It took a while to locate him, but Daisuke was located in the Amazon, his namesake. He was in my universe, thank goodness. “All set?” Megumi asked me.
“Ready when the support staff is,” I called. Our newest ally, Chell, gave the thumbs-up.
“Ganbarou, Hongo-san!” (Good luck!) wished Hiroki. I waved my thanks and headed through the portal. As I went through, my mind went through all sorts of questions, chief among them was “Would he recognize me?” He was a wild man when I met him last. I soon arrived. The coordinates could only get me as far as the Amazon in my universe. Now comes the slightly easier part, finding Daisuke in this place.
“Away we go,” I declared. I started walking. As I walked, I heard branches on the ground snapping. I stopped as I realized there were multiple sources. “Daisuke?” I asked, hoping I was among friends. Perhaps a little too much to hope for. A four-armed ant monster leapt out with men in black bodysuits with tassels running along the arms and women in red bodysuits with the same tassels, only wearing silver eye masks instead of full face masks. I had remembered the ant monster be called Togeari Jūjin (Ant Beastman) from Daisuke. “A fight, I see?” I remarked. I got into the sequence. “Rider…HEN…!”
“Stop him!” ordered Togeari Jūjin. The foot soldiers attacked before I could finish. That’s something new for me. These guys were starting to overpower me! Just as Togeari Jūjin raised his arms to strike, he was tackled by something, or someone. The monster threw the person off. It was a man of Japanese ancestry, his hair, betraying some silver, was wild, like the expression on his face. He wore a silver bracelet on his upper left arm. He was muscular and had his hands out in a clawed fashion while he crouched as if he was going to pounce.
“Not nice place to meet, Hongo,” he said in his broken Japanese.
“I had to find you,” I replied. “Shall we?” Daisuke brought me into a tree where we could continue our transformations uninterrupted. Daisuke snarled and growled as he crouched. I did my usual sequence. “Rider…HENSHIN!” While I did that, Daisuke held his hands up in a clawed fashion, crossed them in front of him, and uncrossed and raised them again.
“A-MA-ZON!” he cried. As we leapt down, we changed into our Rider forms. His motif looked more like a monitor lizard than an insect like I take. He was green with red lines appearing on the suit, had yellow torso armor to look like abs, black boots and gloves with fins and silver claws on his fingers. His helmet looked almost like a green anglerfish and piranha. He had red eyes like mine, a single antenna with a red ball on top, and a jaw guard that moved when his jaw moved. His belt was white with a red handle on each side of the buckle, a buzz-saw blade pointing forward on the buckle, and red eyes on top. The look was completed with a white scarf. “Amazon!” shouted Daisuke once we landed. This was Kamen Rider Amazon, the sixth Kamen Rider of my era. We then went on the offensive. Amazon had an animalistic berserker style, thus fighting with bites and scratches as well as punches and kicks. He also gives off a battle cry of “Gii! Gii!” whenever he fights. When he dealt with the foot soldiers near him, he then targeted Togeari Jūjin. They grappled for a while as I took care of the foot soldiers. Normally, I wouldn’t hit women, but these ladies are serving evil and are trying to kill me. I didn’t have much of a choice. “How you here?!” quizzed Amazon to his opponent as he fought.
“A man named Hiro Adachi brought me back to take care of you!” explained Togeari Jūjin. “He said you would prove to be too dangerous to his employer’s plans and so got me back from Hell!”
“Then I send you back there!” declared Amazon. He leapt onto his opponent and bit hard into his exoskeleton. He then leapt off to use his finisher. “DAI SETSUDAN!” (Great Slice) he said as he chopped into the creature. Togeari Jūjin screamed before falling over dead. The foot soldiers ran when they saw their commanding officer die. We panted to catch our breath. “You…change…a lot,” panted Amazon as he caught his breath.
“I had my cybernetics upgraded,” I replied. We cancelled our transformations.
“Why you here?” asked Daisuke.
“I’m here because of a greater threat,” I answered. “Our universe is under attack by a creature named Lord Vortech. He’s gathering these objects called Foundation Elements, artefacts that keep all universes stable, and he’s using other people to do his dirty work. I have other friends helping me fight him, and one of them needs your help.”
“My help?” asked Daisuke.
“Her name is Megumi Hishikawa,” I explained. “She’s someone who just found out that she’s a naturally occurring Shocker Cyborg with Tiger DNA. She wants to access that side so she can become someone called Kamen Rider Vortex.”
“Another Rider need my help?” quizzed Daisuke.
“Exactly,” I confirmed.
“Where she?” asked Daisuke.
“She’s in another universe,” I answered. “I have the means to get us there.”
“Then we go!” declared Daisuke. I brought out my communicator.
“X-PO, Daisuke has agreed!” I called. “Ready to rejoin Megumi’s team!”
“One rift to the Princess, coming up!” announced X-PO.
“Princess?” quizzed Daisuke.
“In her native universe, it’s just an act,” I explained. The rift opened. Daisuke stepped back a bit. “It’s alright, it’s safe,” I assured. Daisuke cautiously stepped forward, then leapt in. I followed and saw him tumbling and screaming in terror. “This is gonna be a long trip,” I thought.
