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Kamen Rider Vortex Kamen Rider Vortex Chapters

Chapter 69

“Shut it down! Shut it down!” shouted Batman as we arrived on Vorton. Rusty closed the portal.

“A ‘please’ would be nice,” snarked X-PO. No one dignified that with a response. “Relax, it’s already shut down. What’s the problem?”

“No problem,” panted Wyldstyle as she handed off the Diamond Scarab. “Nothing. No. Unless you count LORD VORTECH BEING THERE?!”

“I certainly would!” declared Gandalf.

“Vortech was there?!” yelped Tanisha as my team and I cancelled our transformations.

“Yeah, I noticed he was around,” muttered X-PO.

“…Pardon?” I hissed as venom tinged my voice.

“What?” asked X-PO. “Look, do you guys really think he wouldn’t try to settle this himself after his minions failed him?”

“You didn’t think to tell us that, why!?” I asked.

“We can dismantle him later,” stopped Elphaba. “Take it from someone who was a bad guy once, getting your hands dirty means a master-plan’s in the works.”

“Elphaba’s right,” replied Batman. “Vortech’s up to something. We need to rescue our friends now.”

“Indeed,” concurred Gandalf.

“We can’t exactly do that,” reminded Emily, “until we map out Foundation Prime’s location.

“Well,” replied X-PO, “here’s how you make a map where I’m from. I’ll use the Foundation Elements to calculate the dimensional coordinates of Foundation Prime.”

“How long will that take?” I asked.

“That’s the bad news,” winced X-PO. “It’s gonna be two days.”

“WE DON’T HAVE THAT LONG!” shouted Wyldstyle.

“Actually, we probably have longer,” replied Sheela. We all turned to her. “Think about it, why would Vortech want to let a Foundation Element slip through his fingers? He wants us to feel some victory before he strikes.”

“That,” supplied the Brigadier, “or he’s waiting for us.”

“In either case,” finished Lukas, “he’s going to wait as long as we do.”

“Which means,” I realized, “he wants us to witness his victory. Well, we’re not going to let him win. I want everyone to take the two days needed to prepare for the fight. The Vortex and Apocalypse Riders need to be there to beat him anyways. Once we have the coordinates, I’ll get us there.”

“Not going through the Gateway?” asked X-PO.

“We can’t afford to do so,” I replied. “Vortech may use it to get here and take the Foundation Elements we have. I’ll get us there.”

“This is it, then,” mumbled Okaa-san’s voice. She and Lacey came in. Lacey was in a new dress Mom had made for her. “My baby girl,” said Okaa-san, her voice quivering in sadness and fear.

“Okaa-san, I’ll come back,” I promised. “We’ll ALL come back. I promise on my honor as the reigning monarch of the Feudal Nerd Society, we WILL come back, and we WILL come back victorious!”

“We’re gonna hold you to that,” replied Mr. Archer. “It’s not just your life or your brother’s life at stake, but ALL our children’s’ lives.”

“Trust me, their lives will be handled with great care,” I assured.

“…All right,” said Mr. Archer.

“Well now,” mused Emily, “on to some questions. What dimension did you go to?”

“Scooby Doo’s world,” I replied.

SCOOBY DOO?!” yelped Emily. “AW MAN! I would have died to go there!”

“And I managed to do a bit of burglary on Vortech’s person,” I continued. I pulled the bag out. “And we’ve got more studs here,” I pulled out the bag from the fountain.

“The amount you stole from Vortech,” counted Vortoranii, “was 100,000. And that bag has 745,000. Now we have 4,246,000.”

“Is that good?” asked Wataru.

“It’s enough to buy your own universe,” replied Vortoranii, “just not enough left over to start an economy with.”

“…Our own universe?” I said, intrigued. “We may need to look into that when this is over.”

“Oh boy, Megumi’s thinking on godhood!” teased Richard.

“Am not!” I protested. “I’m fine with being a queen!”

“I don’t know,” chuckled Lacey, “being a god has its perks.”

“All hail Megumi the Eternal!” teased Lukas.

“Oh shut up!” I laughed.

“Okay, enough,” called Okaa-san. The teasing broke up and Wataru snickered.

“You guys are ridiculous,” he observed.

“That’s part of our charm,” I replied. “Will you be staying with us?”

“I cannot,” answered Wataru. “The Fangires are coming back for some odd reason. But, I will join you in the final battle.”

“Maybe you can gather the other Riders we’ve encountered,” requested Hongo.

“Who are they?” asked Wataru.

“Here,” called Lukas as he handed a pen and paper to Wataru.

“We met Wizard,” I began in the order we met them, “Bravo, Fourze, Den-O, OOO, W, Brave, Kabuto, Amazon, Ghost, Ex-Aid, Para-DX, Poppy, Drive, Gaim, Build over there,” I pointed out Sento as he worked with Rusty on the Gateway, “and now you.”

“Got it!” affirmed Wataru.

“Tell everyone,” instructed Hongo, “to meet at Arakawa Nature Park when the call comes out.”

“Arakawa Nature Park, right,” confirmed Wataru. “Sayonara, minna-san!” The Gateway opened for him and he headed home.

“Right,” I declared. “Let’s get started!”


I arrived back on Foundation Prime to see Igura leaning against a wall. “I don’t see anything in your hands,” she observed.

“Lost the Diamond Scarab to the Vortex Riders and Kiva,” I replied. “As of right now, I am in urgent need of good news. Tell me you have something of value.”

“Something,” answered Igura, “and someone.” She stepped aside to reveal a man I had hired gather Foundation Elements for me on this adventure!

“Hiro?!” I asked.

“And I bear a gift for you,” answered Hiro as he produced an over-sized key. “The Foundation Element of D-1-5-N-3-Y. And I have something else as well.”

“Do tell,” I invited.

“Look there,” replied Hiro as he pointed to a screen. I did so, a little disappointed at what I saw.

“Dimensional coordinates?” I muttered.

“VORTON’s dimensional coordinates,” Hiro explained. “The main base of operations for our enemies.”

“Vorton?” I asked. “I thought I had left it a lifeless rock in space.”

“Evidently, X-PO had a hand in restoring the life-support systems,” replied Hiro.

“And you didn’t get any of THEIR Foundation Elements?” asked Igura.

“They harassed me for too long,” explained Hiro. “I had little time to make my escape. On top of that, X-PO didn’t remember Foundation Prime’s coordinates.

“Hence why you were in D-1-5-N-3-Y,” realized Igura.

“It matters not,” I assured. “Let’s see, X-PO is most likely using the Foundation Elements they have to calculate Foundation Prime’s coordinates. Let me see, they have Chen’s staff, the cake, the Palantír, the PKE meter, the game token, and the Diamond Scarab. More than enough to find us. It will take two days for him, so we will prepare for them to siege us while YOU, Hiro, will take THEIR Elements once they are inside the base!”

“Understood,” said Hiro, grinning manically.


“Are you sure?” I asked young Flora.

“Positive, Your Majesty,” replied Flora as she fiddled with her now purple ascot. “Lacey herself told us.”

“With the Vortex Riders mustering,” muttered Brendan, “Tarlax needs to be ready.” I had considered his words.

“Miss Kendall,” I asked Amelia, “how goes the new project you and Sludgiona are working on?”

“Not well,” sighed Amelia. “They’re too unstable. If we gave them to the Vortex Riders now, they would explode at the first opportunity.”

“I am NOT giving them bombs to put on their waists!” I snarled. “We’ll have to proceed without the project. Miss Moore, tell the Horsemen we’re training for the final fight. Miss Elmira, put my warriors through some drills.”

“Got it!” called Sophie as she headed back to After Academy in a swish of blue petticoats.

“On my way,” answered Charline as she headed to the camp. We may be monstrous, but the Tarlaxians will not let the multiverse fall! I, Queen Empress Scorpainia, rightful ruler of the children of Tarlax, disciple of the Four Horsemen we Tarlaxians worship, swear this!


Lacey and Flora had informed me of what’s going on in their respective locations. The Heralds were a bit miffed that they weren’t inducted into the F.N.S but conceded that they hadn’t interacted with Megumi all that much. So, it begins. The final stretch of this war is approaching us. I pray my allies, no, my FRIENDS, can save their loved ones. I smoothed out my dress as I walked towards the selectively-permeable wall leading to my balcony. There was a slight tingle as I passed through it and I was greeted with a clear night. I hoped it was a good omen. This war has proven to be rather long. War was busy training her troops in the courtyard below. I had hoped for a peaceful solution with Vortech, hoping he’d never find Foundation Prime, but it was a vain hope. Even I, Death herself, can make mistakes on an incalculable magnitude.

Categories
Kamen Rider Vortex Kamen Rider Vortex Chapters

Chapter 68

We landed roughly on each other. Hongo was trying to NOT concentrate on his back pain. “Wataru, as soon as I disentangle myself from the rest of us,” I warned, “you better be the fastest Kamen Rider. Because if I catch up, may the multiverse have mercy on your soul for jinxing it!”

“Accursed mummy!” hissed Batman as he got Wyldstyle and Mikhail off of him. “Now he’s gonna get it!”

“Check it out!” called Tonje. “Mine carts!” There was a pair of mine carts sitting on their own respective rails. The doors to the mine were closed.

“We need them open,” I mused as I pointed to the doors. Wataru then tried to open them by force.

“Come on, don’t tell me you’re doubting yourself again!” snapped Kivat.

“No, I just need help opening the door!” Wataru managed to get out.

“Wataru, you’re going about it the wrong way,” called Hongo.

“Pardon?” asked Wataru.

“That vent over there,” explained Hongo as he pointed to what he was talking about, “has electronics that can open the doors. We just need to patch it up and shrink someone down to work with the electronics.”

“I’m the one good with rewiring things,” supplied Batman. “You just need to patch things up.”

“Bad news,” called Wyldstyle. While we were talking, she had gotten to a high shelf with a vent patch. “There’s only one patch.”

“Then whoever’s the giant,” suggested Batman, “needs to transfer the patch as I go.”

“What about that hanging bit?” asked Wataru.

“That will be sorted,” assured Hongo. “For now, Scale Keystone, activate! Lessen scale of Batman and Wataru! Enlarge scale of Wyldstyle!” Batman and Wataru shrunk while Wyldstyle grew. She grabbed the patch, ready to help Batman as needed.

“What happened?!” shrieked Wataru. “Why am I small?!”

“We need you under the dangling part of the vent,” directed Batman. Wataru then guessed.

“I’m just going to hold it up?” he asked as he went under the dangling part.

“Exactly,” confirmed Hongo. “Enlarge scale of Wataru!” Wataru grew and held the part in place while Wyldstyle transferred her patch when Batman needed it changed. After a while, everything was rewired and the doors unlocked.

“Well,” sighed Wyldstyle as Hongo got everyone back to their normal sizes, “I guess these carts are the only way out.”

“Then let’s not waste any more time,” declared Wataru. “Kivat, let’s go.” He held his hand to the air.

“All right!” cheered Kivat. “Let’s go!” He flew into Wataru’s hand and folded his wings. Wataru pressed a button in between the bat’s ears and the mouth opened. “Gabu!” (Bite!) called Kivat. Wataru then put Kivat’s fangs onto his hand, making stained glass patterns appear on his body while chains wrapped around his waist, forming a red belt with a hook in front and three whistle-like devices on each side. Wataru then showed Kivat in front of him.

“Henshin!” he announced. He then attached Kivat to the hook by his feet and let him swing down, making a deep bell sound. Quicksilver then formed around his body before bulking up and coloring itself. The suit was predominantly black with silver shoulder guards and a leg guard wrapped in chains. He had a red chest and red trim around his yellow, bat wing eyes.

“So, that’s Kiva,” I mused.

“Transforming may be a good idea,” suggested Hongo as he struck his pose. We followed suit by drawing our i.d. tags. “Rider…” began Hongo.

“Henshin!” we announced. We all transformed and then boarded the mine carts. We went down, down, down towards another area.

“The Scarab,” boasted a voice, “and its powers are MINE to control!”

“The mummy!” snarled Batman. “Quick! After him!”

“Looks like a dangerous game of bumper cars,” I mused. We kept bumping him, making him lose his grip on the explosives he was trying to light. He tried changing tracks frequently, but it was no good, he changed them too late. Finally, we went on a track that took us out of the mine and made us fly through the air onto a roller-coaster track. We went around the track a couple of times, but the ride we had made Kiva look a little sick, even under his helmet.

“Wataru, don’t you dare throw up!” warned Kivat.

“I’m trying!” mumbled Kiva. The mummy’s cart then left the track and crashed through a circus tent.

“This way!” called Batman. We all left the cart and went into the mummy’s tent. Kiva and I bounced on the trampoline all the way up to a trapeze swing. I grabbed onto the bar and Kiva grabbed my legs. We swung on it a few times before letting go and landing on the ground. Kiva and I felt something coming up our throats that was NOT going to be held back, so we dismissed our helmets and…I don’t need to paint you the picture.

“What took you so long?” asked Batman.

“Now I remember why I HATE roller-coasters!” I mumbled as our helmets came back.

“I don’t want to ride any more rides,” moaned Kiva. “I have an allergy to thrill rides.”

“You and me both,” I said as I patted Kiva’s shoulder. That was when creepy laughter rang through the tent and the mummy rose up from a hole.

“You were fools to think that mere mortals can stop me!” he boasted. “Witness the true power and might of the Diamond Scarab!”

“Fools?” I hissed. “I am no fool. I am a hero! Dai Super Charge!” My armor bulked up, then flew off to reveal… “Kamen Rider Vortex! Evil will ultimately bow to me!”

“Kamen Rider Gallop! My riding skills are unmatched!”

“Kamen Rider Swing! I’ll be taking your legs!”

“I am Gandalf the Grey! Prepare to see some fireworks!”

“I’m Wyldstyle! Time to think outside the box!”

“I’m Batman! The Dark Knight rises!”

“Kamen Rider Kiva! I will break the chains of fate!”

“I am the start of a group of warriors! I am Kamen Rider!”

“No, you’re dead!” declared the mummy. He used the Scarab to raise more mummies! “Rise, my warriors! Defend my honor!” ordered the mummy. Kiva punched one and it fell apart.

“They’re pretty weak!” called Kiva. “It’s the numbers that concern me.”

“Just keep at it!” I directed. I managed to touch Kiva and got his i.d. tag. “All right, let’s see what you’ve got!” I inserted the i.d. tag and selected Kiva’s normal appearance.

“Kiva Steel!” announced Vortoranii. The wardrobe change my appearance to that of Kiva’s and I started striking more mummies with my sword. Somehow, I wasn’t getting the usual power.

“What gives?!” I snapped.

