhere!” hissed Stampede.
“We have to keep her still!” I planned aloud. “Can you distract her?”
“Permit me!” called Legowltor’s voice. He charged in while his gavel grew and he slammed it into Ex.
“…That works,” I replied. “GUYS! NOW!” We activated our respective gimmicks while Ichigō leapt into the air.
“Final attack!” called the Vortex Drivers.
“Full Charge!” announced Stampede’s belt. Energy gathered around his foot as he ran towards Ex.
“RIDER KICK!”
“RIDER ROYAL KICK!”
“RIDER GUARD KICK!”
“RIDER TOUCHÉ KICK!” Rusty fired a low yield blast from her gun, Gandalf fired a magic blast, Batman threw a batarang, Wyldstyle had built a large cannon and fired, Legowltor slammed his giant gavel onto the ground and created a shockwave, and we Riders kicked our target, causing Ex to explode and the Dalek Memory to fall out of the Driver, making her revert back into Metaltron. She grabbed the Memory again and took out a communicator.
“Requesting immediate retrieval!” she shouted into it. A portal then opened beneath her and she fell into it. We returned to our civilian forms and caught our breath.
“I must admit,” panted Legowltor, “that was exciting! I’ve never had a decent fight in ages, not since I came across a fair maiden. She was a human of Edgeworth’s universe, a beautiful girl by the name of Wendy.”
“Leggy?” asked a woman’s voice. We turned up to see an old woman in a security guard’s outfit in an embrace with Edgeworth who was trying to get away. This was Wendy Oldbag from the Ace Attorney franchise. Legowltor’s eyes went wide.
“Sweet Wendy?” he gasped. Wendy let Edgeworth go as she and Legowltor ran up to each other. They ran a hand down the other’s cheek before committing to a kiss. “Wendy, it’s really you!” cheered Legowltor.
“Oh, Legowltor, it’s been too long!” replied Wendy, the tears of happiness forming in her eyes. “I’m so sorry you have to see me like this, an old, grey woman.”
“Come now,” countered Legowltor. “You are as radiant as when we first met! That, I promise!” While they were catching up, we motioned for Edgeworth to join us. He had no objections to that.
“Oh, Leggy, why did you not come to see my folks that night?” asked Wendy.
“I went to Apartment 2B like you said,” replied Legowltor, “but you and your folks weren’t…”
“2B?!” yelped Wendy. “YOU DEAF IDIOT! I NEVER SAID 2B!”
“Oh, yes, you did!” insisted Legowltor. The argument continued long after we returned to the Virginia to take Edgeworth home. Elkrandek had decided to use the train he was living on.
No Sources, no new allies, no belt, no dead Vortex Riders, my situation was NOT good. The Daleks were getting angrier and angrier by the minute, the Combatmen’s morale was sub-par, and my fleet was still in the process of replenishing its numbers. To be frank, I just sat there in a stew. As I stared, my comms chimed. “Speak,” I grumbled.
“This is Igura,” replied a voice I loved hearing. “We have something for you in the Science Lab.”
“On my way,” I declared as I left my office. I strode through the corridors and passed by a couple of Combatmen.
“Hiro-sama,” said one. …What?
“You there!” I barked. The Combatman stopped and turned to face me. I noticed that his armor looked a lot more sturdy. “Did you say something?” I asked.
“I did,” replied the Combatman. “Igura-sama upgraded all of our vocalizers. Now we’re not stuck saying ‘YEE!’ all the time.”
“I take it she upgraded the armor?” I guessed.
“She did,” answered the Combatman.
“…Very well,” I finished. “Carry on.” Just a few more turns in the corridors and I arrived at the Science Lab where she and a few Scientist Daleks were working on something. Their blue casings gleamed in the lights of the Lab. I cleared my throat to announce my presence. Igura turned to face me. “I just spoke to an upgraded Combatman,” I revealed. “Concern for our numbers?”
“We can’t afford any more casualties,” explained Igura. “We need better armor until our numbers are at acceptable levels.”
“Understandable,” I mused. I then noticed what they were working on. “…That’s an Android Phone,” I observed.
“No, it’s your new Conquest Driver,” corrected Igura. “The a.i in the thing is limited, so no unhelpful commentary.”
“That’s a plus,” I replied. “So, how does it work?”
“Scientist 3387948,” called Igura to one of the Scientist Daleks, “activate the presentation.”
“I obey!” barked Scientist 3387948. It keyed in a command and a screen came down from the ceiling. It then started projecting how it works while Igura explained the pictures.
“First, slide back the panel on the phone’s back and insert your i.d. tag,” she instructed. “Next, key in the three-digit numeric passcode that you are going to set up when first activating the phone. Then, press the button on the bottom of the screen to have it summon your suit. It won’t put itself on until you say ‘Henshin!’ Once you say it, insert the phone onto the swivel and swing it down, then to the left until the phone clicks in the harness. The suit will then put itself onto you.”
“Is it ready for testing?” I asked.
“Whenever you are,” replied Igura as she handed me the belt with the phone harness for the buckle. My guns rested at their usual places. I set up the phone, inserted the i.d. tag into the back, typed in my new passcode (073), and pressed the button before thrusting it out in front of me.
“Henshin!” I called. I then put it onto the swivel and moved it until the phone’s screen was facing outwards. The suit then formed. “A perfect fit!” I praised. “And the Super Charge and Dai Super Charge sequences?”
“Press the button once for Super Charge,” explained Igura. “Press it again for Dai Super Charge. Press it twice in rapid succession while in your base form to immediately activate Dai Super Charge. Try it out.” I pressed the button twice as Igura instructed.
“Dai Super Charge!” I announced. My armor bulked up and exploded off of me to reveal my Kamen Rider Rift armor. “Perfect! You’ve done remarkably!” I then noticed a new device. “And what’s this, hm?”
“The Daleks had gotten schematics on that Sonic Screwdriver the Doctor uses,” replied Igura. “So, in the interests of science and our arsenal, I decided to make some for the troops. I’m just adding a few features the Doctor would never approve of.”
“Ah, so the troops are getting their own magic wands?” I mused.
“…Like I said, Sonic Screwdriver,” corrected Igura.
“Call it whatever you will,” I replied, “I say it’s a magical device that can perform a multitude of tasks with a simple spell, such as unlocking doors or acting as a crude laser. It’s a magic wand.”
“Well, what you’re holding,” grumbled Igura, “is one of our failed attempts. …Don’t give me that look! I tried studying Gallifreyan technology under the circumstances, but if it’s beyond the Daleks, it’s beyond us!”
“Nothing is beyond the…!” argued another Scientist Dalek.
“You, shut up!” ordered Igura. She turned back to me. “In any event,” she continued, “half of the circuitry inside a Sonic Screwdriver is actually bigger than the shell. Much like the TARDIS, it’s bigger on the inside and, while the Daleks HAVE dabbled in engineering dimensions, they’ve just been proceeding on what little bits they’ve taken from the Time Lords.”
“Yeah, the Time Lords don’t really share their scientific secrets,” I conceded. “Er, how do I…?” I gestured at the suit.
“Hold the button down for three seconds,” instructed Igura. “That’s standard for whatever form or Steel you’re in.” I did so and my suit disappeared.
“How are we doing on conventional weapons?” I asked.
“Much better in that area,” reported Igura. “If you would come with me to the firing range.” We went out of the Lab.
“Tell me, again, why we needed this place?!” I growled at Caan.
“Come now,” replied Caan, “don’t you want to turn your prison into a palace?” We had set up shop in the GeoComTex Vault, Van Statten’s base of operations. We had to exterminate anyone still dwelling there.