Once Hongo left, Rusty got to work finding the Jurassic Park world. I turned to Emily’s team. “All set?” I asked.
“Ready and waiting, your highness,” replied Emily as she made some last-minute adjustments to her hairpiece.
“Target coordinates set!” reported Rusty.
“We’ll see you later!” called Emily as she and her team went through.
“That just leaves us,” muttered Batman.
“My lady,” queried Gandalf, “are you sure this is the right course of action?”
“The enemy has an advantage over us,” I replied. “With Hiro having that kind of power, Vortech could finish us with a simple order. If I can access my Cyborg side, we may level the playing field again. And, before you ask, no, I’m not training in my dress. That’s too many skirts for me to worry about. Trust me, the training clothes I have on will serve me in greater stead.”
“Honestly, your clothes never crossed our minds,” assured Wyldstyle.
“You guys are up!” called Elphaba.
“Good luck!” wished Xiomara as Hiroki’s team saw mine off. Tonje and Tanisha led the way with we Keystone bearers following. We fell through the vortex.
“Keep an eye out for the exit!” warned Wyldstyle. “I don’t wanna be floating around this thing all day!” That was when we encountered Hongo and another man. The new arrival was screaming in terror.
“That was quick!” I cheered. “So, that’s Kamen Rider Amazon?”
“He would introduce himself,” replied Hongo, “but I think the experience is traumatizing for him.” The exit then showed up. It was in an ornate building with a Lion theme going on.
“The Lion Temple!” called Tonje.
“We’ll be among friends!” cheered Tanisha. Daisuke lost his breath. We landed in the room, a throne room with a fountain. Anthropomorphic lions were conducting their business when they saw us. One of them, an old man with a silver mane, a sleeveless pearl gold chest plate, and a dark blue kilt and cape stood up from the throne when we landed. He was apparently in conference with an Crocodile man in a gold helmet, a gold chest plate with large shoulder pads, and a red torn up cape as well as an Eagle man in blue robes, a gold chest plate, and a gold helm. He had talons for fingers and a set of wings from his back.
“Who are you?!” roared the lion. The crocodile hissed.
“How dare you interrupt us, apes!” screeched the eagle.
“You want fight?!” snarled Daisuke.
“NO!” yelped Tanisha as she got between us and the animals. “No! No one wants to fight anyone! Please, everyone, let’s not panic!”
“Why should we listen to intruders?!” bellowed the lion.
“Okay, Your Majesty, for once, no tricks,” answered Tanisha. “We’re from another universe where all of Chima’s history was just a tie-in story for a line of building toys. I am Lady Tanisha, an expert on Chima and the various tribes and individuals on said tribes, like you, King Lagravis, ruler of the Lion Tribe.” The lion was startled. “And your fellow rulers here are King Crominus of the Crocodile Tribe and Ewald, current head of the Ruling Council for the Eagle Tribe. Lagravis, you were friends with Crominus, but politics drove you apart. Ewald, you love to find the perfect solution, which is a strength, but a weakness as well. Crominus, you’re trying to get your son, Cragger, to lead in a pragmatic way instead of his hot-headed way. Lagravis, your son is Laval, whom we met. Ewald, your daughter, Eris, prefers to be on the ground with Laval and Cragger.”
“How do you know so much about our personal lives?!” hissed Crominus.
“Like my girlfriend said, you and your lands are part of a building toy line in our universe,” explained Tonje. “We’re all from different universes. I am Tonje. This is Tanisha. This is Hongo. This is Batman. That’s a new friend of ours, Daisuke. That’s Wyldstyle. And this is our leader, Princess Megumi Hishikawa. We’re all humans.”
“Pleased to meet you, Your Majesties,” I greeted. We bowed to them. The tension seemed to go down a bit.
“That’s the who, the what, and the where taken care of,” hissed King Crominus. “Now, all we need is the why.”
“Okay, that will take some time,” I muttered. I started explaining why we were here. When I mentioned Shocker Rift, Crominus hissed.
“Something you wish to share?” asked Ewald.
“That organization you mentioned,” requested Crominus. “Is a man named Hiro Adachi among its members?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact,” I replied.
“He’s near my home, the Crocodile swamp,” declared Crominus
“And that leads me to my reason for being here” I continued. “You see, he’s a Mutant Cyborg of Shocker design and passed on his genetics and (somehow) cybernetics to me. He’s my biological father.”
“And we need to access her Mutant Cyborg side to gain an advantage over Shocker Rift,” supplied Tanisha.
“And you believe your friend, Daisuke and the terrain of Chima can help?” asked Lagravis.
“Yes,” answered Tonje. Lagravis settled and started thinking.
“If I may,” interjected Crominus, “the Beaver Tribe is experiencing a mass vacation. We could use them to build a training ground for her and Daisuke.”
“We don’t want to interrupt anyone’s vacation!” I assured.
“Actually, we do,” countered Tanisha. “The Beaver Tribe finds the idea of vacations abhorrent. It’s been used as a threat as working is considered fun to them.”
“Have any of them suffered karōshi?” asked Hongo. He was met with confused stares.