“You need to use the Garuru Saber form!” explained Kiva. “Watch!” He pulled out a whistle from his right side with blue highlights and put it into Kivat’s mouth.

“Garuru Saber!” shouted Kivat as he blew into it. A high-pitched whistle rang out and some device came flying towards Kiva. It unfolded into a sword with a snarling wolf’s head on the hilt. Kiva grabbed it with his left hand and chains wrapped around his arm and shoulder before snapping to reveal a newer spiky shoulder pad and a blue arm. Chains wrapped around his chest before snapping and revealing a new blue chest. Kivat’s eyes flashed between red and blue before settling on blue. Kiva’s eyes went blue as well before he adopted an animalistic stance.

“Garuru Saber,” I repeated. “Got it!” I summoned the selection circle and changed forms again.

“Kiva Garuru Saber Steel!” announced Vortoranii as the wardrobe closed on me. The whistle that was part of changing into that form sounded and my arm and eyes changed color. After we took care of the other mummies, the main one summoned a giant mechanical scarab!

“RUN!” I shouted as we got out of the way.

“I’ve got an idea!” called Batman. “Shift Keystone, activate! Cyan, on the platform above the target board! Magenta, on the flaming platform! Yellow, on the icy platform! Shift! Kiva! Cyan!” Kiva was sucked into the portal and ended up on the platform. The mummy got his scarab to charge, but it resulted in the scarab knocking itself silly. Kiva then held up another whistle with purple highlights and put it into Kivat’s mouth.

“Dogga Hammer!” announced Kivat as a loud, deep horn blasted. A large purple hammer appeared and unfolded. The head of the hammer looked like a large purple fist and was three times the size of Kiva’s head. He grabbed the shaft with both hands and chains wrapped around them before snapping and revealing purple, gauntleted arms. His chest became purple as did his and Kivat’s eyes. Kiva leapt down and swung the hammer into the mummy’s side. I leapt onto the mummy and got him to tip over so the scarab would be on top.

“Get off me, you silly thing!” snapped the mummy as more mummies came. I saw a seedling.

“Gandalf!” I called as I pointed to the seedling.

“I think I know of two other elements that may help!” answered Gandalf. “Elemental Keystone, activate! Element of fire, Vortex! Element of water, Ichigō! Element of earth, Kiva!” Ichigō took care of the fire by the magenta Shift portal while I got rid of the ice near the yellow one. Kiva used his new powers on the seedling to make it grow vines that hit the mummy. He managed to get the scarab on its legs again and it started digging!

“Shift! Vortex! Yellow!” called Batman. I went to the formerly icy platform and the scarab charged at the target board beneath me, knocking itself silly again. Kiva swung the hammer again and knocked the scarab onto the mummy again.

“I command you to move!” ordered the mummy. There was another seedling, so Kiva grew a giant slab of earth from it. It fell and the scarab burrowed again.

“Shift! Ichigō! Magenta!” shouted Batman. Ichigō was on the now charred platform as the scarab came up and charge one last time, only to meet with the same result.

“WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT GETTING OFF OF ME?!” roared the mummy. One last seedling that Kiva grew, one mini volcano that threw a hot rock onto the scarab, effectively destroying it! While he was tossed into the air by the explosion, Kiva, Swing, Ichigō, and I got ready for our kicks. Kiva used a whistle on his right and put it into Kivat’s mouth.

“WAKE UP!” announced Kivat as he flew off his hook. Kiva raised his chained leg into the air as Kivat broke the chains. The armor opened to reveal red demon wings and a green circle on top of the foot. We all then leapt into the air. Kiva didn’t call out his kick, but the rest of us did.

“RIDER KICK!” called Ichigō.

“RIDER SWING KICK!” shouted Swing

“RIDER VORTEX KIVA GARURU KICK!” I announced. The mummy was kicked into the…stuff that Kiva and I…you know. He landed there and lost his grip on the Diamond Scarab. The mummies then lost their new life-forces and fell.

“Goodness,” panted Gandalf. “I have not seen magic like that in some time.”

“Not magic,” countered Gallop as he took the head off one of the mummies.

“I knew it!” hissed Batman. “They were robotic exhibits from a carnival! Because this mummy isn’t a mummy at all. It’s…” mask pulling-off time! “…the Fun fair owner!”

“Er, I don’t know of any fun fair owners made of solid space!” argued Swing. We all looked to see the head! That wasn’t a human head! The head belonged to…

“Vortech!” yelped Batman as Lord Vortech tore his mummy disguise off and got his usual clothes back on.

“And I would have gotten away with it,” hissed Vortech, “if it hadn’t have been for you meddling kids!”

“Decided to do your own dirty work?” I asked.

“Dirty work,” answered Vortech, “would have been a fine description if you didn’t kick me into your bile!”

“You’re not getting the Scarab back!” I declared.

“Try and stop me!” snapped Vortech as he charged at me. I managed to roll out of the way and Batman decked him, knocking a bag of studs from him. “THIEVES! THAT’S MINE!” roared Vortech. At that moment, a portal opened behind us as X-PO’s voice came through.

“Sorry to interrupt,” he called, “but you guys have the final Foundation Element. Head back to Vorton, but only if you, you know, want to save the entire multiverse.” At that point, Vortech seemed to get an idea, then stopped trying to get the Scarab from us.

“Yes, trot along,” he dismissed. “Take your trinket. I don’t need it; I have your friends.”

“Let’s go!” called Wyldstyle. I wasn’t one to argue, but Vortech’s change of heart scared me. Still, we took our leave of Scooby Doo’s world with Kiva behind us.


“So, you’re the one helping them, are you, X-PO?” I muttered to myself “A rather big mistake. Now, which dimension did I banish you to?” My musings were interrupted by voices. I hid behind one of the poles and saw Shaggy and Scooby running into the tent.

“I heard it in here!” called Scooby in his usual ‘r’ laden speech.

“Then, like, why aren’t we running in the opposite direction?!” asked Shaggy before they tripped into a bathtub. When they recovered, they saw the remains of my disguise. “Like, dude,” yelped Shaggy, “that is so freaky-deaky!” Their friends then came running up to them.

“You guys already solved the case?!” asked Fred in disbelief.

“And had the police take away the bad guy?!” quizzed Velma.

“Was it the fun fair owner again?” asked Daphne. Shaggy and Scooby decided to make up a story.

“Yeah, that’s right!” replied Shaggy.

“Yeah!” finished the dog. “Scooby Dooby Doo!” All right, that’s enough of that foolishness. Time to take my leave! I hope Igura had better luck than I.

Categories
Kamen Rider Vortex Kamen Rider Vortex Chapters

Chapter 67

That nonsense with Heather made me sleep in this morning! Everyone could breathe easier now that Heather’s in Hell. We all had a late breakfast before assembling in the Gateway room. The Rider chance was fired up. “And the winners are…!” called X-PO as the hands slowed down to, “Tonje,” Tonje smiled, “and Mikhail!”

“Khorosho!” cheered Mikhail.

“Coordinates set,” reported Rusty.

“CHARGE!” I shouted.


We landed near the exit of a carnival at a road leading up to a spooky mansion on a hill. “Well,” mused Hongo, “Wataru might enjoy this.”

“Who?” I asked.

“Kurenai Wataru,” explained Hongo. “A Kamen Rider with a Vampire motif, Kamen Rider Kiva.”

“Great, a Kamen Rider out for blood,” muttered Mikhail.

“I wouldn’t worry too much about him,” assured Hongo. “He’s not a Vampire, per se.”

“Wait!” hissed Batman as we stopped at the rocks at the bottom of the hill. “I hear something.” We poked our heads around the rock and saw something that made Tonje, Mikhail, and I light up with glee! It was a 1960’s panel van with some custom details to the body with a blue and green paintjob with orange flowers and the words “The Mystery Machine” painted in orange. The owner, a blond young man in a blue shirt with a white sweater over it, blue pants, and an orange ascot, was leading his friends up to the mansion. The rest of the gang consisted of a red-headed woman in a purple shirt, headband, dress, and shoes with pink stockings and a green scarf, a brunette woman in thick, squared-rimmed glasses, a baggy orange turtle-neck sweater, and a red, pleated miniskirt, a lanky, long-necked man in a green V-neck shirt, brown bell-bottoms, and a scraggly beard, and a brown Great Dane with black spots and a collar with the license reading “SD”!

“It’s them!” I whispered.

“Mystery Incorporated!” chuckled Mikhail. “I’ve always had a crush on Velma!”

“Eh, I prefer Daphne,” replied Tonje.

“Who are they?” asked Wyldstyle.

“The blonde’s Fred, the red-head’s Daphne, the glasses-wearer is Velma, the scraggly guy is Shaggy, and the dog’s Scooby-Doo!” answered Mikhail.

“They’re paranormal investigators,” I explained.

“Those kids?” asked Batman.

“Those kids,” I said hotly, “have solved as many crimes as you!” Batman scratched his head.

“I swear those kids look familiar,” he muttered. “Must have been some look-a-likes in Gotham.”

“Well, gang,” announced Fred as they arrived at the mansion’s door, “this is my uncle Arthur’s house.” He pulled on a rope and it rang a creepy bell, making Scooby jump into Shaggy’s arms.

“Arthur Jones, the famous explorer,” recalled Velma. “Do you really believe he’s seen a mummy?”

“He’s certainly thinks he has,” replied Fred. “He said it’s after the Diamond Scarab he found in Egypt.”

“Then, it could be here,” guessed Daphne.

“Come on, you don’t really believe that, do you?” asked Velma.

“It’s worth splitting up to find clues for,” remarked Fred. Here it comes. “Hey, guys,” he called to Shaggy and Scooby, “can you check out the old fun-fair? That’s one of the places the mummy’s been seen.”

“Fun-fair?” gulped Shaggy.

“Ghost Train!” wailed Scooby. I swear he added extra r’s in there.

“Say, Velma,” mused Fred, “do you think that fun-fair has a cotton candy machine?” That changed their tune quick.

“Cotton Candy?!” cheered Scooby. He jumped out of Shaggy’s arms. “Let’s go!”

“Right behind you, ol’ buddy, ol’ pal!” called Shaggy as they took off to the Mystery Machine and drove past us while the rest of the gang.

“Come on,” directed Batman. “That Diamond Scarab sounds like our Foundation Element.”

“What do you suppose his mother wants the Scarab for?” asked Gandalf. “Perhaps as jewelry?”

“What?” asked Batman.

“Different type of mummy, Gandalf,” elaborated Wyldstyle. We approached the door, but it shut on us.

“Oh, it appears to have locked behind those good people,” mused Gandalf as he tried it again.

“Chroma locked, it looks like,” observed Wyldstyle. “Haven’t tried it out in a while. Let’s find the Chroma Discs!” We first checked the shed and saw that inside was tangled in vines.

“I think I’m going to need some help with this one,” muttered Batman.

“I got this,” called Mikhail. “Henshin.” He changed into Gallop and changed steels.

“Batman Steel!” announced his belt. They fired their grapple guns and yanked hard, letting a garden hose assembly come out. We attached it to the side of the house and the fountain came on. It spat out a large bag. We looked in to see studs. 745,000 studs, to be exact. Our total is now 4,146,000.

“Bingo,” Batman said in a snarky tone, “just what we needed.”

   “Okay, that’s it,” I hissed. “I’m using my Keystone. Locate Keystone, activate! Initiate rift detection!” I found it by a garden full of weeds. “Identify source of rift!” The information beamed into my head. “Locate help from W-1-Z-4-R-D-0-F-0-Z!”

“That place again?!” asked Batman. A Munchkin came out of the rift and watered the weeds, making them turn into a variety of colorful flowers. The plants spat out a red Chroma Disc. All of a sudden, Wyldstyle’s gauntlet started buzzing.

“Already?” muttered Wyldstyle. “Where are the other…well, there’s blue on the porch roof.”

“I see yellow in the green house,” replied Tonje.

“And I know how to get you guys there,” called Batman. “Shift Keystone, activate!  Magenta, by the garden! Yellow, in the green house! Cyan, on the roof! Shift! Megumi! Cyan!”

“Not again!” I yelped as I was dumped onto the roof.

“Shift! Tonje! Yellow!” directed Batman. Tonje was sucked into the green house as Gallop cancelled his transformation.

“Chroma Keystone, activate!” called Wyldstyle. “Chroma lock, reveal!” The Lock Design had a blue circle, a yellow left L-shape, and a red right L-shape. “Chroma! Red! Batman! Chroma! Blue! Megumi! Chroma! Yellow! Tonje!” We went into the paint before Batman got us together and we took our respective places. The door opened and someone fell from the roof! We headed over to see if he was okay. He was a Japanese man with a black and gold bat-like gadget flying around.

“Hey, are you all right?!” I asked. The man got himself up.

“Where am I?” asked the man.

“You’re in another dimension, Wataru,” explained Hongo.

“That’s Wataru?” I asked.

“And I’m Kivat-bat the Third!” introduced the bat-gadget.

“Hongo?!” called Wataru. “Am I glad to see you! Er, who are those people behind you?”

“I’m Batman,” began Batman.

“Gandalf the Grey,” introduced Gandalf

“I’m Wyldstyle,” replied Wyldstyle

“I’m Lord Mikhail Kuznetsov,” bowed Mikhail

“Lady Tonje Haugen,” introduced Tonje.

“And I’m Queen Megumi Hishikawa of the Feudal Nerd Society,” I finished as I curtsied.

“Right now,” revealed Batman, “we need to get in and get that Scarab.”

“I’ve overheard what the Scarab is to these kids,” replied Wataru. “Mind if I come with you?”

“As long as you keep your fangs away from my neck, sure,” I hissed.

“I’m a Fangire/human hybrid, not a full Vampire,” assured Wataru. “And a Fangire doesn’t need fangs to drain you of life energy.”

“That makes me so much better,” I snarked as we stepped inside. When we came in, we saw Fred, Velma, and Daphne heading towards a door on the upper level. Not a good idea to have Danger-prone Daphne bringing up the rear. She was going slower than her friends and was taken by a spinning wall. Velma and Fred didn’t know as they went through the door. When they shut it, a portcullis barred the door.

“Did…she just get caught behind a rotating wall?” asked Batman.

“What’s with this place?” asked Kivat-bat the Third.

“We’re definitely in the older Scooby-Doo episodes,” I mused. “Search the place.” We started thumping on the walls when Gandalf felt a candle on the wall move. He figured it would lead to something useful and pulled it, letting the portrait of Arthur Jones move up, but all that was there was a box of Scooby Snacks. Gandalf became curious and opened the box, taking a taste of one. It was safe to say he wasn’t a big fan of them. He tossed the box out the window as well as the rest of the snack he tasted.