“What I want,” I argued, “is to return to my original form!”
“And you WILL,” assured Caan, “once we destroy Vortech.”
“We’ve lost our chance of having a portal operator to find him!” I hissed.
“Not really,” replied Caan. “There are OTHERS, others that I have contacted.”
“…Can we trust them?” I asked.
“We can trust them to do their job in finding Vortech,” answered Caan. “When the time is right, we will strike. Hopefully, they will stand with us and not against us.”
“Can we really trust that this…‘Convergence’ is going to happen?” I muttered.
“We can,” chuckled Caan. “On top of me seeing it, her future straight up confirmed it for us. I can still see it. She will be fighting Vortech with a childish red robot and a black kitsune.”
After Edgeworth was returned home, we had a celebration party on Vorton. At least, everyone else did. I just sat in my normal clothes and stared off into space on the upper level, the minor Gateways behind me. My mind was reeling from what happened after we retrieved the Sources the first time. Just then, a voice interrupted my thoughts, Alesandro’s voice, to be precise. “Megumi, what are you doing just sitting alone for?!” he asked. “We defeated Shocker Rift! That’s cause for celebration, ¿verdad?” (True?)
“I don’t feel like celebrating,” I mumbled.
“…¿Por qué?” (Why?) asked Alesandro.
“Alesandro, I hurt you in so many ways,” I replied.
“That was X-PO’s doing,” answered Alesandro. “We’ve all learned that.”
“I still acted against my conscience,” I countered. “I kept something from you new guys and it almost tore us apart. X-PO may have orchestrated it, but most of the time, I was the one who made the decision and I was the one who made you feel manipulated. X-PO saw us as the means to an end and I swore I would never view you guys as such. Now, here we are because I broke my vow.”
“You’re not X-PO,” replied Alesandro. “You’re not Hiro. You’re not Vortech. The best way to NOT be any of them is to wake up and hang out with your friends. Come on down and celebrate with us.” I considered, then grinned.
“Let me get dressed up,” I answered. I headed down to my old room during the Vortech Wars and got into my more regal dress. First came the top of the gown, then the skirts, then my sleeves, then my makeup, and finally the crown. I then joined everyone and danced the night away with Richard. He then pulled me to the center of the Gateway room.
“Everyone,” he began, “we’ve all had our ups and downs here. Together, we’ve persevered. However, Megumi and I can’t do this as we are.” Richard, what are you saying? “Not when we can take it a step further. Megumi, as you know, I’m terrible with fancy words. So, I’ll just ask plainly.” He then got down on one knee and pulled out a little box. My eyes went wide as I guessed what was going to happen next! He then slowly opened the box and revealed…a ring with a little diamond on it! “Hishikawa Megumi, will you be my wife?” The tears of joy came down my face as I held Richard in a tight embrace!
“YES! YES! A THOUSAND TIMES, YES!” I answered. I released him so he could put the ring on my finger. The crowd cheered and clapped at the scene before them. Kaitlyn, Kaede, hang on just a minute longer! Mommy and Daddy have a wedding to plan!
“Look at all the junk!” breathed Guard as we entered the citadel.
“If I didn’t know why Vortech was collecting it all,” mused Battle, “I’d call him a hoarder.”
“There’s just one problem,” remarked Wyldstyle. “Where’s MetalBeard?!” She then remembered. “Oh, and your friends too, of course.”
“I don’t know,” replied Batman. “It’s empty.” He was right. There was nobody there!
“So were the Mines of Moria when I arrived with the Fellowship,” warned Gandalf. “Be on your guard.” Wise words.
“I always am!” declared Batman.
“Is that…the Keyblade?!” I asked.
“It is!” confirmed Sengoku. “How they separated it from Sora, I’ll never know!”
“That’s not all they stole,” called Ichigō. “Look!” We looked up to see a spaceship above us.
“A Prometheus-class starship!” breathed Touché.
“Look at the name and registry!” called Guard. We got a good look. It was NCC-1701-G. The U.S.S. Enterprise-H!
“That name must be a Foundation Element!” I guessed. “How’s Starfleet gonna explain this?!” Someone cleared their throat and we turned to see Lord Vortech sitting on his throne.
“Ah-ah-ah!” he chided. “Those aren’t for you!”
“Vortech, you’re playing with fire!” I warned. “We need to take them back to their respective universes! These ARE for us!”
“No,” replied Vortech as he opened multiple rifts, “THESE are for you!” Vortexons came out of the rifts and charged at us! We defended ourselves.
“What’s the idea with the Vortexons?!” snapped Seeker. We kept them back.
“Why have an army if you have to do everything yourself?” asked Vortech. He summoned a giant gun and fired. “Did you honestly think you could just wander into my palace and steal your friends back?”
“That’s the general idea!” replied Wyldstyle. “Set the prisoners free! You can’t hold them forever!”
“It’s over for you now!” declared Vortech. “Give up, now!”
“Not a chance!” I answered. It was then I realized that Vortech was slowly turning himself into mist! The mist was gathering around us! Thank goodness Arch had a bright idea and swapped i.d. tags. Sento had given us the secrets of his forms while X-PO was making the map. Arch swapped out his i.d. tag for the Build one and selected a form.
“Build HawkGatling Steel!” announced his belt. The Build Driver’s voice then resounded throughout the temple.
“TENKUU NO ABARENBOU!” (The Rampage of the Skies!) it called. “HAWKGATLING! YEAH!” He then fired off multiple rounds from his bow and the mist released us. A fire tornado appeared with Vortech in the center!
“I am one with the elements!” he boasted. “I control them!” He then sent out some fire rings, decreasing the power of the tornado before he was just in a fire shield.
“Gandalf!” I called.
“Elemental Keystone, activate!” announced Gandalf. “Element of water, Royal!” I then doused the shield. X-PO chose this moment to call us.
“Hey, guys!” he called. “Soooo, this is gonna be a pain, buuuuuut the rift calculations are taking longer than I thought. Use this to keep Lord Vortech preoccupied.” He then opened a rift to give Decade a Rider Card. It had my image on it.
“Minions, deal with these interlopers!” ordered Vortech. More Vortexons appeared and attacked. When we cleared them, Vortech made himself into mist as he summoned that giant gun again. “You cannot hide!” We were snagged again! Decade had managed to turn his book into another configuration and used another card.
“Attack Ride: Blast!” announced the Decadriver. It fired off multiple shots into the mist. The mist yelped in pain as it became an ice tornado. It sent rings out, decreasing its size until it was just Vortech in an ice shield.
“My turn!” declared Decade.
“Element of fire, Decade!” announced Gandalf. As the red aura surrounded him, Decade held up the new card walked up behind me.
“This may tickle a bit,” he warned.
“Eh?” I asked. He then inserted the new card into the Decadriver.
“Final Form Ride: Royal!” it announced. Decade then mimed opening my backside and aaaaaaaAAAAAARRGRHRGHERGHR! My head folded into my chest! My arms raised above my shoulders, sprouting blades and forming a sword! My legs twisted up at the knees, making the handle and cross-guard! I turned into a sword and was in a lot of pain!
“Talk about Targetmasters!” joked Guard. I was in too much pain to ask. I then heard the Decadriver say something else.
“Final Attack Ride: R-R-R-Royal!” it called. I then felt fire go up my arms and I felt myself being swung downwards! I then unfolded back into my human shape, my pain subsiding. I walked up to Decade and slapped him.