“The literal translation is ‘overwork death’,” I explained. “Did any beaver work himself to death?”
“Not at all,” replied Lagravis. “In fact, the most Beaver deaths occur during a vacation, when their muscles atrophy to the point of uselessness.”
“Eesh, other end of the spectrum,” I gulped. “All right, which way?”
“Follow us,” called Lagravis. The three rulers led us to these vehicles with one wheel with the controls and seat near the rear. “These Speedorz will get us to the Beaver Tribe,” explained Lagravis
“I’ve always wanted to ride one!” cheered Tonje.
“I’m not so sure I want to ride one,” said Tanisha, a little hesitant.
“Oh, don’t be a baby,” teased Tonje. “How hard can it beeeEEEEEEE!!!!” The Speedor took off and ran right into a wall near the training grounds for the lions. The Speedor was mangled and Tonje was thrown off in time. “Okay, it’s harder than it looks,” she moaned. She summoned her horse and pressed a button. It turned into a motorcycle!
“Our steeds can do that?!” I called. “How did I not notice that?!”
“Fighting got in the way,” mused Tanisha. She summoned her steed and changed it into a motorcycle as well. I followed suit as well as summoned the other vehicles.
“Can you get mine?” asked Daisuke. “It called Jungler.”
“I’ll see if I can get it,” I said. I searched throughout the rift to find it. I pulled something through. It was a red motorcycle with wings on the back and a mouth and green eyes.
“That Jungler!” called Daisuke. He leapt on it and we sped after the rulers to the Beaver Tribe. It was a civilization that used wood a lot, go figure. The citizens, a diminutive people, looked downcast. The buildings were in tip top shape. The people just sat around with their tools in hand, looking down.
“Tanisha,” I whispered.
“I know,” observed Tanisha. “They don’t have work to do. We need to talk to Breezor.
“Is he the leader?” I asked.
“Right,” confirmed Tonje. We headed to a large hut to see a beaver sitting on a throne.
“That’s Breezor,” explained Lagravis. He then turned to the beaver. “Breezor, my friend!” Breezor looked up.
“Welcome to my hall, Lagravis,” greeted Breezor. “I wish you visited us in better spirits.”
“We actually came to lift your spirits,” called Crominus.
“Oh?” asked Breezor. “Some sort of circus?”
“A building job for this lady,” replied Ewald as he pointed to me. Breezor and the beavers in the hut got out of their funk slightly.
“Go on,” invited Breezor.
“Megumi, you explain,” directed Crominus.
“Thank you, Your Majesty,” I replied. “Mr. Breezor, as you guessed, I’m not from any tribe of Chima. And an enemy is coming that will take something called the Foundation Element. Because of that, I need to access my beast side quickly and will need Daisuke’s help. Can you guys build a training ground to help in that regard?”
“Do you even need to ask?!” cheered Breezor. He grabbed a wrench and addressed his people. “Grab your tools! We have work to do!” The people cheered, grabbed tools, made plans, and then rushed for the site.
“That was quick,” I mused.
“Follow those Beavers!” called Tanisha. We got on our vehicles and sped after them. This was gonna take some time.
“I can’t believe this,” Hiro muttered. “Vortech decides which hostages to use and which not to? Why should I bring the families of the Vortex Riders when Frodo, Robin, Ichimonji, and MetalBeard are more valuable?!”
“What’s he going on about?” asked one of the hostages, a Mrs. Linda Saunders.
“Ah, the usual,” I replied in the language we Shocker Combatmen use, that “Yee!” sound we make. It’s so refreshing to talk with someone who understands you that ISN’T your boss. “He’s sore that you guys were chosen as bargaining chips instead of those that carried Foundation Elements.”
“Hoo boy,” muttered Linda’s husband, Fred another person who understands us. “How will that impact your work?”
“His mannerisms are already doing so,” I sighed.
“I understand that we need whatever power that’s required to conquer our universe,” griped a Combatman working on the communications array with me, “but the way he’s going, I’m halfway tempted to ask him for time off!”
“Hey, does the name Mikoto mean anything to you?” asked Linda. “Nova Combatman, er, woman?”
“Yeah, I know her, why?” replied my partner.
“Yeah, I heard that my daughter, Emily got rid of her,” winced Linda.
“NO!” moaned my partner. “Not Mikoto-chan! I was gonna ask her out when she came back!” I gave him and the Saunders a cup of tea.
“Here’s to Mikoto-chan,” I toasted. We raised our cups. “Rest in peace, friend.” We then poured the contents of the cups onto the ground as libations.
“Why are you twits slacking?!” roared Hiro. “I want communications to Foundation Prime established before Vortech is…*ahem*…is…bothered by such…distracting minutiae.” My partner and I got communications set up and Hiro took over. “Inputting access code and booting up,” he reported. Vortech’s face appeared.
“Good to see that the operation didn’t fail in the communications department,” remarked Vortech.
“Good to hear you too,” muttered Hiro. “We’re about to initiate the search for the Vortex Riders.”
“See that you don’t disappoint,” ordered Vortech.
“Certainly knows how to inspire, doesn’t he?” muttered Linda.
“You, shut up!” snapped Hiro.