“I don’t get it!” snapped Wyldstyle. “I looked everywhere!” She leaned against a bookcase and it fell apart! “Oops!” she gulped. Then, she got that look. “Actually, maybe not so much an oops!” she cheered as she managed to build an electric coil.

“How did you do that?!” asked Wataru.

“Best not to question it,” advised Hongo.

“Gandalf, if you please,” I directed.

“Elemental Keystone, activate! Element of lightning, Megumi!” announced Gandalf. I felt the familiar buzz as I gained electric powers. I fired lightning at the coil, startling Wataru and Kivat-bat the Third.

“Are you sure you’re not a Fangire?!” yelped Wataru. “Kivat, is she a Fangire?”

“I don’t know!” replied Kivat-bat the…Kivat.

“It’s just technology beyond our understanding,” I assured. We heard gears moving and headed to the upper level to see the portcullis going up and the door opening.

“Let’s see what’s in the next room,” directed Batman. We headed into the room and saw knight armor and taxidermized animals. An open door allowed the lightning outside to show a spooky figure. “Whoa, who’s shadow was that?!” asked Batman. Further down the room, Velma went into another room while Fred pulled on a book. That triggered a trap-door beneath him to open. “I’m experiencing some déjà vu!” muttered Batman.

“Maybe you DID meet Mystery Inc.,” I mused. Another portcullis then blocked us from Velma.

“I think I can solve that,” called Wyldstyle as she pulled on a chain from the ceiling. It raised an owl’s cage to reveal a button. I pressed it and the portcullis raised again, allowing us passage. In the next room, Velma realized she was alone and became nervous. She didn’t see where she was going and tripped over something, making her glasses fly off her face.

“My glasses!” she cried as she felt around. “I can’t see a thing without my glasses!” She stumbled towards an open sarcophagus and blundered inside. It shut itself on her and a hook from the ceiling grabbed it, pulling the sarcophagus and its passenger up. The room had a distinct Egyptian theme.

“How many themes are in this house?!” asked Batman.

“Wait, I think we may be in the right room!” I called. “The Diamond Scarab was found in Egypt, right?”

“Good thinking,” praised Batman. “The Egyptian room would make sense. Let’s start searching!” We examined everything, although the Jackal sarcophagi took some time. Batman had a gadget for situations like that but needed our help. Mikhail, Tonje, and I changed into our Rider suits and activated Batman Steel. We used our grapple guns to yank the Jackals off and reveal pressure plates. Swing and I stepped on them and Velma’s sarcophagus came down, sans Velma. It split when it landed and revealed a large hammer, larger than any of us could lift.

“I may require assistance,” muttered Gandalf.

“I got this,” called Gallop as he exchanged i.d. tags.

“Gandalf Steel!” announced his belt. He and Gandalf then used their magic to lift the hammer and break the sarcophagus to reveal…nothing.

“I’ll get help,” I sighed. “Locate Keystone, activate! Initiate rift detection!” I found it near one of the Jackals. “Identify source of rift!” The information was beamed into my head. “Locate help from D-C-C-0-M-1-C-5!” The rift opened to reveal…!

“SUPERMAN!” swooned Wyldstyle. It was, indeed, Superman! He flew into the room and flashed a grin.

“Couldn’t you at least get Cyborg?!” asked Batman.

“As I’ve said numerous times on this adventure,” I hissed, “I can’t choose what I get from this thing!”

“Batman!” snarled Superman. “Let’s settle this rivalry once and for all!” Uh oh! They were gonna…! “Coffee or tea?!” We all lost our balance momentarily, fell down…”anime-style” I believe it’s called.

“Er, Superman,” I interjected, “we have a bigger problem than that. We’re trying to find something called the Diamond Scarab and we think it’s in this room.”

“You need my help?” asked Superman. “Never fear, the Man of Steel is here!” He then used his x-ray vision to scan the entire room. “Aha! There it is, behind that wall!”

“The one with the painting of an Egyptian Pharaoh?” I asked.

“The same!” confirmed Superman.

“I guess, if all Riders kicked it…” I mused as I felt around the wall.

“I have a more expedient solution,” declared Superman.

“Okay, what’s that?” I asked, my back still to him.

“For a start, you’d best get behind me,” advised Superman.

“Why would I…?” I asked as I turned around to see Superman winding up for a punch! I took his advice and quickly got behind him. He punched the wall and it turned into dust. There, at the other end of the room, on a red, velvet cushion, was a scarab beetle made of diamond! “Thank you, Superman!” I cheered.

“Happy to help!” replied Superman.

“Superman, before you go,” stopped Batman, “do you have any information on a guy called Lord Vortech?”

“Vortech?” muttered Superman. “He’s just a myth on Krypton, something to frighten children into behaving.”

“Our experience with him would like to disagree,” I argued.

“Uh oh,” gulped Superman as realization dawned on him. “This is a League matter, then?”

“The final battle will be,” replied Batman. “We’re gathering objects like the Scarab to keep them out of Vortech’s hands as well as pinpoint his stronghold’s location as there are hostages in there, Robin included. You should probably tell the Titans as well.”

“Got it,” replied Superman. “Farewell, everyone.”

“Bye, Superman,” I bid. “Dismiss help!” Superman then flew through the rift for him as we headed to the Scarab.

“I hope I’m not tempting fate by saying this is easy,” muttered Wataru. He did! A mummy grabbed the Scarab.

“At long last!” wheezed the mummy. “The Diamond Scarab! Behold!” The floor then gave way beneath us!

“WATARU, I’M GONNA KILL YOU!” I shouted as we fell.

Categories
Kamen Rider Vortex Kamen Rider Vortex Chapters

Chapter 66

“I was the princess,” muttered Kaitlyn.

“The TARDIS is not a toy!” shouted 70-year-old me.

“Er, where IS the Den-Liner crew?” I asked.

“After we came back,” explained Joshua, “the Den-Liner came here to pick them up. They’re already gone.”

“And WE need to go as well,” continued 70-year-old me.

“It’s nice to know that my future is in good hands,” I replied.

“You were the one who made that choice,” observed 70-year-old me. She opened up a time rift. “Goodbye, Megumi.”

“Goodbye, Megumi,” I bid as we both bowed. They all soon went back to their original time. “Oof! My head!” I complained. “Time travel’s just one nuisance after another!”

“Speaking of time,” interjected Richard, “it’s against us. Heather’s probably finishing it up now!”

“Get Emily and have her join us in the Gateway Room,” I directed. “Batman, Hongo, Wyldstyle, Gandalf, Lacey, with me.”

“Not that I want to question you,” argued Richard, “but are you sure sending Emily after Heather is a good idea?”

“Heather may attack in a blind rage,” I admitted, “but she can cause damage. I want a medic with us. Besides, it might be the best way for Emily to get closure on Heather. I can just imagine her face now as she lords victory over her old nemesis and high school bully.”

“Very well,” conceded Richard. He headed off to find Emily as the rest of the team joined me. Lacey called up Death on her phone and informed her we would meet her at After Academy. After she finished the call, she gave the technical team the coordinates and they set the Gateway for that location. Rusty gave the thumbs-up as Emily joined us.

“Ready to close the book on her?” I asked.

“Do you even need to ask?” replied Emily.

“Let’s go, then!” I declared. The rift opened and we charged through.

After Academy is certainly opulent, I can tell you. The Four Horsemen joined us a few seconds later. “Had to confirm something,” whispered Death.

“And?” I asked.

“Nothing you need to know just yet,” whispered Death. “Come. We have work to do.” We made our way to a cave on the outskirts of the school and had examined all of the bits and pieces of technology strewn about the place.

“Does she even know what half this stuff is?” I asked.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if she found out,” muttered Emily. That got our attention. “Heather has more in common with the Daleks than just her racism. She’s a genius in terms of mechanical skill.”

“A pity she didn’t put it to good use,” I lamented.

“There she is!” whispered Hongo. Heather was busy using a solder on something, her knockoff Apocalypse Driver, in all likelihood. We then saw her put the tool down.

“Done!” she cheered. “It’s finished!” I nodded to my team.

“So are you!” roared Emily.

“You!” snarled Heather as she turned to us.

“Heather, you don’t want to do this!” I warned.

“What I don’t want,” insisted Heather, “is interference from you freaks!” She came at us with wild punches. Hongo struck his pose and we got our i.d. tags out. The Horsemen and Lacey we’re ready as well.

“Rider…” called Hongo.

“Henshin!” we all announced. We changed and the fight began. Heather tried to slam her fists on to my head, but Apocalypse kicked her in the stomach. Heather tried to change her target to Apocalypse and did a roundhouse, but Apocalypse jumped out of the way so Ichigō could catch her foot. He then flipped her into the air, leaving her open to Batman’s knife-hand jab to the gut. Gandalf held her in the air with his magic while Wyldstyle made a giant fist out of the rock and slammed it onto Heather. Death then grabbed her legs and tossed her to War, who kicked her over to me. I drove my knee into her spine. While she was trying to pull herself together, Famine bit her arm, leaving a gaping wound for Pestilence to fire a gas at her. She briefly broke out in spots, but they vanished on account of the fact she was already dead. Touché then grabbed her hair.

“For everything you ever did to me and for those people you’ve killed!” she declared. She grabbed her nemesis by the throat and tossed her into the cave wall. “It’s over, Heather,” commented Touché. “You’ve lost. Your small-minded obsession towards purity is weighing you down.”

“IT IS NOT SMALL-MINDED!” roared Heather as she held up her knock-off Apocalypse Driver. “PURITY IS WHAT KEEPS US GOING! CAN’T YOU SEE THAT?!”

“Heather, don’t do it!” warned Apocalypse.

“SHUT UP!” bellowed Heather. “I’m coming back and no one’s gonna stop me!” She then put the Driver on…and felt the consequences. She was zapped multiple times and convulsed in pain while a bright light filled the area. It expanded to cover us all and blind us. When we regained our vision, well, I can’t speak for everyone’s belief in their sight, but I CAN speak for my own, because I couldn’t believe it! There, wearing a photo-negative version of the Apocalypse Driver, was an equally photo-negative version of Lacey! Heather picked herself up and examined herself. She was still transparent. “No!” she yelled. “No, this is all wrong! IT’S SUPPOSED TO BRING ME BACK! I’M SUPPOSED TO HAVE A FULLY FUNCTIONING BODY!”

“You have an annoying talent for whining,” replied a voice. It sounded like Apocalypse’s voice, but with a slight echo.

“How are you doing that?” I asked as we cancelled our transformations.

“Who are you talking to?” asked Lacey.

“…You,” I replied, confused. “You made your voice go all echoey.”

“No,” contradicted Lacey. “I didn’t say anything. And I can’t make my voice have an echo.”

“Well, it WAS your voice,” replied Richard.

“No, it was mine,” corrected the voice again. At that moment, we all turned to Lacey’s Negative Clone.

“…Did YOU speak?” I asked.

“I should hope I did,” remarked the clone. “I have been dormant for eons since the dawn of eternity. I exist as a voice for the Void.”

“The Void?” whispered Death. “Oh, this is brilliant!”

“The Void,” wheezed Pestilence, “is the counter to the multiverse. While everything exists here, nothing, and I do mean NOTHING, exists in the Void.”

“I have been born,” continued the Lacey Clone, “as a guardian of the Void. Specifically, I guard the multiverse against the Void. There must be a balance between everything and nothing. Even if Vortech were to succeed in his plans, the Void would remain.”

“That’s why there should be only ONE Apocalypse Driver!” hissed Death as she turned to Heather. “I warned you about what would happen if you went through with this! You ignored me and easily half the multiverse! Even Caan could see what your machinations could have wrought, and he’s a Dalek!”

“I will NOT be condemned to never having offspring!” shouted Heather. “If the multiverse won’t let me have children, I will happily burn it!”

“That CAN’T happen!” insisted the Lacey Clone. “The power would be uncontrollable! You’d be erased along with the multiverse before you had a chance to breed!”

“You’d destroy the multiverse just to make all life like you?” asked Emily. “You sound like a Dalek.”

“Being barren is unbearable!” protested Heather. “Being DEAD is unbearable!”

“Heather Richards, your unholy crusade nearly destroyed everything!” declared the Lacey Clone. She snapped her fingers and a fiery hole opened up beneath Heather. She grabbed the edge before she fell. “All of Hell wants a word with you!” hissed the Lacey Clone.

“NO! YOU CAN’T SEND ME DOWN THERE!” screamed Heather as she tried to pull herself up. The Lacey Clone stepped on her hands.

“The decision was already made by both Man and God,” she insisted. She then kicked Heather down to Hell.

“I HATE YOU!” roared Heather as her screams mingled with those of the Damned. The Lacey Clone shut the hole and there was silence.

“That was…utterly terrifying!” mumbled Hongo.

“That’s the point of monsters like her,” replied the Lacey Clone. “In any case, it’s good to see you all, finally.”

“…Finally?” asked Lacey.

“The Void has had a consciousness of its own,” explained the Lacey Clone. “It’s been waiting to explore the multiverse without causing imbalance. Heather’s attempt to come back to life was the chance it needed. So, I have a belt that gives me a suit just like you guys do. I guess you could call me Kamen Rider Void.”

“What about your civilian name?” I asked. “I don’t know about the rest of us, but in my head, I’ve called you Lacey Clone. Do you have a different name?”

“…You know, I think I just thought of one,” replied the Lacey Clone. “Call me Sandra, Sandra Noman.”

“Noman?” asked Lacey. “That means ‘not a person’. Are you sure you want that?”

“I’m of the Void,” replied the newly christened Sandra. “I think it’s appropriate.”

“Well, all right,” I sighed. “In any case, can we count on you in the final fight against Vortech?”

“I must disappoint you,” answered Sandra. “My powers are too out of control and getting a handle on them will take time, long after the final fight against Vortech. I must apologize.”

“Will you at least consider joining After Academy?” whispered Death.

“It sounds like an excellent school,” mused Sandra. “I might join it. I’m on the fence about it, though.”

“If you DO want to,” wheezed Pestilence, “you need merely ask us.”

“And no hurry in choosing a house,” assured Lacey.

“Thank you, all of you,” replied Sandra. “Until next time.” Black mist then surrounded her until she and the mist vanished.

“That…was intense!” I breathed. “There IS one more thing I need to do.”

“What’s that?” asked Lacey.

“Lacey and Horsemen,” I called, “how would you like to be members of the Feudal Nerd Society?”

“We haven’t had new members in a LONG time!” cheered Emily.

“It’s only been a year since Sheela joined us,” I replied. “It’s all your choice.”

“I’d be a fool NOT to join!” declared Lacey.

“I suppose it won’t hurt,” whispered Death.

“Eh, why not?” grunted War.

“This could be fun,” wheezed Pestilence. “Count me in!”

“I want in on this!” mumbled Famine as she finished her protein bar.