“NEVER DO THAT AGAIN!” I roared. “THAT WAS TOO PAINFUL!” Vortech then tried again.
“I am everywhere!” he boasted as he turned into mist. “I am all powerful!”
“Nope!” called Kämpfer. “Nipping this in the bud!” He fired multiple shots into the mist and it formed Vortech’s fire tornado again. I was still controlling water, so I doused it once the fire rings passed us. We then attacked Vortech, but he knocked us aside with his staff.
“NO! NO! This will not happen! I am Lord Vortech!” shouted Vortech. The rift X-PO created then opened and started sucking Vortech in, but…well, X-PO can explain.
“Ah, the old creating-a-giant-spider-web-to-stop-from-tumbling-into-a-massive-dimensional-rift act!” he mused over the comms. “Megumi, your Keystone! Now, hurry up! The rift won’t be stable for long! Sorry! I’m kind of bad at this! I fell asleep in Dimensional Rift-making Class!”
“I’m sure it will be sufficient, X-PO!” I assured. “Locate Keystone, activate! Initiate rift detection!” I found it. “Identify source of rift!” The information beamed into my head. “Locate help from D-0-C-T-0-R-W-H-0!” A Special Weapons Dalek and a standard Dalek in khaki-green, a Union Jack under its eyestalk, and an army utility belt from WWII.
“I am your soldier!” declared the standard Dalek.
“As am I,” reported the Special Weapons Dalek in a deeper Dalek voice.
“No Daleks!” snapped Battle. “I absolutely draw the line!” I wasn’t about to look a gift-horse in the mouth, though.
“Daleks, can you shoot the web Vortech spun himself?” I quizzed
“We can!” assured the Special Weapons Dalek.
“Do it,” I ordered.
“We obey!” called both Daleks. They took aim and fired! Vortech was about to be sucked in! Then…it happened. He closed the rift behind him and landed on the floor in a superhero landing pose!
“I think this has gone on long enough!” he chuckled as he dusted himself off. That was when his minions grabbed us and restrained us, cancelling our transformations. He then opened rifts to reveal Robin, MetalBeard, Frodo, and Ichimonji!
“BATMAN!” shouted Robin.
“Gandalf!” screamed Frodo.
“Wyldstyle!” called MetalBeard.
“Hongo!” yelled Ichimonji.
“Friendship is a weakness,” boasted Vortech. “You should have just destroyed your Foundation Elements.” He then called up someone. “Hiro, how fares the siege?”
“It fares well!” replied Hiro’s voice. “We’ve found the Element vault and have scuttled Vader’s Star Destroyer!” I then became worried and switched my comms on.
“Anyone! Report!” I shouted.
“Guys, it’s X-PO!” replied the person on the other end. “Vorton’s under attack! It’s times like this when I wish I knew how to fight and not make sarcastic comments!” I then heard a struggle and the Joker’s laugh. A new caller came in.
“This is Rusty!” answered the new caller. “We’ve been overrun! The Elements we have are being taken!”
“Correction,” corrected a voice I loathe, “the Elements you’ve HAD have BEEN taken!” Hiro and his forces had appeared out of a rift and set our Foundation Elements beneath the shield in the floor.
“Here you go, Boss!” called the Joker.
“What did you do to X-PO, Joker?!” demanded Batman.
“I put a smile on his face!” replied the Joker. The Foundation Elements then rose on pillars where they were set and orbited the Enterprise. They made an energy cyclone that went straight to the floor and revealed what was beneath a set of sliding panels.
“BEHOLD!” boomed Vortech as the object came up from beneath the forcefield. “THE FOUNDATION OF ALL DIMENSIONS!” I must say, the end goal was NOT what I expected.
“All this,” muttered Batman, “for a green square?!”
“I think I know what that square is!” answered Richard. We turned to him. “We’re just Legos to Vortech, for him to manipulate as he sees fit! That green square is just the starters kit, the place for him to begin making worlds!” Vortech then landed on the square. Energy coursed through him!
“I can feel everything!” he cried. “Control everything!” Just then, the cages opened and the occupants orbited Vortech!
“Hey!” roared Batman. “Give us back our friends!”
“Oh, don’t worry!” replied Vortech. “The last thing I want to do is…” he then spawned a blob of whatever he was made of, “KEEP YOU APART!” He laughed manically as he tossed the blob into the air.
“What is he doing to them?!” wailed Gandalf.
“He’s insane!” called Wyldstyle. Ichimonji, MetalBeard, Robin, and Frodo made contact with the blob as it enveloped them, combining them and other metals and ligaments into a four-headed, winged, sword wielding, cannon-armed, giant monster!
“The next time we mess up,” asked the Riddler to Hiro, “is he going to do that to us?”
“…Let’s not find out the answer to THAT particular riddle, shall we?” suggested the Joker.
“Vortech, where, exactly, does that monstrosity enter into our plan?” asked Hiro. Vortech then chuckled.
“Your services…are no longer required!” declared Vortech.
“…Kisama!” insulted Ambassador Hell.
“YOU’VE DOUBLE-CROSSED THE WRONG MAN, VORTECH!” bellowed Hiro. “Your current numbers against mine make for bad odds!” He loaded his i.d. tag. “HEN…!” He didn’t get very far as Vortech knocked his former flunkies aside.
“Our numbers cannot overwhelm one like Vortech!” called Davros. “We must withdraw!”
“…All hands, retreat!” ordered Hiro. They fled the citadel as ships scrambled to get Shocker Rift away from Vortech.
“MetalBeard!” wailed Wyldstyle. The monstrosity turned to us.
“We are the Quad!” droned the creature with all four heads.
“Robin, stop!” called Batman.
“There is no Robin,” declared the Quad, “only the Quad!”
“Ichimonji, snap out of it!” called Hongo.
“Ichimonji is nothing but a cog for us, the Quad,” droned the Quad. It swung its sword, but a rift opened beneath us.
I couldn’t help but chuckle as they fled my citadel. “You can’t run forever!” I proclaimed. “Every dimension is mine! And YOURS will be the first to suffer!” I decided to enlarge the scale of my new creature, the Quad. Once it was at the correct height, my order was simple. “Destroy them!” I ordered. “And then, destroy their worlds!” As the Quad flew off, I noticed my pocket was lighter. …NOT AGAIN! Now I’m 115,000 studs lighter!
“That back-stabbing, no-good, piece of…!” I snarled as the ship left Foundation Prime. “I’M the one who’s supposed to betray HIM, not the other way around!”
“Evidently,” remarked Igura, “Vortech’s played us for fools. What are your orders?”
“…Find a dimension far enough away for some breathing room,” I ordered the Dalek at the helm. “We need to regroup.”
“I obey!” obliged the Dalek as it began a search for a suitable dimension.
We arrived at Vorton to see it in ruins. Life support was still on, but most of the equipment was under repairs. Sento was busy trying to fix… “X-PO!” cried Wyldstyle.
“No, not another death!” I wailed.
“What have they done to you?!” called Gandalf.
“I guess,” gasped X-PO, “not everyone loves my care-free approach towards protecting the multiverse. Sorry I couldn’t save your…” his voice-box malfunctioned for a bit. “But, I programmed the Gateway,” he continued. “You must stop the Quad! I think this is the end for me, guys.”
“No, don’t talk like that!” I protested. “We’ve got a whole science team to save you!”
“My tech is beyond a lot of scientists,” argued X-PO. “Megumi, try not to blame yourself. I cannot…” his voice finally faded.
“NO!” wailed Wyldstyle. Flora started hugging Brendan, crying. I stumbled backwards, another loss on my hands.
“What do we do?!” asked Gandalf. I didn’t answer.
“…Megumi?” asked Emily. I wiped my face; my sadness being replaced with anger as I allowed myself to turn into Tora-Onna.
“We save our worlds,” I vowed, “and get our friends back!”
“Yeah!” declared Wyldstyle. “And then, we kick Vortech’s butt!”
“At least I made his pocket lighter,” replied Tsukasa. He pulled out a bag of studs. 115,000 was the total, bringing our total to about 4,361,000.
“Tsukasa, see if you can meet with Kiva,” I requested. “Tell him it’s time to gather the Riders. He’ll know which Riders to get.”
“Got it,” confirmed Tsukasa. Rusty opened a rift for him and he went through.
“Track the Quad,” I ordered Elphaba and the Brigadier. “Give me the coordinates and I’ll get us all there. Minna, we’re going at it in full gear!” Hongo struck his pose, we drew our i.d. tags, the Heralds opened their phones, and the Horsemen got their belts ready.
“Rider…!” began Hongo.
“HENSHIN!” we all announced.
I shook my head to clear the impact. My surroundings were…colorful, to say the least. It seemed like an American street in the 20’s. An elderly man came up. He wore a straw hat and a sash that said “Mayor” on it. He was bright and cheerful. “Good Morning!” he cheered
“…Good Morning,” I replied. “I am Hiro Adachi, who are you?”
“I’m Christopher George Weaver!” introduced the man. “The mayor of Main Street, USA!”
“USA?” I repeated. “I’m in America?”
“You look new,” remarked Mayor Weaver. “Are you moving in?”
“I’m…not going to be staying long,” I answered.
“That’s a pity,” sighed Mayor Weaver before putting on his happy face. “Well, in any case, enjoy your visit!” He headed off to his car where his wife was waiting.
“Really, now, Christopher,” she remarked as they pulled away, “don’t you think he needs a doctor?”
“He seemed all right to me,” assured the mayor. They disappeared and I ducked into an alley to raise Foundation Prime.
“Mayday!” I hissed into my comms unit. “Mayday! Mayday! This is a distress call! This is Hiro Adachi, resurrected!” I was met with static. “Damn!” I swore. “I need a Foundation Element’s power to boost the signal!”
“Found one,” reported the Rogue Driver. “Keep walking. I’ll get you there.” I shrugged, then walked down the street. Various cartoon characters were running by alongside humans. I then saw a large castle, white with blue roofs. I was told to go there. Near the portcullis across the moat, I saw a boy with spiky brown hair, oversized yellow shoes, and a goofy expression talking to a woman with blood-red hair, a teal sea star in her hair, and wearing a sea-green dress. She was accompanied by a raven-haired man in princely regalia. “The boy has it,” confirmed the Rogue Driver.
“Excuse me!” I called to the trio. They turned to see me.
“Who are you?” asked the boy.
“Where I’m from,” I chided, “it’s bad manners to ask questions before introducing yourself. In any case, that’s irrelevant. You have an object of immense power?”
“Er, yes, the Keyblade,” stammered the boy.
“Readings of this ‘Keyblade’ match those of a Foundation Element,” reported the Rogue Driver.
“Excellent!” I cheered. I then drew one of my pistols. “I’ll be taking the Keyblade, then.”
“Whoa! WHOA! Okay!” yelped the boy. He then summoned a large key with a yellow guard. “See? Here it is! FIRAGA!” He swiped at the air and threw a large fireball at me! I got out of the way and fired back. It ended in a shoot-out as we circled. The girl didn’t do so, so I wrapped my free arm around her and held the gun to her head.
“Hand over the Keyblade or her dress is stained with something grey, brain-matter grey!” I threatened. Then, it happened. She screamed, making me wince slightly, then…apparently, she wears heels as one of them punctured my foot! I released her and dropped my gun to grab my left foot and hop around in pain saying “ITAI!” loudly. She ran as fast as she could in her heels and dress and buried herself in her raven-haired friend’s arms.
“That was his wife you threatened!” snarled the boy as he charged at me. I grabbed both my guns and put my i.d tag into the Rogue Driver.
“Henshin!” I announced. I fired, making a red circle with my suit’s profile going sideways, and leapt through the circle. I became Kamen Rider Rogue once again and turned my pistols into their Shōtō (short sword) mode. I clashed with the boy again and again, until I “accidentally” loosened my grip on the swords. They were knocked out and the Keyblade was about to strike, but I grabbed the shaft. “Your blade is connected to you, no?” I remarked. “Let’s fix that!” I sent a surge of energy through the blade and it ran through the boy. After a few seconds, I wrestled it from the boy’s grip and stood over him.
“That won’t be in your hands for long!” boasted the boy. He held his hands out and waited for something. Nothing happened. “WHAT?!” yelped the boy.
“I severed your connection with the Keyblade,” I explained. “You’re unarmed and useless!”
“Give that back!” shouted the boy as he leapt onto my arm. I swatted him aside.
“Hello! Rogue Driver!” called a voice over the comms I missed hearing. “I detected a surge of energy! What’s going on?”
“My sweet eagle,” I replied, “your tiger is back!”
“Hiro-Chan!” cheered Igura. “Where have you been?! I’ve been looking all over the multiverse for you!!”
“Well, I’ve been denied access to Foundation Prime,” I answered. “Can Vortech give me a lift? I have two things of value to him.”
“I’m afraid he’s away,” replied Igura. “But, I can get you home!” A portal opened and I limped into it at top speed.
Vorton’s current atmosphere was tense, I won’t lie. We tried various methods to take our mind off the danger that Hiro presented. I toured Vorton and found various training exercises and recreational activities going on. In the Battle Arena, Hongo was training some Stormtroopers in riding speeder bikes. “All right,” he called, “on your bikes!” The troopers mounted their speeders. “All you need to do is weave through the trees and get to the other end, then turn around and return here. On my mark! 3! 2! 1! GO!” Three troopers took off, one’s bike exploded, and the last one didn’t go. The rider altered some settings, then found himself and the bike flying into the air. Hongo face-palmed. A rider crashed into a tree. One rider found himself turned around and crashed into the other rider. Hongo saw me. “Vader said these were the Empire’s finest,” he muttered. I commed someone.
“Requesting a cleanup and medical crew in the Battle Arena,” I called. The rider that went flying landed, hard. I then headed to the firing range to see Fred training some troops.
“Men, we may not see eye to eye, but you ARE the backbone of your Empire!” he declared. “Show me how you hit those targets!” The troopers readied their blasters and fired for a bit. “CEASE FIRE!” roared Fred. “Why are you idiots shooting from the hip?!”
“Permission to explain, sir!” requested a trooper.
“Permission granted!” answered Fred.
“Sir, the armor doesn’t let us aim, sir!” reported the trooper.
“Bulls**t!” swore Fred. He was wearing armor in his size. “I can easily…what the?” He couldn’t lift his gun up to line up his sights.
“I hate to say, ‘I told you so,’ sir,” snarked a second trooper.
“Then don’t!” snapped Fred. “What about spinal movement?”
“Sir, permission to demonstrate spinal movement!” requested a third trooper as he engaged the safety of his gun.
“Permission granted,” replied Fred. The trooper dropped his gun and tried to bend over, no dice. “So, none,” remarked Fred.
“I hate to sound needy, sir,” called the last trooper, “but our peripheral is practically nonexistent.”