“What about you guys?” I asked, turning to Batman, Hongo, Wyldstyle, and Gandalf.

“I must respectfully decline,” replied Gandalf. “But, thank you.”

“Sorry, I have to say no as well,” remarked Batman.

“Yeah, sorry,” muttered Wyldstyle. “When this is over, I’m gonna be busy with the Master Builder Academy.”

“And I must say no was well,” answered Hongo. “I do apologize if I have disappointed you.”

“Like I said,” I assured them, “it’s all your choice. I understand.”

“But, if you want to reconsider,” offered Emily, “just come find us.”

“Thank you,” replied Batman.

“Now, kneel, Lacey and Horsemen,” I instructed. I’m probably one of few people the Horsemen ever kneeled to. I drew my blade and tapped their shoulders as if I were knighting them. “And rise, Dame Lacey Thanatos, Duchess Death, Dame War, Lady Pestilence, and Lady Famine!” They rose as new members of the Feudal Nerd Society!

“Now comes the real question,” declared Lacey, “who do I see for a dress?”

“My mother can help in that regard,” I answered.

“She’s made the costumes for the entire F.N.S,” explained Emily. “She’s always open to ideas.”

“I’ll ask her for help when we get back,” declared Lacey.

“Speaking of,” I remarked. I then called up Vorton. “X-PO, mission accomplished. Heather is no more and the knock-off Apocalypse Driver DIDN’T destroy the multiverse. Boy, have we got a story to tell you all!”

“One rift home coming up!” cheered X-PO. “And we’ve found the next Foundation Element!”

“We’ll remain here,” whispered Death. “But, we’ll join you in the final battle! Good luck!”

“Thank you!” I called as we jumped through.

Categories
Kamen Rider Vortex Kamen Rider Vortex Chapters

Chapter 63

“I revealed myself to be Kamen Rider Shade when we got back,” answered Kaede once Livia finished.

“So you DID resort to magic one time!” called a voice. It was 70-year-old me!

“I didn’t actually follow through with it!” wailed Kaede.

“You were about to use magic!” argued 70-year-old me.

“This is monumentally bad,” gulped Michael.

“How so?” I asked.

“Caan’s returned, mentally, to his old Dalek ways,” explained Michael. “Hating other lifeforms, that’s bad enough, but he’s now in a form he considers impure. He’s being driven mad by his own flesh. The stink of his ancestral Kaled genes. He hates his own existence and that makes him deadlier than ever.”

“Not exactly something Daleks want to do,” mused Rusty, “hating their flesh.”

“Can you guys give any hint on him?” I asked my future and her children.

“No need to worry about him,” assured 70-year-old me. “He’ll die a few years from now.”

“It’s gonna be a surprise for him,” replied Kaede.

“Caan isn’t exactly someone to underestimate,” muttered Michael.

“Maybe,” I commented, “but enough about that Dalek, let’s talk about Haitao and Joshua! Where are they?”

“Right here, Your Majesty,” called Joshua. “Boy, do we have a story to tell you!”


“I really don’t see why you’re making such a fuss, after she failed you,” I said to Vortech.

“Making a fuss?!” snapped Vortech. “Caan, she’s got intimate knowledge about our operations!”

“She’s not interested in us anymore and she hates the Vortex Riders as much as we do,” I assured Vortech. “We’re fine.”

“Forgive me if I’m skeptic,” replied Vortech.

“Trust the one who looked into the Time Vortex, we’re fine!” I insisted.


“Has anyone found Heather?” asked War.

“She’s building too near Hell’s outskirts,” I whispered.

“I felt it too,” wheezed Pestilence. Famine mumbled a response.

“Don’t talk with your mouth full!” I whispered sharply. Famine mumbled “Excuse me,” and swallowed whatever she was eating.

“So why aren’t we there?” she said before chowing down again.

“Sonic’s presence concerns me,” I responded, fear creeping into my soft voice. “If he’s the Sonic from THAT universe, it could prove catastrophic if the Vortex Riders find out.”

“You mean…you think Sonic may be the Sonic from the combined universe resulting from Clusters C-Y-8-3-R-T-R-0-N and 5-3-G-4?” War grunted.

“The same,” I replied. “If it is, we may experience the Convergence a lot sooner than we’re ready for.”

“I wish you didn’t say that,” wheezed Pestilence.

Categories
Kamen Rider Vortex Kamen Rider Vortex Chapters

Chapter 56

We made our way to a landing pad in two hours. The new Gotengo-A looked like the one in Godzilla: Final Wars but was a little trimmer. Admiral Douglas Gordon, I still remember him as a Captain, came out to meet us as well as Biollante. She saw Zilla, ran towards him, and hugged him, wrapping all four legs around him. Zilla reciprocated, earning a raised eyebrow from Godzilla. “Biollante? Explanations?” he asked.

“We’re dating,” replied Biollante. Godzilla’s eyes went wide.

“Er, Biollante, could you excuse us for a sec?” he hissed. Biollante sensed what Godzilla was gonna do.

“Be gentle with him, all right?” she requested as she released Zilla. Godzilla then slowly advanced on him with a disarming smile. Zilla gave a nervous grin and a small wave. Godzilla dropped the grin and hoisted him above his head.

“Break her heart and I boil yours!” snarled Godzilla. He was then grabbed by the tail and pulled backwards to fall on his face. Biollante had released her leg’s grip on his tail.

“In what way was that gentle?” she hissed.

“So, you have the coordinates?” asked Admiral Gordon.

“We do, indeed,” answered Mothra. “I’ll give them to your navigator.”

“Excellent,” grunted Admiral Gordon. “Let’s get going.” We all boarded the Gotengo-A and made ourselves comfortable.

“You know,” I pondered aloud, “what would Kiryu’s brain be doing in geostationary orbit?”

“Good question,” replied Admiral Gordon. “Maybe…” the alarm interrupted him. “Report!” he shouted to Tactical.

“We have an intruder on board!” reported Tactical. “It’s in the cargo hold!”

“What is it doing?!” I asked.

“Just walking around!” replied Tactical.

“Security! Cargo hold, on the double!” barked Admiral Gordon. My team and the Kaiju-men joined him as we made our way to the cargo hold. On the way, Batman chose this opportunity to talk.

“Tora-Onna would help,” he suggested.

“Out of the question,” I shot down.

“You’re being absurd!” snapped Batman.

“I can’t scare these people!” I replied. “Besides, X-PO told me that the belts have self-repair functions.”

“How long?” asked Batman.

“That, he didn’t say,” I answered. Our conversation was cut short as we arrived at the cargo hold. The intruder was surrounded.

“Hands in the air!” barked Admiral Gordon. The intruder turned and faced him. It was a Japanese woman in her late 40’s. She wore a dress similar to my old princess one, but in red and gold, and she wore my crown.

“About time!” she griped. “You guys came later than I remember.”

“Lady, who are you?!” asked Admiral Gordon.

“Obaa-san,” (Grandmother) I interjected, “we need some questions answered.”

“Watch it!” snapped the woman. “I’m still in my late 70’s. My 30 something twin daughters don’t have children yet.”

“Late 70’s?!” I asked. “Lady, you look like you’re in your late 40’s!”

“Oh?” she asked. “I aged more gracefully than I remember.”

“Lady, who are you?!” I hissed, repeating Admiral Gordon’s question.

“Take a look, a deep look, Queen Megumi Hishikawa,” answered the woman. Wait, what?

“You know my name?” I quizzed. I then examined her face. Something seemed…familiar. I ran my hand down my nose, she mirrored my movements. I ran my hand across my cheek, she mirrored me again. I then traced an imaginary wrinkle up my other cheek, she did the same! “No!” I gasped. “You’re…”

“Yep,” replied the woman.

“All of it?” I asked.

“Uh huh,” answered the woman.

“Even the wrinkles?!” I asked.

“Yes!” she said hotly.

“You’re me… at 70 years old?” I queried.

“YES!” she confirmed.

“How did you…?” I asked my future.

“Something called a Hyper-time hole,” explained 70-year-old me. “It allows me to go into any point in a universe’s timeline. I just hope this is the point where I made the right decision.”

“On?” I asked.

“My deciding to use Tora-Onna, or rather, you deciding to do so,” answered 70-year-old me.

“Oh no, not you!” I snapped.

“Yes, me!” hissed 70-year-old me.

“Tora-Onna?” asked Admiral Gordon.

“Megumi has a monster form, a mutant tiger cyborg,” explained Lacey.

“And you didn’t tell us?!” roared Admiral Gordon.

“It’s not a side I use frequently,” I answered.

“Well, we need an edge,” insisted Mothra.

“Yes, and I can’t have you just blatantly ignoring that side,” snapped 70-year-old me.

“Well, I can’t just use her willy-nilly!” I snarled. “Now, go back to your time and take that stupid purple hole with you!”

“Purple hole?” quizzed 70-year-old me. She followed my finger and saw the hole above us. “That should have closed,” she muttered.

“Well, you used to be me,” I mused. “What happens next?”

“I don’t remember,” replied 70-year-old me.

“…How can you forget THIS?!” I quizzed as I pointed to the two of us…me…her…whatever.

“Hang on!” protested 70-year-old me. “It’s hardly MY fault! You’re obviously not paying enough attention!” She tossed me a Sonic Screwdriver while she took out a gold scepter with a blue orb on it. “Now, help me reverse the polarity!” she commanded. I switched the Sonic Screwdriver on while she pressed a button that opened the orb and released a blue light. The purple hole stayed. “It’s…not working,” muttered 70-year-old me.

“You’re BOTH reversing the polarity,” rasped Batman.

“Yes, that was the…” I reminded.

“YOU’RE reversing the polarity, then YOU’RE reversing it back,” interrupted Batman. “You’re CONFUSING the polarity.” At that point, someone came through the hole and it closed. The figure dusted itself off. It was an older Japanese woman, in her 90’s by the look, having white hair, a warmer dress, and a cane. She looked around the place.

“Ah, the Gotengo-A,” she sighed. “That takes me back.” She then saw the two of…me. “Ah! I remember! The points of my life converging!”

“Another me?!” I yelped.

“I’m as surprised as you!” called 70-year-old me.

“Well, to answer the question you DON’T usually ask a lady,” remarked the oldest me, “I was celebrating my bicentennial.”

“200 years!!” I yelped. “You look like you’re in your 90’s!”

“I’ve forgotten how much I’ve stated the obvious,” sighed 200-year-old me. “So, this is the point where the Scaredy-cat and the Ridiculous Queen Mom come together.” Did…I just get insulted…twice over…by me?! “Have you done anything towards your mission?” asked 200-year-old me.

“Well, we’re finding Kiryu’s brain,” I answered.

“And I was telling this nitwit not to be afraid of Tora-Onna,” snapped 70-year-old me.

“Just as I thought,” muttered 200-year-old me. “Nothing.”

“Nothing?!” I said hotly.

“What is your real mission here, hm?” asked 200-year-old me.

“My real…oh, yeah,” I recalled, remembering why I came to this dimension in the first place.

“Heather’s trying to make another Apocalypse Driver!” gulped 70-year-old me.

“Thankfully, you and your team are on the right track,” replied 200-year-old me. “She’s near Kiryu’s brain on the Xilien ship it’s on.”

“What?!” I yelped.

“The Xiliens?!” roared Godzilla. “Those nitwits that controlled a good chunk of monsters?! I’ll roast them!”

“All hands,” ordered Admiral Gordon, “prepare boarding parties! Get weapons online! We’re facing the Xiliens again!”

“Now, what do the Xiliens usually want, hm?” asked 200-year-old me.

“Well, er…” began 70-year-old me.

“A certain resource?” I finally answered. “Like water, or our mitochondria?”

“It’s water again,” replied 200-year-old me. “So, stop stalling and kick Xilien ass!” She then made another purple hole and jumped in!

“Hey!” I called.

“You let her get away!” accused 70-year-old me.

“Did not! That was you!” I protested.

“Girls, PLEASE!” called Lacey.

“Who’s a girl?!” the two of me asked, offended. I like to consider myself as an adult.

“We need a forward boarding party,” replied Lacey. “Who’s leading it?”

“Me!” called the two of me. We then looked at each other. “ME!” We glared at each other for a while.

“Oh, for the love of…!” hissed Batman as he fished out a coin. He handed it to me. I looked on both sides. It was Two-Face’s double-headed coin. I showed it to 70-year-old me.

“Call it, clean or marred?” I asked.

“Marred,” replied 70-year-old me. I tossed it and slapped it to the back of my hand. “Well?” asked 70-year-old me as I looked.

“Bad luck, Obaa-san,” I replied. She bristled at that remark and the tone I used.

“All right,” she sighed. “Just be careful.”

“Careful?” I asked. “I seem to forget when I get to be your age that a Kamen Rider does NOT become one by being careful.” I picked Godzilla, King Ghidorah, Batman, and Biollante. I needed heavy hitters to take out whatever resistance we met. We soon arrived, the Xilien ship taking the form of the saucer that arrived in the Showa Era. Ghidorah clenched his fists. I put my hand on his shoulder. “Easy,” I called. “Wait until we’re inside.” We went nearer and nearer…and nearer…and nearer still!

“Okay, we’re in weapons range right now,” rumbled Admiral Gordon. “Why aren’t they shooting us?”

“Someone asleep at the switch?” asked Lacey.

“That, or it’s a trap,” guessed Batman.

“We’re running alongside the Xiliens’ ship now,” reported Tactical.

“Send out an airlock and get ready to board,” ordered Admiral Gordon. My team got ready and the airlock docked with the ship. We started cutting our way through. Once the metal was cut sufficiently enough, we forced the doorway into the ship. Once the metal cooled, we went in. What I saw, ladies and gentlemen, had to be seen to be believed. Three men were asleep at the console. They were men I had seen on YouTube before! One of the men had a black, bowl style haircut, the second had red, curly hair at the back and sides, but none on top, and the third was a fat, bald man. It was Moe, Larry, and Curly, the Three Stooges! Batman and Lacey saw them and their jaws dropped.

“You were right!” I whispered to Lacey as the Stooges snored. “Three times over, even!”

“What are THEY doing here?!” asked Lacey.

“I’m supposed to be the World’s Greatest Detective,” mused Batman, “and even I don’t know!”

“They must have blundered their way here,” I whispered. I then waved 70-year-old me’s assault team of Zilla, Mothra, Admiral Gordon, and the blundering Kiryu. 70-year-old me saw the Stooges and rubbed her eyes.

“How?!” she whispered.

“Does it matter?!” I asked. “Our assault may go a little more smoothly! To the bridge! We’ll find the Controller there.” We proceeded to the bridge, making sure not to get caught. When we arrived, Heather was there, talking to a Xilien. Well, shouting at, I should say.