“Is it now?” asked Fred as he put his helmet on. “Why, yes! Yes, it is,” he confirmed. He then took off the helmet. “So, we can’t aim, can’t see out of the corner of our eyes, can’t bend over…”
“And our armor is made of a material that is so weak, we literally die in one hit,” supplied the third trooper.
“That explains why you guys are losing,” commented Fred. I left that room and looked into another room to see Linda going through a drill with three Stormtroopers.
“So, you guys are supposed to be policemen as well as soldiers?” she muttered. “I gotta say, military police make me twitchy and our own boys in blue are near enough. Okay, here’s the situation: you’ve got orders to identify drivers on the street.”
“Why?” asked a trooper.
“What do you mean, ‘why’?!” snapped Linda. “You’re searching for someone or something!”
“How will we find the thing we’re looking for if we don’t know what it is?” asked the second trooper.
“NOW, we’re asking the real questions,” joked the third trooper.
“Seriously?!” called Linda “Fine, you’re looking for…” she then picked up an R9 Astromech, “this droid, right here!”
“Found it,” remarked the first. “Job’s done.”
“No! Come on!” shouted Linda. “Look, you’ve got orders to stop drivers and search for a droid. I will drive this speeder around the course, you stop and identify me. Are we clear?”
“Eeeyup!” replied the third trooper. Linda put the Astromech into the speeder, started the speeder, and went halfway around until the second trooper stopped her.
“Good day,” she greeted.
“How long have you had that droid?” asked the trooper.
“About a year now,” replied Linda.
“I’m gonna need to see your identification,” requested the trooper.
“I don’t think there’s a need for that,” answered Linda. The trooper then tried to be funny.
“We don’t need to see her i.d right now,” he called to his buddies.
“I’m not hearing this!” growled Linda as the troopers giggled.
“Oh, but you are,” replied the joking trooper. “Move along.” At that point, I made my presence known and made the trooper bend over backwards to look at me.
“If you nitwits try this sort of nonsense during our final battle,” I whispered. “I will scour your universe to find you! Are we clear?!”
“Crystal!” yelped the trooper. I released him and they tried again while I left. I remembered that I had an appointment and headed to the Gateway room.
“X-PO, I need a rift to the Ghostbusters of 1984,” I called.
“One rift, coming up!” replied X-PO. I headed to the Ghostbusters’ universe and wound up in front of Ghostbusters HQ. I knocked on the door and heard that it was okay to enter. Sludgiona was in a barrel reading a magazine next to a red-head named Janine, also reading a magazine.
“Hey!” I said, as cheerfully as I could, noticing the awkward silence. “How are things?”
“Slow, business-wise,” muttered Janine. “That’s fine though, since the boys are still trying to help Sludgiona here. Despite appearances, she’s very tidy and neat. A really valuable temp here.”
“Has Egon found your universe?” I asked Sludgiona.
“No,” she sighed. “Have any of your people?”
“No,” I admitted lamely.
“Figures,” she mumbled as she grabbed a soda.
“Look, we’re going to find it,” I assured. “It’s just that the multiverse is big and the maps we have are totally different, given that one is from Tarlax 13 and the other is from Vorton. We will find a common reference point and…”
“I didn’t ask you to come here to nag about that,” interrupted Sludgiona after she sipped her drink.
“Then, why did you ask me to visit?” I asked.
“I…” she was struggling to find the words. “I wanted to apologize.”
“…For what?” I asked.
“For…for everything! For fighting you, even after you freed me!” answered Sludgiona. “I don’t know, maybe I should’ve asked for help a while ago.”
“…Apology accepted,” I replied.
“Maybe if I asked you to help, I wouldn’t be stranded here!” cried Sludgiona.
“Stop,” I directed. Sludgiona looked confused. “I was the one who destroyed your declamation chip.”
“Might as well have been me,” mumbled Sludgiona.
“The only mistakes we’re responsible for are the ones we make ourselves, even in an emotional state,” I countered. “I was the one who let her zeal to free the multiverse influence that decision, and it was still the wrong one. We’ve all made mistakes in the past and we’re gonna make many more in the future. The only thing we can do is pick up after ourselves, learn from those mistakes, and move on. We can play the blame game after we died.” Sludgiona gave a sad smile.
“Those are…sagely words,” she mused.
“Is there…anything I can get you?” I asked.
“Not right now,” replied Sludgiona. “This dimension is starting to grow on me. I’ll talk to you later.” A little terse, maybe, but she meant it kindly. I summoned a ride home and toured Vorton again when I came back. Vader was taught Poker by Richard and learned quickly.
“Raising by 2,000,” declared Vader as he put 16,000 studs into the pot.
“Is that a joke, my lord?” asked a Stormtrooper.
“Do I joke that often?” asked Vader.
“I call,” replied Mr. Babineaux. His son, Emmanuel, was looking on.
“He has him!” he cheered to himself.
“Who has who?” I asked, startling Emmanuel. He recovered quickly.
“Papa, he has Richard, how you say, on the ropes,” he replied. I looked at Mr. Babineaux’s studs.
“What was the buy-in?” I asked.
“500,000 studs,” answered Emmanuel.
“He’s down to a quarter that now!” I observed.
“Not for long,” boasted Emmanuel. “He’ll get the pot.”
“What makes you so sure?” I asked.
“…Well…Poker is a…very deep…and involved game,” floundered Emmanuel. “Papa’s strategy will become apparent in a minute.”
“…You have absolutely no idea how Poker is played, do you?” I asked.
“…Non,” replied Emmanuel. “But, I HAVE gained a new appreciation for the game.”
“When?” I asked.
“When Papa started playing it as much as he goes to church,” answered Emmanuel. “He will be victorious and defeat Vader!”
“Vader’s gonna be tough to crack,” I observed. “Besides, Richard’s on a roll. For the past month, he’s won 202 Poker games of varying styles, even his weakest, Texas Hold-em.”
“Perhaps a wager is in order?” asked Emmanuel.
“I don’t want to bet against a man’s father,” I replied.
“Well, if the Queen is too afraid,” taunted Emmanuel. He only uses my position like that to try and get a rise out of me. It always works, I don’t know why!
“Name your stakes!” I declared.
“Loser buys the winner’s drink,” offered Emmanuel.
“It’s a bet!” I agreed as we shook hands. We then looked on. It was Mr. Babineaux’s bet.
“All in!” he answered.
“I’ll take you up on that,” called Richard as he went all in.
“Blast!” hissed the trooper. “I fold!”
“I fold as well,” replied Vader.
“Pretty bold move to go all in when you’ve lost three quarters of your buy-in in previous rounds,” mused Richard.
“Are you afraid a Frenchman cannot cover his bets?” taunted Mr. Babineaux.
“Perish the thought,” assured Richard. “I just hate to kick someone when they’re down. Let’s see ‘em because I think you’re bluffing and will lose!”
“Well, if it’s the rough stuff we’re doing,” answered Mr. Babineaux, “take a look!”
“A full house? Unbelievable!” gasped Richard.
“And there was no cheating from him,” reported Vader.
“Très bon!” cheered Emmanuel. He turned to me. “I’m a great lover of Chateau d’Yquem from Sauternes. That nectar is one of the gods!”
“I see I have gained a fan!” called Mr. Babineaux.
“Well, I hate to disappoint your fans,” countered Richard.
“…Quoi?” (What?) asked Mr. Babineaux. Richard revealed his hand. “A ROYAL FLUSH?!” protested Mr. Babineaux.
“And HE wasn’t cheating either!” remarked Vader.
“Good thing we folded, my Lord,” observed the trooper.
“203 straight games,” I counted. Emmanuel was red in the face. “Frenchmen don’t like losing?”
“No, we don’t!” confirmed Emmanuel.
“Well, we still have a bet,” I reminded him. “Oddly enough, I’m more preferable to Scotch Whiskey.”
“I will need to visit Scotland to get it,” replied Emmanuel.
“Oh, you can get it when this whole thing is over,” I assured. Emmanuel gave me a look. I left Emmanuel to fume and speak with his father to head back to the Gateway room. I noticed that the Brigadier was with Elphaba and Chell, but no Rusty. “Rusty still getting used to two legs?” I asked.
“Oh no,” replied Elphaba, “she’s just in the Simpsons’ universe.”
“By whose authority?!” I demanded.
“Ms. Sheela’s” answered the Brigadier. “She went with Rusty and Team 10 to investigate a…Plumber…distress call in that universe.”
“You know, I’m getting a little sick and tired of people going on little excursions behind my back!” I snapped. “Maybe I should just make a time-clock!” That was when the gateway opened. “Well, look who decided to…WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!” Sheela and her team were battered and bruised! They had two new guys. One of them was a young man, the other was a tall humanoid. It had a purple face with four eyes making the shape of a square on its angle, horns lining the face, no visible mouth, a white body with four red eyes on the chest, wings folded onto the shoulders connecting to the chest eyes, and black feet, lower legs, and left forearm. His right arm was colored green and ended in a vine like pattern on the upper arm. “And who are these two?” I asked.
“My name is Kazuraba Kōta,” panted the guy.
“And I am Reinrassic III, seventh son of the Noble Highbreed House of Derazza, direct descendant of the Pure Blooded High Order of Rarsect, and current Atasian Supreme,” introduced the alien.
“Reinrassic…Reiny?!” I yelped. “You’re the Highbreed Ben helped out?”
“Atasian,” corrected Reiny, “and, yes.”
“Everyone to the medical ward at once,” I ordered. “I want to know what went on.”
“HOW DO THEY KEEP FINDING MY FOUNDATION ELEMENTS?!” roared Lord Vortech as he smacked the Stunticons and Snatcher around. “Every time I send you fools to retrieve one, they’re right behind you!”
“Don’t blame us!” protested Lex. “They obviously have some sort of technology to find them!”
“Oh, but I AM blaming you!” snarled Vortech. “I picked you nitwits because you were the most powerful in your universes! You still allow those idiots to challenge you and defeat you!”
“Not true!” argued Motormaster. I rolled my eyes.
“This whole thing went down with Hiro’s death,” I sighed.
“You think me unaware of that, Ambassador Hell?!” roared Vortech. “That’s why Igura’s out there! But an edge cannot come quickly enough!” He looked among us. “I have to find out how they’ve been doing it, find out where they’re hiding!” His eyes stopped on the image of a Foundation Element as he got an idea. He started laughing. “And I think I know exactly how to do so!”
We returned to Vorton and presented the token. “Nice job, everybody! Good on the new guys too! Congratulations! And, just think, years ago, that adventure would have cost you one whole quarter!”
“Hey, uh, mind if we stay a bit?” asked Sonic.
“It-a looks like you-a need some help,” observed Mario.
“I can help as well!” called Peach.
“Sounds reasonable!” I mused. “Well, Gamer Riders? Shinnosuke-san?”
“I’m afraid we have to go,” replied Emu. “Poppy has a job as a nurse when she’s not guiding us Gamer Riders and I’m a doctor.”
“I just got hired as head of Genm Corp.’s design department for their games,” answered Parado.
“And I’m a police officer,” remarked Shinnosuke. “We all have jobs that demand our attention.”
“Then, farewell, and I hope to see you in the final battle against Vortech,” I declared. X-PO opened a portal for them and they headed back home.
“Hey, do these mean anything to you?” asked Sonic. “I was collecting them in Defender before that alien trapped me in there.” More studs, whoopee.
“How many?” I asked Vortoranii.
“We’re at 2,697,000 studs now,” she counted.
“Any extradimensional excursions that went on during our hunt for the Foundation Element?” I asked.
“No,” sighed Richard happily. “It’s been pretty quiet.” That was when the alarm sounded.
“PO-Lambda has been detected!” reported X-PO.
“WHAT?!” I yelped. “Why did we detect him again?! He should have left Vorton!”
“All indications are that the intruder never left,” replied X-PO.
“That doesn’t make sense, why would he stay?” muttered Emily.
“We have an opportunity to ask,” I replied. “Emily, Richard, Mr. and Mrs. Saunders, X-PO, you’re with me. Livia, show our new arrivals around. X-PO, where’s PO-Lambda?”
“Still on the Executor,” reported X-PO. “Kämpfer, Vader, Death, and Apocalypse are searching the ship right now. The lockdown’s still out of commission. We can beam up with the teleporter.”
“Good idea,” I remarked. “Henshin!” I transformed back into Royal. “We need as much power in reserve as we can get.”
“You know, you CAN call us by name,” replied Mrs. Saunders
“Discussion for another time, Mama,” answered Emily. “Henshin!” She became Touché again.
“Henshin!” announced Richard as he turned into Guard. “Mom, Dad, might want to get a firearm. I’m not sold on the stormtroopers’ shooting.”
“Neither am I,” commented Mr. Saun…Fred. “I’m gonna find out why they’re so crappy at it after this is done.” They grabbed rifles and we headed to the teleporter. We beamed to Vader’s location.
“Ah, I see X-PO’s responded to the alarm,” mused Kämpfer. “Good. The intruder is in the repair bay for the droids on this ship.”
“Lead on,” I directed. The ship lurched again! “What’s going on?!” I demanded. Kämpfer took out his tablet and got the sit-rep.
“The ship is accelerating!” he reported. “The intruder has limited control!”
“I thought our technical teams installed the new safeguards,” snarled Vader.
“We did!” protested Kämpfer. “And triple encrypted them! There is no way the intruder should be able to get into the ship’s systems!”
“Well, it’s clearly possible, because he did it!” snapped Apocalypse.
“That’s irrelevant,” I argued. “What’s our heading?”
“Working on it!” assured Kämpfer. “Ah! Got it! …What?”
“What is it?” I asked.
“We’re just going faster,” reported Kämpfer. “Our orbit is still around Vorton.” I was confused as everyone else.
“We…aren’t leaving?” I asked.
“If I were the toaster-possessing ghost,” replied X-PO, “I would bring the guns around and start shooting stuff!”
“Even then, that’s a waste of power,” commented Fred. “With the shields raised, a Star Destroyer could steamroll through anything in its path and not even scratch the paintjob.”
“Kämpfer, Apocalypse, get to Engineering and see if you can slow us down,” I directed.
“Ja!” confirmed Kämpfer.
“On it!” obliged Apocalypse.
“And if there’s a radiation leak, don’t be a hero!” I called as they headed off.
“Very little risk of that, I can assure you!” replied Kämpfer. They were out of sight.
“Your Majesty,” muttered Guard, “there’s something rotten here, but I can’t put my finger on it!”
“We’ll get our answers from the intruder,” I affirmed. We made it to the Droid Repair bay. “On my signal,” I directed. “Three! Two! One! NOW!” We charged in, making a lot of noise and seeing an Astromech Droid stab PO-Lambda with something. It started screaming and shaking! It then rose up and started putting off a bright light! It then changed into a profile of a human skeleton, then the skeleton went from human to humanoid tiger and back to human again, all while muscle flowed back onto the bones. Organs came back and filled the empty spaces. Skin was restored! Hair grew back! The figure faced us and spoke.