“I’ve been doing things for you for a while now and the belt you said you have hasn’t arrived in my hand yet!” she roared. “$5,000! No less!” The Xilien shook his head. “X, you are a criminal! A cheat! Your impure savagery knows no bounds!”

“Hold your tongue, human mongrel,” hissed the Xilien Controller, X, “or these negotiations are concluded in a very messy way. THAT is my final request! The United States’ Federal Gold Reserve is simply the cost of doing business with my people!”

“Doesn’t power mean anything to you?!” roared Heather. “I guaranteed an entire universe for you! But, you will only get it once I have the belt!”

“You told me of the power it has,” replied X. “Which is why I sent you on those tasks, which, for human scum, you did well. You allowed Monster 2-1 and Monster 2-2 to get captured and taken to the G.D.F base. You took Kiryu’s brain, rendering the smartest monster in 15 countries useless. Now, we need valuable materials for an economy. That’s why the price is what it is.”

“I should have hired the Klan!” snapped Heather. “You’re nothing but incompetent filth!”

“No, worm, that is you, not me,” replied X. He turned to one of his men. “I know this requires touching her but get this piece of human garbage into the brig!”

“At once, Controller,” confirmed the man. He grabbed Heather roughly, who spewed thousands of racist phrases at him, the insulting J word being among them. The man just responded with “Shut up, vermin.” They were off the bridge before X found something else to rant about.

“Why aren’t our scanners back online?!” he roared. “Those three should have fixed it an hour ago!”

“That’s your first mistake,” I muttered. I was promptly shushed.

“I can’t understand it, Controller,” remarked a Xilien woman. “They’re supposed to be members of the Scientific Elite!”

“Well, clearly not!” snapped X. “Commander 0-2-9, go find them! Order them to hurry up or be executed!”

“At once,” obliged the woman. We made ourselves scarce as she went through the door. After a few seconds, we heard her wake the Stooges up.

“Gee, sorry, Ms. Xamper,” apologized Moe’s voice. “We were just…”

“I know, I know,” replied the woman, Xamper. “Look, there’s a circuit board. And there’s a computer bank. But, the computer bank is no good without the circuit board. Not one itty bitty bit of good. YOU HALF-WITS! Get to fixing this thing or else!”

“Or else what?!” asked Larry.

“Or else we see if members of the Scientific Elite can run around with their heads cut off!” threatened Xamper.

“Well, fellas,” gulped Larry, “let’s get to work!”

“I think you got something there!” yelped Moe.

“So help me, if you twits mess this up…!” roared Xamper. She didn’t get very far as something clonked her on the head. The Stooges made frightened noises and ran past us and onto the bridge with Xamper in hot pursuit.

“That’s our cue!” I called. “CHARGE!” The Kaiju-men gave off their signature roars as we stormed the bridge. The whole bridge crew was surprised by our entrance and we managed to get into various grappling matches. I managed to tackle X to the floor, shoving theories of how he came back to life to the back of my mind. I then shoved X’s coat over his head.

“What’s going on?!” he demanded as he tried to restore his vision. I then delivered a swift kick in his pants and he tumbled into his chair. He soon got out of his situation and his hair spiked up. He was in his Keizer state!

“Not good!” I yelped. He then delivered several blows to my person. As I hit the floor, I noticed how many bruises and cuts I had. I was outclassed, and I didn’t have a functioning belt! “All right, multiverse, you win!” I shouted to the heavens. “You want Tora-Onna? You got her!” I then felt my muscles expand, a tail came out, my mouth and nose became a muzzle, my human ears shrunk into my head while tiger ears came out from the top, and fur and metal appeared everywhere. My dress had changed into pants, must be Shocker Tech that changed my clothes, and I unsheathed my claws, roaring at Keizer X. We then clashed again, this time the blows were equal. While that was going on, King Ghidorah was fighting Xamper. They matched blow for blow.

“Oh, how I’ve ALWAYS wanted to do this to you, Monster 0!” giggled Xamper.

“It’s King Ghidorah!” roared Ghidorah.

“Apologies, ‘Your Majesty’!” mocked Xamper. Ghidorah blasted the woman with his Gravity beams. “You would strike a lady!?” she protested.

“I strike at any evil, gender be damned!” roared Ghidorah. Xamper then round-housed him into the wall.

“Well, I tried,” she sighed. She then fought with greater ferocity. At that point, green gunk landed on her back. It was apparently acidic as she screamed in agony. She face the one who threw that at her. Biollante had taken a different form. She still looked human, but her hair was darker, the rose that usually adorned her hair wasn’t, her fingers looked like the toothy vines she used for attack, and her teeth were more jagged. “Plant Witch!” roared Xamper as the acid sap stopped its effects. Her hair spiked up. It was another Keizer!

“Come at me!” taunted Biollante. Xamper threw Ghidorah at Biollante and the two Kaiju-men crumpled in a heap. They picked themselves up, telling each other to watch it. At that point, Heather came in, holding a laser gun.

“NOBODY MOVE!” she shouted. “I got you J*** covered!” Then, I heard it, the familiar “Nyuk Nyuk!” as Curly flipped a switch. “WHO PUT OUT THE LIGHTS?!” squawked Heather as she took a few shots in the dark, literally. Curly had turned the lights off and we started blundering into each other. Godzilla lit a match.

“Nee-chan! You there?!” he asked before someone snuffed the match and he fired his atomic breath wildly into the ceiling. Curly lit another match.

“Here I am, Moe!” he called before he turned to me. “NYAAAaaaAAAaaaAAAAH!” he screamed before I snuffed the match. I guess I scare people easily. X then activated a Xilien flashlight.

“Careful around here!” he barked before two people decked him. I then found a match and struck it.

“Batman, where are you?!” I asked. Someone grabbed my shoulder. I yelped and punched the guy. It was Batman! “Batman, I’m sorry!” I gasped. Batman accepted the apology and switched the lights on. The Kaiju-men and Admiral Gordon were picking themselves up, Heather and the Xiliens were out cold, my team rushed to my side, and the Stooges had tangled themselves up and were fighting.

“Curly, get your foot out of my eye!” demanded Larry.

“Whose feet are you talking about?!” protested Curly as he bit a hand, making Moe scream.

“Okay, apple-head, you asked for it!” Larry started twisting the foot and screaming in pain. “OW, THAT’S MINE!” cried Larry.

“Get them loose!” I snapped. We all disentangled the Stooges. Moe then turned on Curly.

“That’s my hand, not a ham!” he shouted before smacking Curly on the forehead. “What’s the matter with you?!”

“Hey, let him alone!” protested Larry.

“What are you butting in for?!” snapped Moe. He then held his fist out. “See that?” Larry smacked it down and the fist went in a circle on Larry’s head.

“Gentlemen!” called 70-year-old me. The Stooges looked behind themselves. “I mean you three,” sighed 70-year-old me.

“Oh, us!” replied Moe. The Stooges went over to her. “What can we do for you, Madame?”

“Could you boys tell me how you got here?” asked 70-year-old me.

“Yeah, how did you guys pass yourselves off as Xilien Scientists?” I asked. The Stooges turned and made scared noises. “What’s the matter with you?!” I snapped.

“The fur!” hissed Godzilla. “Lose the fur!”

“What fur?” I asked. I looked myself over and realized I was still Tora-Onna. “Hey! I still feel like me! I don’t need to be afraid of Tora-Onna anymore!” I then reverted to my human state. At that point, a band of light flew onto the bridge and wrapped around my waist. It then died down and formed the Supreme Vortex Driver! I heard Vortoranii yawn.

“That was a nice nap,” she sighed. “What did I miss?”

“You chose NOW to repair yourself?!” I protested.

“Actually, I simply switched that function off while I was dissected,” explained Vortoranii. “I wanted to see how well you fought without a belt and it seems you did pretty well! I was afraid you were using me as a crutch.”

“You could have told me this was a test of my natural abilities!” I snapped.

“That would have broken the test,” replied Vortoranii. “In any case, what ARE you three doing here?”

“Well, we were doing our plumbing business,” answered Moe, “when a blue hole opened under us. We landed in the corridor out there.”

“Then Xamper came up, thinking we were scientists,” continued Larry. “We were about to correct her.”

“Then we saw the guards,” supplied Curly. “So, we were promoted to scientists!”

“And we’ve been trying to fix the ship for a week now,” finished Larry.

“Oh boy,” I sighed.

“Yeah, but the way we wired things, one touch on the controls,” boasted Moe, “and the ship goes crashing down.”

“Let’s hold off on that,” I suggested. “We need to find this guy’s brain.” I indicated Kiryu.

“Ha HA!” laughed Kiryu as he shoved Curly. “Roly poly!”

“What did HE drink?!” asked Curly.

“Must have hit the Mectacoconane too hard,” replied Moe, making up a drink.

“Fellas, let’s find his brain!” declared Larry.

“Where?” asked Moe.

“Well, uh,” stammered Larry.

“Oh, ignorant, eh?!” snapped Moe as he smacked Larry. “Hey, onion-head, where can we find his brain?”

“Well, it, um,” replied Curly.

“Oh, don’t know, eh?!” snarled Moe as he smacked Curly.

“Wait a minute!” protested Larry. “Do YOU know where we can find his brain?!”

“No, what’s it to you?” growled Moe.

“Oh, nothing,” replied Larry. “Just wanted to know.”

“Maybe it’s in that file cabinet,” I suggested. The Stooges started looking in the open drawer.

“Nothing but papers,” muttered Larry. He shut the drawer so hard that it opened the bottom one. It hit his feet. Larry started clutching his feet.

“Stand aside!” declared Curly. He shut the drawer and the middle one opened, going right into his tummy. He started holding it to make the pain go away, then he wagged his finger at the drawer, going “hhhMMMM!!”

“You lame-brains can’t do anything right, can you?!” snapped Moe. “Get out of the way! I’LL show you how to close it!” He shut the middle drawer and ducked down when the top drawer slid open. “See?” called Moe. “That’s using your brain!” He then got up and hit his head on the drawer’s underside.

“Guys!” announced Zilla. He was holding an ovular shaped object, colored in silver. It had some sort of port on the underside.

“That’s Kiryu’s brain!” cheered Biollante. “Zilla-chan, where did you find it?!”

“In X’s coat pocket,” replied Zilla. “I was frisking him for any plans on his person. Let’s install the brain before we crash the ship.” As Mothra and Ghidorah got to work, the Stooges started groaning.

“X had the brain the entire time!” said Larry, exasperated.

“How do you like that?!” asked Curly.

“I DON’T like it,” replied Moe. “And I don’t like this cabinet! But, it’s a matter of principle with me! I’m gonna shut that drawer if it’s the last thing I do!” He slammed the drawer, but Larry and Curly had their hands on top of the cabinet with their fingers going over. The drawer smashed their fingers and slid forward again to smash Moe in the face. As Larry and Curly rubbed their fingers to get rid of the pain, Moe shook his head. “That’s the last thing I’ll do,” he sighed. We then heard a groan. We turned to the source to see Kiryu holding his head.

“Kiryu? Buddy?” asked Zilla. “Pull my finger?”

“…Don’t be infantile!” snapped Kiryu as he swatted the finger away.

“He’s back!” cheered Mothra.

“You know,” teased Zilla, “you’d still be the smartest monster in 29 countries if you’d lighten up a bit!”

“15 countries,” corrected Kiryu. “Why is that so difficult to remember?”

“Whatever!” dismissed Zilla.

“It’s obviously NOT a ‘whatever’ if Kiryu insists you use the right number!” replied 70-year-old me.

“A good chunk of White America in a nutshell,” I remarked.

“HEY!” protested Zilla.

“Kiryu-san,” I continued, “the Xilien ship is under our control, but we can’t risk any powers on Earth trying the Xilien plan of taking our water. These three have wired the controls in a way so we can crash the ship. You might want to hold on to something.” Kiryu nodded and went to brace himself. We all followed suit. “Okay, boys!” I called to the Stooges. “Get this ship out of the sky!”

“She wants us to take over!” cheered Moe.

“What are we waiting for?!” asked Curly. The Stooges started fiddling with the controls. The ship then started turning and falling! The Gotengo-A was following us closely as we made our way to the crash site. When we landed, the Xilien ship was a smoldering wreck. We picked our way out and saw we were near the G.D.F base!

“Success!” cheered Moe as he and his friends shook each other’s hands.

“Congratulations all around,” I praised. I then grabbed Heather by the hair. After checking to make sure she had a pulse, which she did, I shook her awake. She then saw me.

“LET GO!” she barked.

“Nothing doing!” I replied. “You’re coming with me!”

“What about him?” asked Heather as she pointed behind me.

“Nice try,” I said, totally deadpan.

“Er, ma’am,” gulped Kiryu, “I don’t think that was a lame attempt at distraction.”

“What are you…?” I asked. I then saw X right behind the Stooges! “EEEEEEE!” I yelled in terror.

“What song is that?” asked Larry.

“Guys, be careful! He’s behind you!” I warned.

“Who?” asked Moe. X then blew on Moe’s left shoulder. He turned to Curly. “Don’t breathe down my neck! I don’t like it!” X then blew on Curly’s shoulder.

“It’s all right for YOU to do it!” snapped Curly.

“Do what?” asked Moe.

“Breathe down my neck! Onions, too!” clarified Curly.

“You’re crazy!” remarked Moe. Larry then giggled as X blew on his shoulder.

“Stop it! You tickle me!” he protested.

“Who?” asked Moe.

“You!” replied Larry.

“You’re both nuts!” called Moe. X then blew on Moe’s shoulder again. He then grabbed X’s shoulder and realized something. “H-hey, C-C-Curly,” he stammered, “ha-ha-have y-y-you got a l-l-leather coat on?!”

“No,” replied Curly as he looked behind him. He then saw X and put on a terrified face. “But, HE does!” All the Stooges screamed as X drew a sword.

“NOW!” he shouted. “I’M GONNA CUT YOU ALL INTO LITTLE PIECES!” He charged at me and swung the sword. I used a pipe to block it. “YOU INTERRUPTED MY PLANS! YOU KILLED MY CREW! YOU CRASHED MY SHIP! I’M GONNA CUT YOUR HEAD OFF!” I rolled out of the way and instinctively went for my i.d tag, then paused.

“No,” I remarked. “It’s gonna take a monster to bring down a monster like X.”

“Then, stand aside!” said Godzilla. He performed his drop kick and toppled X. X got really mad and started punching repeatedly. Godzilla got away from the man, readjusting his jaw. “Xiliens are similar to humans,” mused Godzilla to X. “The average man can’t make a dent in me, so how did you dislocate my jaw?”

“How is he talking normally?” asked Lacey.