“Sā, Rogue Driver!” it called in a man’s voice. A red vortex opened. A device like my belt flew into the man’s hands. Reality hit me.
“No!” I breathed. “That’s not possible!”
“Oh, but it is!” chuckled the Rogue Driver. “Took you long enough to come back. Let’s get you decent.”
“I agree,” said the man. He then put the Rogue Driver to his waist and it made a belt strap wrap around. Pistols then appeared, one on each side of his waist. Blue pants then flowed over his legs as black boots appeared on his feet. A green shirt materialized on his upper torso and a brown trench coat appeared to cover his body. He unbuttoned the coat and put his hand to the air. A short, flat topped, brown hat appeared and he put it on. “Genomorphic upgrade to host body, successful,” reported a man I hated. “Resurrection, complete!” Death took a sand timer out from her robes. There were Japanese characters on it. 足立ヒロ. They translated to Adachi Hiro, my biological father. The sand was all in the upper bulb. Kamen Rider Rogue was back.
“Guys,” gulped Fred. “The man, he looks like…!”
“He is!” I snarled.
“I am!” replied Hiro.
“How?!” hissed Death. “You blew up in Chima!”
“Only thanks to that twit that ruined everything!” snarled Hiro as he pointed at me. “But, if you must know, I took a page out of someone’s book and turned my soul into living data!”
“Lord Vyce did that to face Linkara!” remembered Guard.
“That tin-plated dictator was nothing,” dismissed Hiro. “While most of my organic material and cybernetics were nothing but ash after I detonated myself, I flew around the multiverse, looking for a way to get a new body! I briefly returned to my home universe and scoured an old base for answers. I had to possess the dead body of a Combatman and go through the files.
“The data I came across showed how to turn a soul into data, so I made the ultimate sacrifice and did so. The data also said that there were ways to make a new body. Project: Ghost Body was where Shocker stored the genetic information and needed cybernetics to make a new body so they could use monsters over and over. I took that data and made numerous attempts to get to Foundation Prime, but I was met with a problem. Vortech was the one who sent me and retrieved me. I didn’t know Foundation Prime’s coordinates. So, I found an old PO robot and possessed it while the events of Touché’s excursion into Jurassic World went on.
“I tried recruiting Heather, but she stupidly brushed me aside. I overheard you wanting to find her, no doubt to get information, so I removed her. I then went to the Ghostbusters’ universe and followed you but altered my exit so I wouldn’t be caught immediately. However, you used the PKE meter to find me, and here we are. Your Dalek is dead and I live.”
“Forgive us if we don’t throw a party,” muttered X-PO.
“Ah, X-PO,” observed Hiro. “You were the one who found Foundation Prime, you will get me back there.”
“I hate to be the bearer of GOOD news,” snarked X-PO, “but Vortech deleted that when you guys fired me!”
“Nonsense!” dismissed Hiro.
“It’s true! That’s another reason why we’ve been getting the Foundation Elements!” insisted X-PO.
“You seriously don’t remember the coordinates of YOUR discovery?!” hissed Hiro, his smirk fading. “Never mind, this vessel will do nicely.”
“If you think I’m going to let you take this ship,” declared Linda, “I have a couple of laser bullets willing to disagree with you!”
“And I’M willing to order Vorton’s destruction!” I snarled. “When it goes, so do our Foundation Elements!”
“You’d never dare!” challenged Hiro.
“Dai Super Charge,” I announced. I then concentrated on portals throughout Vorton and brought everyone on board.
“OI! What’s going on?” called Joshua.
“X-PO,” I ordered, “activate the secondary a.i.”
“On it,” confirmed X-PO. It took a few seconds.
“Secondary a.i online,” intoned a voice.
“Secondary a.i., this is Queen Megumi Hishikawa,” I answered. “Activate Vorton Destruction sequence. Destruct sequence 1, code 1, 1-A.”
“First destruct sequence code recognized,” reported the a.i.
“Guard,” I directed.
“Secondary a.i., this is Sir Richard Saunders,” answered Guard. “Activate Vorton Destruction sequence. Destruct sequence 2, code 1, 1-A, 2-B.”
“Second destruct sequence code recognized,” reported the a.i.
“X-PO,” I commanded.
“You gave X-PO that kind of power!?” snarled Hiro.
“Secondary a.i., this is the Experimental Portal Operator,” called X-PO. “Activate Vorton Destruction sequence. Destruct sequence 3, code 1, 1-B, 2-B, 3.”
“Destruct sequence ready,” reported the a.i. “Set time and initiate final code to begin countdown.”
“Set Vorton Destruction,” I ordered. “Command code 0-0-0-Destruct-0 30 minutes.”
“Destruct sequence completed and engaged,” called the a.i. “Vorton will detonate in 30 minutes.”
“X-PO, Priority Vortech alpha! Abort Vorton Destruct sequence!” demanded Hiro. X-PO’s eye flashed red. “WHAT?! But, that only happens when the code’s been deleted! And it was tied into the coordinates of………you told the truth! Vortech really DID wipe the coordinates from your memory!”
“Took you long enough to realize that,” snarked X-PO.
“You can try whatever trick you may have previously installed in X-PO,” I hissed, “but, when he was tossed aside and I proved myself, he chose ME to lead him! I’m the one in control here! So, I suggest you…!” I didn’t get far as Hiro fired! He then drew his i.d tag.
“Henshin! Dai Super Charge!” he announced. He went straight to Kamen Rider Rift and proceeded to barrel through us and enter the corridors.
“After him!” I shouted. We took off and ran after him as he headed to the bridge. He managed to lock us out.
“Engineering to Megumi, what’s going on?” asked Kämpfer.
“Hiro’s back,” I replied. “Vorton’s gonna blow in…25 minutes now. We’re locked out of the bridge. Can you get us in?”
“2 minutes to let me do so,” called Kämpfer. The ship’s comms activated.
“Relinquish control of the ship to me, or I gas you all, pick up the Foundation Elements, and let Vorton explode,” shouted Rift.
“…1 minute, then,” remarked Kämpfer.
“Good work,” I called to Kämpfer. “As for you, Rift, I recommend you back off!”
“I have no reason to,” dismissed Rift. “Not when Foundation Prime needs to be raised.”
“I like how you have new ears,” I commented, “and yet, you’re still hard of hearing! There’s no way for us to get from here to Foundation Prime, much less contact it!”
“I have traveled throughout the multiverse and have seen universes of pure majesty!” declared Rift. “I have seen ancient mindless evils that fill in the cracks and eat dimensions just for a snack! I have heard tales of an Outer God made of pure glitchy data that was convinced to commit suicide by a fat, screechy comic book nerd! Contacting Foundation Prime for help is ‘small potatoes’, I believe the expression is. You are but a flea that I can brush aside!”
“There are reasons for us not finding Foundation Prime, much less talking to it!” I insisted.
“A fabrication by the original Vortonians, at best,” snarled Hiro, “a ruse by you, at worst. Either way is irrelevant.” At that point, the bridge opened and we crept in. Hiro was still working at a console. I then converted my sword to gun mode and leveled it at Rift. I almost pulled the trigger, but Rift brought out his weapon in bazooka mode and fired! “Did you really think I would fall for that?” he quizzed.
“Vorton Destruction sequence aborted,” reported the secondary a.i. No!
“You think you can beat ME?!” roared Rift as he fired. “I am Adachi Hiro, the vanquisher of Death herself! My life shall continue until the multiverse is all one! You are but the footnote in the pages of my glory! And when they build statues of me, trampling over you, you shall be remembered as…”
“Excuse me,” interrupted a soft, woman’s voice.