“If he IS similar to humans,” continued Batman, “Godzilla should be slurred after a jaw dislocation.”

“He has something called RG-1 cells,” I explained, “or Regenerator G-1 cells.”

“Judging by the name alone,” guessed Batman, “he can repair damaged tissue at an accelerated rate.”

“Exactly,” I confirmed. “Although, in Japan, we call them Organizer G-1 cells.”

“On the topic of biology,” remarked Godzilla, “on the rare occasion I’m allowed to hit a guy, they crumple in a heap after two punches. How are you still standing?”

“You assume me to be the average Xilien,” hissed X. He went Keizer again and decked Godzilla. Soon, it went into a full-blown brawl. Just then, X’s watch beeped and spat an object out to Heather. She grabbed it and grinned.

“That’s all five!” she laughed.

“What?!” I yelped.

“I finally have the four Apocalypse Dial parts and the belt!” replied Heather. “Apocalypse’s power is mine!” She then got out of my grip and fled through a portal.

“NO!” I screamed, the implications hitting me. If she got all four Dial parts and the belt, I think I can safely say the others failed as well. “DAMNATION!” I shouted.

“Easy, kitty,” assured 70-year-old me.

“EASY?!” I roared, pointing a hairy finger at her. I was turning back into Tora-Onna. “THAT MONSTER JUST TOOK OFF WITH A MEANS TO GET LACEY’S POWER AND YOU’RE TELLING ME TO TAKE IT EASY?!”

“Because it will work out in the long run,” assured 70-year-old me. “Lacey’s DNA is the default.”

“How does that…that…that…that may have been Heather’s biggest mistake yet!” I realized.

“I don’t follow,” remarked Lacey.

“Your DNA is locked into the Apocalypse Driver’s systems,” I clarified. “With a ghost in possession of its power, the device will think it’s you and make your body!”

“That’s right, the Reconstitution Function!” recalled Lacey. “In the event my body gets destroyed!”

“So, Heather’s going to look like Lacey?” asked Batman.

“More like a damaged clone of me,” replied Lacey.

“I guess that’s the reason why my future came to help,” I mused.

“What future?!” roared X as he tossed Godzilla. Godzilla soon steadied himself and got into a fighting stance. “At the moment,” growled X, “I’d say it’s unknown! Like an X-Factor!” Godzilla seemed to be hit with some idea.

“X-Factor,” he muttered. “Unknown…no…no, it can’t be!” X then took off his watch.

“Genetic dampener offline,” reported the watch before X stomped on it. His shoulders then bulked up, his eyes went red, and a tail came out. I then realized what got Godzilla so spooked.

“Monster X!” I realized. X turned towards us with an evil grin. “But…but Godzilla fried you!”

“A bit of me survived and the Xiliens reforged me,” explained X. “I was then placed in cold storage after Controller 0-1-2 was selected! She didn’t find my desire to return here and squash you agreeable, since she found an “innovative and creative” solution to her people’s problem. I was kept locked up the entire time! After breaking out, I took a genetic dampener and hid myself among the Xiliens. Over time, I gathered people to my cause, people dissatisfied with the current condition and wanted to invade Earth. I got us a ship and, well, the rest is history.”

“Yeah, you hired three humans to fix your Youfoe!” replied Larry.

“Youfoe is something that you say to your enemy,” corrected Moe. “THAT was a SAUCER we crashed!”

“Saucer?” asked Curly. “That’s something you put a teacup on!” That prompted a slap from Moe.

“Did you just identify yourselves as humans?!” asked X.

“Yeah, that was your first mistake, believing us!” taunted Moe.

“Guys,” gulped Godzilla, “you REALLY want to stop!”

“What’s the matter with you?” asked Lacey.

“That thing nearly killed me at the end of the Millennium Wars!” replied Godzilla, referring to the events of Godzilla: Final Wars.

“And now, we’re right where I need to be,” growled X. “After a little growth spurt, SpaceGodzilla, Gigan, and I will conquer this world and make a new one where humans are nonexistent! A dead rock orbiting an unfeeling sun!”

“That wasn’t our deal!” shouted a voice. We turned to see SpaceGodzilla and Gigan coming out. Gigan had his hooks ready. “I’m supposed to rule this planet,” snarled SpaceGodzilla, “a LIVING planet! NOT A LIFELESS HUSK!”

“Your desires are irrelevant,” dismissed X. “If you will not take this chance, then you and Gigan will have served your purpose. Find another world to rule.” SpaceGodzilla charged at X who back-handed him, then used some sort of remote to bathe himself, SpaceGodzilla, and Gigan in some sort of light. That light…was not good. The Kaiju-men grew, and morphed, and changed, until they were back in their monster forms. Gigan took the appearance he had in Final Wars. Monster X was about to level a building when he got a tail smack from SpaceGodzilla. Gigan then fired his cables and wrapped them around Monster X. He then activated the Buzzsaw and pulled Monster X towards him. The damage was awful.

“I just received word,” reported Kiryu. “We’re to utilize our Kaiju-Riser.”

“Your what?” I asked.

“In the event any evil monster regains their original form,” explained Biollante, “a Kaiju-Riser is to be used to return any good monster to THEIR original form and combat the threat.”

“In other words,” said Godzilla as a primal grin crossed his face, “it’s back to basics!” His grin faded. “Unless the U.N. has something against ME getting into the fight!”

“Are you kidding?” asked Kiryu. “The Japanese delegation wouldn’t go through with the Kaiju-Riser in this instance unless YOU were the one to permanently put Gigan and SpaceGodzilla down.”

“You mean…turn them into ash?!” said Godzilla happily.

“I have their death warrants right here,” replied Kiryu as he tapped his brain. We then heard jets. We looked up to see a pair of fighter jets carrying Kiryu’s big Godzilla-like body. One of the jets then bathed the area in light.

“This is it!” cheered Godzilla as the changes started coming. His mouth and nose became a large snout. His skin was replaced by charcoal grey scales. His eyes moved outwards a little. His pinkies sunk in. His legs became more trunk-like as his mass shifted down a little. He grew up to his full height of 150 meters. Mothra’s head tilted up as it morphed into her monster head. Her arms shrunk in and her legs made up her abdomen. Her insect legs came out and she grew to her full length of 72 meters. Biollante’s arms separated into vines with Venus fly-trap mouths. Her human skin was replaced by layers of green plant matter as her rose wilted. Her mouth extended to crocodile lengths and was filled with teeth! She grew upwards to her height of 120 meters. Zilla hunched over as his lower jaw got bigger and his upper jaw extended. He became covered in charcoal grey scales as his pinkies shrunk in and he became more T-Rex like. He was the runt at a height of 55 meters. King Ghidorah’s arms went over his head as the hands became dragon heads. His middle neck stretched upwards and his head became a dragon one. His legs became trunk-like as he was covered in gold scales and grew to become Godzilla’s height.

“Success!” I called. I shook hands with the Stooges, Lacey, Batman, Godzilla, and…wait a minute. Who did I shake hands with last? I turned to Godzilla and…oh no. Godzilla and I were literally seeing eye to eye! I heard everyone gasp in surprise! We were Kaiju sized!

“I will admit,” muttered 70-year-old me, “I forgot this bit.”

“And we’re complaining…why?” asked Lacey. I opened my mouth, then shut it as I realized there was no reason to complain.

“Quick question,” I asked 70-year-old me, “do I need to use Tora-Onna?”

“Nah,” replied 70-year-old me. “The belts are repaired. You can use your Rider mode.” Godzilla gave a confused grunt.

“You’ll see,” I assured. 70-year-old me and I got our i.d tags out and Lacey got her hand on the dial. I then noticed 70-year-old me had a blue ring around the tag reader in the center of her belt. It looked almost the ring of the Gateway on Vorton, but with eight Keystones instead of five. “Nice belt,” I commented.

“Oh, this old thing?” asked 70-year-old me. “It’s just something you’ll pick up after…never mind, I said too much.”

“All right, then,” I declared. “Henshin!”

“Henshin!” announced Lacey.

“Henshin!” called 70-year-old me. We all then went into our Rider forms.

“What the?!” yelped Moe. Larry jumped into Curly’s arms. The Kaiju made confused noises as well as surprised ones.

“Never mind that,” I replied. Kiryu’s big body’s eyes then started glowing yellow. “Are we all ready?” I asked. Everyone gave confirmation noises. “Then, Godzilla-san, lead the way!” Godzilla stamped his foot and gave a challenge roar. Monster X, Gigan, and SpaceGodzilla heard and gave of roars of defiance. That was the cue as we charged towards the evil Kaiju. They charged at us as well and we met in the middle. SpaceGodzilla quickly made a crystal fortress. The Stooges jumped the crystals and started whacking SpaceGodzilla. Curly managed to smack his snout down. SpaceGodzilla threw the Stooges off of him and he levitated Curly. Curly was calling for help, even when he was placed in a ring of crystals.

“HEY MOE! HEY LARRY!” cried Curly. “I’M SURROUNDED! GET ME OUT!” His hands went through the spaces the crystals made.

“Hold on, kid!” called Moe. “We’ll have you out!” They grabbed his hands. “Ready! Pull! Heave!”

“Ho!” shouted Larry as they pulled.

“Heave!” commanded Moe.

“Ho!” replied Larry as they pulled again.

“Just a second!” called 70-year-old me. “I got this.” She drew out a gold i.d tag! She then swapped i.d tags.

“Harry Potter Steel!” announced her belt in its original voice. The wardrobe closed, then faded to reveal her in armor based off of Harry Potter in his school uniform!

“You visited Harry’s world?!” I breathed.

“Toured Hogwarts!” cheered 70-year-old me.

“Cool!” I called. 70-year-old me drew her sword and pointed it at Curly.

“Take it easy now!” he yelped, fearing the worst.

“Wingardium Leviosa!” chanted 70-year-old me as she swished her sword, then flicked it. She then raised Curly out of the crystal prison. Curly yelped as he came out. His friends then brushed him off.

“Easy kid! Easy!” assured Moe. SpaceGodzilla roared in frustration. He then readied his deadly Corona Beam but was interrupted by Zilla popping out of the ground and sucker-punching him. A light then traveled up Zilla’s spines as he fired green flames from his mouth. It annoyed SpaceGodzilla but didn’t hurt him.

“The shoulders!” I shouted. “Smash the shoulder crystals!” Zilla nodded and started smashing his hands on them. They were cracking, but at a slow rate. The Stooges joined in and accelerated the cracking. Soon, they shattered! SpaceGodzilla roared in pain, then focused his rage on Zilla. Zilla quickly dug a hole and disappeared under the streets. SpaceGodzilla looked around and Biollante took her chance. She fired her corrosive sap and burned him. SpaceGodzilla turned and roared at her, but Biollante gave a roar of defiance. SpaceGodzilla charged but was ensnared by her vines and tossed onto a crystal, impaling him. He gave a dying roar, became light particles, and reassembled in his Kaiju-man form, but with a hole in his chest. SpaceGodzilla was dead. Zilla popped up and joined Biollante in a victory roar.

“Don’t celebrate just yet,” I replied as Gigan took a swipe at me. I ducked but was hit by his laser vision. Randy then leapt onto Gigan’s shoulders and slammed his fist on his head. He then started shaking his hand in pain as Gigan tossed him off. Mothra then grabbed him and flew through the air with him in her grasp. She was gonna throw him into a building, but Gigan took control of the flight pattern and went upwards. He then cut his means of propulsion and put his back to the ground. Mothra was going to be crushed! King Ghidorah helped her out by having his left head chomp on Gigan’s tail. Mothra let go of Gigan as he was thrown to the ground. King Ghidorah was about to fire his gravity bolts when cables wrapped around the left and right neck. Gigan got up and started pulling King Ghidorah towards him, the buzz saw on his front spinning. Gigan has been known as a sadist and a lunatic. If he had human features right now, a wicked grin would be crossing his face. I stepped in and severed the cables with my blade. “Ghidorah! Duck!” I called. King Ghidorah ducked his heads down. “Dai Super Charge!” I announced. As the armor flew, some hit Monster X on the head. The rest hit the Stooges.

“Hey!” snapped Moe. “Why don’t you call your shots?!” Gigan then fired new cables at me, but I grabbed them and started spinning. I spun so fast, Gigan was taken into the air. He was screeching at me.

“What’s that?” I called. “Let go? Okay!” I released the cables and Gigan flew into one of the crystal towers. It crumbled and landed on him, crushing him. He turned into light particles and reassembled into his smaller form, next to SpaceGodzilla’s corpse. Gigan had fallen. “That’s two,” I counted. “Let’s help Godzilla!” Godzilla, Batman, Kiryu, and Apocalypse were all on top of Monster X. He wasn’t taking it well, so we swarmed him. He was a match for us and threw us all off. Batman fired his grapple gun around his legs. Monster X then fell onto his hands.  “That was a mistake,” I gulped.

“When is it a mistake to topple a monster?” asked Batman.

“When getting on his hands allows him to turn into a quadrupedal, three headed, winged monster!” answered Apocalypse. Monster X’s arms then turned into trunk-like feet as wings sprouted from his back. The neck elongated as the head became dragon like. Two more heads grew from the shoulders as the wings spread. Monster X had just become Keizer Ghidorah! He fired gravity beams as Godzilla fired his atomic breath. Godzilla’s beam was overpowered as he was blown back. Keizer Ghidorah ran forward and bit down on Godzilla. He was draining him again!

“GET OFF OF HIM!” I roared as I leapt onto Keizer Ghidorah. He flung me off and then flung the drained Godzilla onto me. At that point, everyone shrunk down. We were human-sized again and Keizer Ghidorah was mocking us.

“Look at you all,” he taunted in our heads. “Pathetic ants beneath my feet. Not even the clone and our cyborg could defeat me. It took a maser cannon to charge you, Godzilla. Now, there is none. You have nothing to help you.”

“Not…true!” grunted Godzilla. It was then that I saw orange markings on him. I then remembered his predecessor doing something like this, but not by choice.

“Godzilla, this is all involuntary, right?!” I gulped.

“Oh no, unlike my predecessor,” replied Godzilla. “I purposely put myself in my Burning State.”

“But, that will put you into meltdown!” I cried. “And there aren’t any freezer cannons around to stop you from destroying this place!”

“I have an idea,” assured Godzilla. “Trust me. If the forecast is right…” a crack of thunder interrupted him. “…And it is.” The rain then came down. It was followed by flashes of lightning. “Step back,” advised Godzilla. I did so and lightning struck his spines repeatedly.

“Lightning never strikes him unless…” I then realized his plan. “He’s not turning himself into an atom bomb, he’s turning himself into an EMP blaster!” I said. His spines went white and the orange markings died down. He aimed at Keizer Ghidorah and fired! The electricity and radiation ravaged Keizer Ghidorah as he shrunk down into his Kaiju-man form. It looked similar to King Ghidorah.

“WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!” he roared.

“I combined the lightning I attracted and stored with a heart I was putting into meltdown,” answered Godzilla. “I then channeled it like my Spiral Red Atomic Blast. That got me safely out of my Burning State and cooled me off.”

“But, with the resulting radiation…!” cried Keizer Ghidorah.

“You’re now locked in your Kaiju-man form,” responded Kiryu as his humanoid robot body jumped down from his giant one. “Clever move, I need to utilize it.”

“You stupid lizard! I’LL KILL YOU!” roared Keizer Ghidorah. Godzilla gave a grunt as Keizer Ghidorah charged at him. They locked hands and tried to overpower each other.

“Hold on!” cried a voice. Godzilla and Keizer Ghidorah were tossed aside by my 200-year-old self! “You whipper-snappers can’t do anything right, can you?!” she snapped.

“Whipper-snappers?” I protested.

“I always wanted to say that,” sighed 200-year-old me. “Hey, X! I brought someone with me.” She moved aside to reveal a woman in Xilien clothes. Keizer Ghidorah’s eyes went wide.

“No! You didn’t!” he yelped.

“Who’s she?” asked Godzilla.

“Karna!” replied X.

“You bet; it is!” hissed the Xilien woman. “Karna, Controller 0-1-2 of Planet X. I’ve heard about the whole situation from Queen Megumi’s future. It seemed too outlandish, but now that I see the destruction that was wrought, I see otherwise. Godzilla, making an EMP blast like that would have ruptured your heart!”

“Listen, lady,” snarled Godzilla, “I was trying to…”

“Save it,” interrupted Karna. “I know. The genetic jigsaw puzzle here was sore about losing to you after our previous invasion! X, I warned you that an invasion was ill-advised. You ignored me!”

“I will NOT live knowing that a planet and monster that was behind my downfall still exists!” roared Keizer Ghidorah. “If I cannot destroy Godzilla, I will destroy this insignificant rock!”

“I told you, revenge is destructive all around!” shouted Karna. “You could have destabilized the peace we Xiliens finally achieved!”

“Wait, are you just doing this for political gain?” I asked.

“If you wish to paint that kind of selfish picture, then yes,” replied Karna. “We finally terraformed our planet to look similar to yours and now no longer need to scavenge other worlds for resources. Nor do we need to rely on computers to run our lives. This nitwit here hated the fact that our world looked like Earth as it reminded him of his defeat here. So, he gathered other Xiliens that hated the current lifestyle we hold dear and took a ship to settle scores with Godzilla.”

“His existence is unbearable!” wailed Keizer Ghidorah.

“I hear THAT from select humans,” muttered Godzilla.

“Monster X,” declared Karna, “through your act of rebellion, you have proven yourself to be a failure in the cosmos.” She then whipped out a gun and fired a laser at him. His monstrous parts shrunk into his flesh and he was returned to his Xilien form. “You shall remain here, on this world, in a weaker form.”

“No! You can’t!” cried X.

“Godzilla, he’s yours to deal with,” declared Karna.

“Oh, I have something special in mind!” snarled Godzilla. X backed away, scared. Godzilla strode forward, raised his hand…and slapped handcuffs on X! “X, you’re under arrest for assault on humans and unauthorized reversion to your monster form!” declared Godzilla. X was trembling in fury.

“I HATE YOU!” roared X as the G.D.F took him away.

“That was…surprisingly mature of you,” I remarked.

“Don’t take this the wrong way,” replied Godzilla. “I only did it because killing a human or Xilien is no challenge.”

“Sure, put on the tough guy act,” I countered. The rain had finally died. “Typical,” I sighed. “We save the day and the weather clears up.” Godzilla turned to the sun and let out a roar of victory.

“Well, we didn’t complete our original objective,” observed Batman. “Let’s get back to Vorton.”

“Good idea,” I agreed. “X-PO, we need a rift home.”

“You’re about to see a gloomy sight,” replied X-PO. A portal opened for us.

“You coming?” I asked Godzilla.

“Unfortunately,” rumbled Godzilla, “I must decline. The human I imprinted on, Gojo Azusa, is expecting me after the fight. I can’t forget my mother.”

“Anyone else?” I asked the other Kaiju-men.

“Biollante and I have had too many dates called off,” replied Zilla.

“We’re having one tonight!” declared Biollante.

“I just recently laid my eggs,” answered Mothra.

“I’m still needed in the Kaiju-men Police Force,” replied King Ghidorah.

“And I need an overhaul for both of my bodies,” answered Kiryu.

“Hey, Kiryu,” called a fighter pilot. “As long as you’re smart again, I have a question. With the old Kaiju-Riser, I could make only the Kaiju-men grow, practically every time! If you’re such a genius…!”

“I AM a genius,” snarled Kiryu, “but, I expected more control from your fat fingers!” The pilot looked at his hands.

“They’re proportional to me,” he replied.

“Well, I got the data from your plane’s black box,” snapped Kiryu. “Quit jabbing the controls so hard! The impact sets the Riser function to all organics in the radius of the beam!”

“…Oops,” muttered the pilot. “Sorry.”

“So THAT’S why Godzilla and I could see eye to eye!” I realized. “Well, that was a narrow escape, but I have to take the Stooges back home.”

“Hey, maybe you can tell us about these candies!” called Curly. He had a bag full of something. He fished an object out and was about to eat it! It was a purple stud!

“GIMME THAT!” I snapped as I swiped the bag and stud.

“Don’t be greedy!” called Curly. “There’s plenty for everybody!”

“You twit, you were about to eat money!” I snarled.

“Money?!” yelped Moe.

“Yeah, these are studs, our main currency,” I answered. “Vortoranii, how much is in here?”

“429,000,” counted Vortoranii.

“Putting our new total at…” I started doing some math, “…3,401,000 studs.”

“And, at the least value, a 10 value stud is the equivalent of $500,” replied Vortoranii. “So, at the moment, we have $170,050,000.”

“Wait, we’re millionaires?!” I yelped.

“Yeah, and they can be converted to your universe’s cash,” answered Vortoranii. “Any form of cash, Yen, Euro, Australian Dollar, U.S. dollar, you name it.”

“You imbecile!” snapped Moe to Curly. “You were about to eat money!” He was about to poke Curly’s eyes, but Curly put his hand between his eyes. Moe then slapped Curly, resulting in Curly holding that area, then Moe poked his eyes.

“Hey, let him alone!” protested Larry.

“What are you butting in for?!” snarled Moe. He then smacked Larry’s forehead, the force knocking him into the portal. “HEY, WAIT!” called Moe as he went after Larry. Curly was trying to hit on Mothra. Moe came up behind him. “Grab your ear,” he commanded. Curly did so and Moe yanked on Curly’s arm, dragging him into the portal and following him shortly.

“…Sorry,” I said to Mothra. “Those nitwits hit on any pretty girl.”

“Even if they’re spoken for?” asked Mothra. She showed a ring on her finger. “Like myself, Mrs. Anguirus?”

“Anguirus?!” I yelped. “You married him?!”

“Sure did,” replied Mothra. “He’s living on Infant Island with me.”

“Well, congratulations!” I cheered. “How is…?”

“HEY!” called 70-year-old me. “Everybody else already left! Hurry up!” She was right!

“Oh, crap! Gotta go!” I answered. “I hope we meet again, Godzilla! Maybe we can spar! Sayonara!” I then followed 70-year-old me and the portal shut while Godzilla gave a farewell roar.

Categories
Kamen Rider Vortex Kamen Rider Vortex Chapters

Chapter 55

Everything was set. Our teams assembled in the Gateway room. I was giddy with excitement. Lacey kept a hand on my shoulder to calm me down. Batman didn’t understand why I was excited. “Come on, Batman, don’t tell me you never saw a Godzilla movie!” I giggled.

“I wasn’t pleased by the lizard,” he rasped. “Why would a mutant iguana want to stomp around Manhattan?”

“Not Zilla! Godzilla!” I protested. “Your first introduction to the Godzilla franchise was the 1998 movie?!”

“Why would Alfred let you watch that?!” asked Lacey. Batman rolled his eyes…I think…they’re just white holes! In any case, I led the way and we went through the rift to arrive in Tokyo! I looked up to see if any monsters were stomping around yet. …Nothing. Not a single scale of the big guy.

“Aw,” I moaned. I found a newsstand and paid for the paper. The man gave a grin as I looked through for any sighting of Godzilla.

“One of his fans?” he asked. “I never understood why some kids would like him, considering he’s destroyed Japan numerous times.”

“He’s also saved our people,” I countered.

“At the cost of trillions in terms of property damage,” argued the newsstand owner. He then moved his gaze somewhere else and looked on in fear. “Er, you might want to leave!”

“Why?” I asked. “If it’s a bad guy, I can stop him.”

“Not this one!” yelped the owner. He then got out at least 10,000 Yen. A well-dressed man came up. His eyes gleamed and he cracked a friendly smile.

“Ah, that’s right, it’s payday, no?” remembered the man. He took the money. “Interesting that you were so prompt, still, pleasure doing business with you.” He then saw me and my team. “Ah, new citizens? Good. 10,000 Yen every 2 months.”

“For what?!” I asked.

“A protection racket,” guessed Batman. “Specifically, protection from you and your goons.”

“Goons?!” snapped the man, feigning offense. “Tsk, tsk, tsk, that’s just mean to call my employees ‘goons’. Just for that, 30,000 Yen a month so they can get proper restitution from you insulting them.”

“There’s a saying in America,” I replied. I was quoting from The Three Stooges. “Millions for defense, but not one penny for tribute!”

“Are…you sure…you want to go down that path?” asked the man as he cracked his knuckles.

“I’m not afraid of a mere mobster!” I hissed.

“Careful,” warned Batman.

“Mobster?” asked the man. “No, monster.”

“Yeah, you’re a hulking man, but I’ve taken down bigger,” I boasted.

“Really?” quizzed the man, not believing me. “When?”

“A giant elephant monster for starters,” I replied. The guy probably wouldn’t know an Oliphaunt if it sat on him. I drew out my i.d tag. “You should be small potatoes compared to what I’ve faced.”

“What are…potatoes?” asked the man.

“…Starchy, root vegetable?” I ventured.

“Your words make no sense,” sighed the man. He then raised a gloved fist.

“Henshin!” I announced as I ducked. I then rolled and went through the armor circle, becoming Kamen Rider Royal. The man was surprised.

“Impossible!” he breathed.

“Impressed?” I asked. He then smirked.

“You’re more than meets the eye,” he said. He then grabbed me, Lacey, and Batman. “Let’s see what you’re made of.” He then jumped to the top of a building and threw us down on the roof. “Away from prying human eyes,” remarked the man. He got into a fighting stance. I drew my sword and leveled it at the man. This was no ordinary human. The guy charged. Foolish error, I had a sword. I slashed across the guy’s face.

“Give up?” I asked.

“Hardly,” laughed the man. His face had no wound!

“Okay, I KNOW my sword made contact!” I yelped.

“It did,” remarked the man.

“Guys, use whatever force necessary to bring him down, but do NOT kill him! I want answers!” I ordered. Batman and Lacey nodded. Lacey then got ready.

“Henshin!” she announced. I then saw her transform and become Kamen Rider Apocalypse. She then set her belt’s dial to a scythe-like symbol.

“Death Scythe!” called the belt. Apocalypse then chopped into him. He flinched but knocked her off. I saw the wounds stitch themselves up and heal with no scar tissue.

“Nice try!” laughed the man.

“Okay, at worst, you should be paralyzed in pain!” protested Apocalypse.

“Oh, it hurts, believe me!” growled the man.

“All right, that’s it!” I snarled. I then grappled with the man. “Who are you?!” I then got his i.d tag. “Well now,” I chuckled, “let’s find out.” The man was confused. I then swapped my i.d tag for his. The announcement of the Steel Change surprised me.

“SpaceGodzilla Steel!” announced Vortoranii.

“What?!” I yelped. The wardrobe changed my armor. I could see something on my shoulders from my peripheral vision. I looked down my front to see a red abdomen and navy-blue armor. I felt a tail from the base of my spine and something was going up my back. I felt around my helmet to find a horn on top. I then proceeded to whack the guy’s fedora off to find the same horn. He seemed to panic.

“No! Give it back!” he cried. All of a sudden, something was swarming us! They were air drones with weapons.

“SPACEGODZILLA! FREEZE!” yelled one of the drones. “SURRENDER! YOU CANNOT ESCAPE!”

“Damn you!” roared the man. He then punched the roof, making crystals grow, and chucking three of them at our heads, making us black out.


Wind brushed past my face, waking me up. It must have been the AC as, when my vision cleared, I saw walls. I felt something constricting me below my shoulders and glanced down, hoping to see something to kick away. No such luck as I was trapped in crystal. “Er, this isn’t Jennamite, is it?” I asked, worried that I was trapped in Avatar: The Last Airbender’s world instead of my intended giant monster infested destination.

“I don’t know what this ‘Jennamite’ is,” hissed a voice, “but I can assure you it isn’t that.” A figure stepped out of the shadows. I heard groans of awakening and saw Batman and Lacey shake their heads clear. Lacey then got a good look at the figure.

“Oh, hi, evil mutant mobster!” she quipped. “…Wait, I’m probably still dizzy from the flying crystal at my face, but did Megumi’s belt just call you SpaceGodzilla?”

“It did,” replied the man. I was confused.

“Gotta say, SG, you’re looking a little shorter than I remember,” I remarked.

“Only thanks to you apes causing my decreased height!” snarled the apparent Godzilla Space Clone turned human.

“I’m…not up to speed,” I answered. “How are you human?”

“Human after a fashion,” replied SpaceGodzilla. I then noticed that the monster’s signature shoulder crystals were poking through the jacket he was wearing.

“So, what happened?” I asked.

“Given that you’re not from our universe, I think explanations are in order,” mused SpaceGodzilla.

“What?!” I yelped.

“Tell me, where are your belts?” asked SpaceGodzilla. I then looked down and tried to find it as best I could, given that I was stuck in crystals that messed with my vision.

“On that table!” called Batman. Lacey and I turned to see my Supreme Vortex Driver and Lacey’s Apocalypse Driver being dissected! The man doing the dissecting was in leather, had cybernetic hands, and I saw a red visor over his eyes when he turned to SpaceGodzilla.

“Confirmed,” reported the man. “These people are extradimensional.”

“Thank you, Gigan,” replied SpaceGodzilla. At that point, Lacey and I started laughing. “And, WHAT, may I ask, is so funny?” asked SpaceGodzilla.