“WHAT?!” roared Rift as he faced a woman with bronze hair, a bronze dress with 13 panels of four spheres, a sleeveless top, a choker with two rings, a hairband with a light on each end, a blue dot in the center of her forehead, and silver gauntlets with a plunger resting on the right forearm and a Dalek gun resting on the left forearm.
“That’s my friend you just insulted,” said the woman. She then used the plunger to grab Rift’s chest and toss him over her head. Death was confused.
“I want the life-timer of the woman in front of me,” she whispered as her eyes glowed. A sand-timer came into her hands and she looked at the name. Her eyes went wide. “Impossible!” she whispered.
“What? What is it?!” I asked. Death turned to the woman.
“You squishy, green maniac!” she whispered with a grin.
“Who are you talking about?!” I demanded.
“RUSTY!” cheered Death. “He’s…she’s alive!” She pointed to the woman. I gave the woman a look. On closer inspection, her dress DID look like a Dalek.
“Well?” asked the woman. “Aren’t you going to say thank you?” She held a hand to her ear.
“Well, Rusty,” I mused, not believing her, “I suppose that 2,000,000 stud reward you gave us will have to go back so you can spend it wisely.”
“What are you talking about?” asked the woman. “I gave you 220,000 studs. This was before Vortoranii became your belt’s a.i and it made the total, at the time, 600,000. I was there when you were crowned Queen and functioned as a member of your Tech support staff.” I don’t believe it! It really is…!
“RUSTY!” I cheered as I ran forward. I hugged him…her and laughed in joy. “But…how…we fired your body into a star! How are you…?”
“The Dalek?!” roared Rift. “IMPOSSIBLE!”
“You know what, you can explain later,” I said to Rusty.
“Of course,” agreed Rusty. “Now, as for you, for causing a radiation leak, as I would have put it earlier, EXTERMINATE!” She fired from her blaster and Rift glowed teal with his skeleton showing. He screamed but didn’t crumple to the floor. Instead, he swatted the beam aside. Odd, given that it was light and radiation. Rift panted.
“That…hurt!” he gasped. “Did you really think I wouldn’t be altered to prevent death by a Dalek blaster? I was surrounded by xenophobic maniacs when we recruited Davros and those tanks!”
“Huh,” I muttered. “Swing and a miss, Rusty.”
“In all honesty, I should have figured that,” replied Rusty. Rift then fired on us and escaped the bridge.
“He’s going for the hangar!” yelped Death.
“I’ll cut him off!” called Rusty.
“No!” I countered. “Does your plunger still work as a computer interface?”
“Manipulator arm,” corrected Rusty. “And, yes, it does.”
“Talk to the ship’s computers and slow down our orbit,” I directed. “I’ll face Rift.” I charged off before anyone could stop me. I saw Rift walking the corridor and looking out the window. He got visibly angry. I peeked out my window and could see our orbit slowing down. Thank you, Rusty. I then aimed my weapon at Rift’s window, waited, and fired! The window shattered as the air was being sucked out into space. I grabbed an overhead support and Rift grabbed my leg!
“Activating emergency bulkheads!” called X-PO’s voice over the comms.
“Belay that!” I ordered
“What?!” yelped X-PO.
“I have business that requires an open window!” I replied. I felt Rift climbing up my leg. At that point, I raised my other foot and slammed it onto Rift’s head. “I! HAVE HAD! ENOUGH OF YOU!” I said as I kicked. One final kick was enough to send Rift flying through the window and into space. His suit should give him enough air for five hours, more than enough to make a rift for himself. He flew past Vorton. “Okay, X-PO, you can close the bulkheads!” I called. An emergency blast door slid over the window, stabilizing everything. I let go of the overhead support and let myself tumble to the floor. I then cancelled my transformation. “…Wheeeee…” I sighed.
Emily had just checked us all over after that hair-raising escapade. We gathered in the Gateway room after our check-up. “Well, all in all, that could have gone worse,” I mused.
“COULD HAVE GONE WORSE?!” protested Mr. Babineaux. “The creature that kidnapped us came back to life and nearly made you destroy our base of operations! The rest of us were surprised to be evacuated that quickly! I’m still trying to process the information!!”
“Papa,” calmed Emmanuel. “Perhaps this event happened for the best. We have an old friend back, Hiro’s been defeated as usual, and the Executor is back in control.”
“There IS an explanation waiting,” I recalled. “Rusty, how DID you come back? We fired your body into a star, per your last wish.”
“That’s where things got tricky, even for me,” answered Rusty. “After you fired me into a star, my shell’s computers switched on. I was surprised but decided to take advantage of the situation. You do recall that Azmuth was studying my shell?”
“I remember,” I muttered. “I argued with him a lot about it. Eventually, I caved.”
“Good thing you did,” replied Rusty. “When Ben confronted Azmuth about it, I beamed into the Omnitrix and collected and copied various genetic samples, combining them into one. I then beamed myself and the samples to the Codon Stream on Primus. My new body then rose out of the stream and started testing out the limits. By all appearances, I was human, but I noticed holes on my forearms. I then realized those were for armaments, specifically, mine. I had to get back, so I waited for a ship. Azmuth then arrived on a ship with a female Chimera Sui Generis named Myaxx. I snuck aboard the ship and waited for take-off. It took a few days, but I was taken to Galvan Mark II. Azmuth was creating his own Gateway. It didn’t have the proper codes to connect to Vorton, but I still remembered them. I generated my own portal to the closet here as I was still nude. I then found clothes that would emulate my shell. Once I was dressed, I returned to the upper levels and found my shell in its glass case. I took the armaments and then teleported to the Executor’s bridge.”
“And then you gave your dramatic reveal,” I chuckled. A couple of tears came down. “It’s good to see you again!” I gave him…her…I gave Rusty a hug. Rusty reciprocated.
“I guess, the question is, what pronouns are we using?” asked Elphaba.
“Yeah, that leads to another question,” muttered Tanisha. “Why a female body?”
“I just thought it looked cool,” replied Rusty. “So, female pronouns are preferred.” I then broke off the hug.
“Still, it’s good to have you back!” I cheered.
“Good to BE back,” replied Rusty. Lukas then entered, looking pale and weak.
“WHOA!” yelped Emily as she led him to a bench. “Dude, are you okay?!”
“Nein,” muttered Lukas, shakily, “nein, I’m NOT okay. I…er…I recently undid Hiro’s control over the Executor.”
“Do I even WANT to know how he got control?” I asked.
“Well, to answer that,” replied Lukas, “he connected like an Astromech. He then copied over code and altered a few things. All in all, not that different from when Tech Support takes over your computer.”
“So, why are you so spooked?” asked Emmanuel.
“Because, in going through the code,” clarified Lukas, “in getting it back to the settings before he got in and updating the security software, I discovered something. He copied something over.”
“What did he copy?” I asked, fearing the worst.
“He copied…Vorton’s coordinates,” gulped Lukas.
“WHAT?!” shouted Batman.
“He’s got our location locked in the Rogue Driver,” confirmed Lukas.
“Wha…when did he do that?!” I asked.
“I’m not sure,” replied Lukas. “My best theory, given what went on, it was as he accelerated the Executor’s orbit. He used it as a false trail to distract whoever would be on to him. …Even then, the whole plan was, er, half-assed, I believe the expression is.” I ran my hands down my face.
“We’re in a precarious state, everyone,” I muttered.