“You got the Cyborg Space Chicken on your side?!” I howled in laughter. Gigan then fiddled with the controls on his arms and the hands were replaced with the hooks he was known for. He slashed across my face.

“Keep laughing,” he hissed.

“I don’t fear you!” I snarled. “You’ve proven to be a coward!” He slashed across my face again.

“And YOU, ape, are proving to be a major annoyance!” growled Gigan.

“Gigan, enough,” commanded SpaceGodzilla. Gigan backed off and used a hook’s tip to press a button on his arm and restore the hands. “Now, explanations about my species current…circumstances.”

“All monsters are human now?” I asked.

“Yes,” replied SpaceGodzilla. “The humans’ top geneticists had discovered that they could remove certain base pairs from our DNA. I say certain base pairs, because they also discovered that some monsters, like Anguirus, cannot survive without the necessary base pairs, M-base being chief among them. The United Nations saw a way to weaponize it and lured us to an all-out slugfest which they took advantage of and removed those base pairs that gave us our appearance. We were, for all intents and purposes, human. However, they didn’t count on the fact that those same base pairs they couldn’t remove determined our powers. They eventually contained us and instituted the Kaiju Human Act. It was designed to keep tabs on all monsters turned humans. The drones are to keep unruly Kaiju-men, as Japan and, eventually, the rest of the world has called us, in check. Dangerous Kaiju-men, like myself and Godzilla, are on a more active watch while others, like that genetic accident of a butterfly…”

“MOTHRA’S A MOTH!!” I shouted.

“Whatever,” dismissed SpaceGodzilla. “Kaiju-men like her are gainfully employed. She, herself, is working as a liaison with the United Nations. Why she scrapes to you apes when she has unbelievable power is beyond my comprehension!”

“Because she actually gives a damn about us!” I snarled. I then noticed that the room had gotten darker. I looked down to see my prison lose its luster. I wiggled a bit and the crystals shattered. I then freed Lacey and Batman and we got into a brawl with the two monsters turned humans. Lacey and I gathered up our currently disassembled belts and we took off like Battra out of Hell if I may mangle the expression. We escaped some sort of bunker and were accosted by the JSDF, the Japan Self-Defense Forces, our united military forces. “Er, you’ll forgive us if we don’t put our hands up!” I quipped. The commanding officer, an elderly man, snapped his fingers and pointed to a soldier. The soldier grabbed some sort of scanner and ran it over us. He concluded scans after a minute while I looked back to make sure SpaceGodzilla and Gigan weren’t following us.

“They have the same bases to their chromosomes as us,” reported the soldier. “They’re all human.” The commanding officer waved us over.

“Gladly!” I thought as we took up their offer. I then heard footsteps, heavy ones, and whirled to see SpaceGodzilla and Gigan come out.

“These humans aren’t worth it,” boomed the commanding officer. “Take some advice from someone who was led down that path and cease this nonsense!”

“This does not concern you!” roared SpaceGodzilla. He generated crystals and threw them at the commanding officer. He jumped high for any human and landed in front of the two Kaiju-men.

“I can’t let you hurt them in your pointless quest to make us the only life-form!” declared the man.

“Ghidrah, it’s not up to you anymore!” shrieked Gigan. The man, Ghidrah, as he was called, then revealed his bat-like wings, his twin tails, and elaborate hand shapes. They looked like Eastern Dragon heads. He then gave off a roar that only one Kaiju could roar, the roar of a flying hydra monster!

“King Ghidorah!” I breathed. “He’s here!” SpaceGodzilla and Gigan then gave off their monster roars and charged at King Ghidorah! Ghidorah then fired electric blasts from his hands at Gigan. Gigan took the brunt of it, then activated his hooks, charging in and slashing at Ghidorah. SpaceGodzilla then generated crystals and fired on the soldiers. “That’s it!” I snapped. “Hen…SHIMATTA!”

“Oh yeah, our belts were taken apart,” sighed Lacey.

“There IS another option,” mused Batman.

“Bad idea!” I countered, getting where Batman was going. “Tora-Onna will put the soldiers in a panic. I’d rather keep that side in reserve.”

“Well, if you’re not gonna fight, I am!” rasped Batman as he decked Gigan. Gigan didn’t like that as he fired his harpoon cables at Batman. Batman rolled out of the way and Gigan’s harpoons buried themselves in the ground.

“What are you waiting for?!” asked Lacey as she snapped her fingers and changed her outfit to another one. This one had a reasonable skirt and blue petticoat size, a shirt with white fluff around the neck and arms, the skirt sporting white fluff at the hem and waist, purple tights, black, fingerless, forearm length gloves with the same white fluff at all openings, and black boots with a white strap and white fluff around the mouth of the boot. Her foot smashed into SpaceGodzilla’s crown. He started clutching it in pain.

“Should have hit somewhere else!” he snarled. His dorsal plates glowed, and the deadly Corona Beam came streaming out of his mouth. We rolled out of the way and made a run for it towards the soldiers.

“This is nuts!” I called.

“Will you make with the stripes already?!” snapped Batman.

“Why will you not listen to your friend?” asked a strange voice. It sounded like two women talking at once. I looked around but couldn’t find the source. “Down here!” called the voices again. This time, I found the source on the jeep’s wheel well. There, at their full height of 21 centimeters, dressed as island priestesses, were the Shobijin (Small Beauties), or the Cosmos, as some people address them. “Will you not assist your friends and use your monster form?” asked the Shobijin.

“Are you two nuts?!” I protested. “That’ll cause a panic among the people!”

“Is it the people you’re afraid for, or yourself?” asked the Shobijin. I then heard a loud chirp. Everyone looked up to the sky to see an island goddess with large moth wings, blue insect eyes, and a pair of fuzzy antennae on her forehead. She landed with grace and glared at SpaceGodzilla and Gigan, particularly Gigan. The wings folded around her like a cloak.

“Hello, Gigan,” she said softly. “I thought I made it clear to you that this planet is not to have you on its surface.”

“Like I’m gonna listen to a glorified bug that has to lay two of herself!” shrieked Gigan.

“Hey! Don’t be dissing Mothra!” I snapped.

“Thank you,” said the woman softly. She then put on a business manner. “SpaceGodzilla, Gigan, in the name of the United Nations and the Kaiju Human Act, you are under arrest for assaulting humans with intent to kill! We can do this the easy way, or the hard way!”

“We do not fear you!” declared SpaceGodzilla.

“You should,” warned Mothra. She unfolded her wings and started flapping them. A golden powder littered the area. SpaceGodzilla and Gigan started getting drowsy, then fell flat on their faces, snoring. Mothra slapped handcuffs on them and they were thrown in an armored truck. Mothra then turned to King Ghidorah. She gave a smirk.

“…They should fear you?!” asked King Ghidorah.

“I have sleep powder that can last for a hundred years,” answered Mothra. “Not a small nap to wake up from. Now, shall we head to base?” She invited us to her jeep, which we accepted.


The base we were taken to was a large one. The military welcomed us warmly. Mothra seemed to be a popular Kaiju-man. She reciprocated the welcome and led us to a room once we had a moment. Ghidorah followed us after SpaceGodzilla and Gigan were locked up. “As you can guess,” answered Mothra, “I’m Mothra, Guardian of Infant Island and friend to these two.” She gestured to the Shobijin on her desk. “And the man behind you is King Ghidorah.”

“Yes, I got that,” I replied. “I’m Megumi Hishikawa. This is Lacey Thanatos and Batman.”

“Hello!” called Lacey.

“Good to meet you,” rasped Batman.

“Now, pardon my asking,” I interjected, “but, didn’t King Ghidorah try and destroy this planet once upon a time?”

“Yes, and then protected it alongside Mothra and Baragon when Godzilla was possessed by the souls of Japan,” recalled Ghidorah.

“Being humanish has allowed King Ghidorah to understand the humans,” continued Mothra. “Now, a question for you. The data we recovered from SpaceGodzilla and Gigan said that you weren’t from our world.”

“And that data is, sadly, correct,” I replied.

“So, multiverse theory became multiverse principle,” mused Mothra.

“You’re familiar with the multiverse?” asked Batman.

“Despite appearances,” replied the Shobijin, “Mothra is familiar with the basics in science.”

“I’ve worked with Kiryu (Machine Dragon) a few times,” replied Mothra.

“Kiryu?” asked Batman.

“He’s mainly known as the current Mechagodzilla,” explained Mothra. “And we’re having a problem with him.”

“Has he gone rogue?” I asked.

“No, thankfully,” replied Ghidorah. “He currently lacks the mental power to do so.”

“Eh?” I quizzed.

“Follow me,” said Mothra as she placed the Shobijin on her shoulder. We all left the room and headed to where the Kaiju-men under her watch dwelt. It was a large room with a TV screen taking up the entire wall, some gaming systems, and a bank of computer consoles. I could swear I heard some childish laughing. I turned around to see a humanoid robot in silver, a helmet covering a mouth, spines running down the back, and yellow eyes and a tail. The robot had a childish expression. He was running around a pole with his other hand out and whapping a powerfully built man repeatedly. The sight made me clamp my mouth shut so my squee wouldn’t deafen everyone. The man had maple leaf spines, a tail, amber eyes, and claws on his fingers and toes! It’s him! It’s the King of the Monsters! The robot’s hand repeatedly whapping him was annoying him.

“Er, is that…Kiryu?” I muttered. The robot then laughed.

“Hey! Pull my finger!” he laughed. Something was seriously wrong.

“If only that were his normal brain talking,” snarled Godzilla. “Then I would get some satisfaction of hitting him!”

“I don’t…” I muttered.

“Kiryu has a primary and secondary computer like his large body’s pilots and Godzilla’s brains,” explained Mothra. “The primary brain handles the advanced cognitive functions while the secondary brain handles the basics.”

“How basic are we talking about?” I asked.

“It makes Megalon look like a genius,” growled Godzilla.

“So, what happened to the more advanced brain?” asked Lacey.

“Someone took it,” replied Ghidorah. “And…”

“You don’t know who,” guessed Batman.

“Happened to you before?” asked Mothra.

“More times than I can count,” remarked Batman. “Mind if I take a crack at finding it? I’ve had some experience finding missing computer brains.”

“Knock yourself out,” offered Ghidorah. Batman took over a console and started his search.

“Megumi, a question,” called Lacey as she summoned her usual school outfit. The Kaiju-men were startled.

“How can she move in that?!” whispered Godzilla to Mothra.

“I want to know myself,” muttered Mothra.

“What happened during the battle?” Lacey hissed to me. “You didn’t use Tora-Onna!” In all honesty, I should have figured THAT question would be asked.

“The Shobijin got it right,” I replied. “I AM afraid of Tora-Onna.”

“Why?” asked Batman as he worked.

“That…THING…is alien to me,” I gulped.

“But, you worked so hard to get her under control!” countered Lacey.

“I can vouch for that,” confirmed Batman.

“Tora-Onna was brought under Shocker Rift control, remember?” I reminded.

“You were told to snap your mother’s neck,” countered Batman. “You then disobeyed, snapped her handcuffs, and then proceeded to make Hiro blow up.”

“Guys, that thing where I was walking towards my mother,” I argued, “that was me about to obey Hiro. He’s got a grip on my mind, somehow, and staying in human form as long as possible is the best way to detain that grip.”

“That’s the problem with you humans,” scoffed Godzilla. “You spent so much time trying to deny the animal part of your brain that you forgot the advantages that part brings in combat.”

“Hey, don’t be hating on humans,” called a voice. Godzilla tensed up.

“Mothra, you didn’t ask for H.E.A.T to swing by, did you?” he asked.

“We need Dr. Tatopoulos’ help,” replied Mothra.

“I will NOT work with that tuna eating Yankī!” (a name the Japanese use for their delinquents) roared Godzilla.

“Who’s a delinquent?!” snarled the voice. We saw an American Kaiju-man come into view. He had spines that curved towards his head and…oh Lord…he’s wearing a Yankees hat! He was accompanied by a brunette man, a red-headed woman, a raven-haired woman, a heavy-set, bearded blonde man, and a Hispanic man. A wheeled robot came up.

“And the aforementioned Yankī arrives,” growled Godzilla. The American Kaiju-man, Zilla, from what I could see, snarled.

“And he’s a Yankees fan, why not!” I sighed. “Yankees suck! Go Red Sox!”

“You Sox fans are just jealous that the Yankees are better!” roared Zilla.

“Zilla Tatopoulos!” warned the brunette man. Zilla subsided like a child would with an irritated parent. The man then turned to us. “Please excuse my son, he can be a bit hot-headed. I’m Dr. Nick Tatopoulos.”

“I’m Dr. Elsie Chapman,” introduced the red-head.

“Dr. Mendel Craven,” answered the portly man.

“Randy Hernandez,” greeted the Hispanic man.

“Monique Dupre,” said the raven-haired woman, coldly. She spoke with a French accent.

“Wait, is that Batman?!” yelped Randy.

“The very same,” I replied. “I got him from his universe. I’m Megumi Hishikawa and this is Lacey Thanatos.”

“Hello!” called Lacey.

“What brings you here?” I asked.

“We got word that you guys needed help finding Kiryu’s brain,” answered Nick.

“That’s what we’re trying to do,” rasped Batman. “If there’s a technical person on your team, I would appreciate the help.”

“That would be Randy and myself,” answered Mendel. They sat down next to Batman and started work.

“So,” muttered Monique, “Mechagodzilla Mark III is missing his brain? When were you going to tell us?”

“It was going into the report,” assured Mothra. “We’ve just been…”

“Busy, yeah, the G.D.F is always busy,” interrupted Zilla. “But you guys are usually nice enough to tell the Kaiju-men Watch Committee when the report is delayed due to something coming up.”

“Bureaucracy is more important than protecting the apes?” asked Godzilla.

“No,” answered Ghidorah. “Zilla has a point, it WAS a lack of professional courtesy.”

“I’m sure it can be rectified easily,” I mused.

“True, but it’s still annoying for both parties,” replied Zilla. “H.E.A.T’s been busy too. We’re trying to find Ts-eh-Go, the mutant Scorpion. He’s busted out of Kaiju Max, our top Kaiju-men prison.”

“If someone like him can break out,” growled Godzilla, “then it just proves that rehabilitation is the worst idea. Perhaps we should get rid of a certain pair of Kaiju-men in our hold.”

“We are human to a certain extent,” chirped Mothra. “Thus, we are subject to human laws. That includes ALL Kaiju-men having a fair trial.”

“Those two have tried to destroy our world!” snarled Godzilla.

“Killing is the easy way out,” hissed Batman.

“Not one of you nitwits!” roared Godzilla. “The only way to ensure your enemies’ defeat is their destruction!”

“Which begets more enemies,” countered Batman.

“I…kind of…have to agree with Big G here,” sighed Zilla.

“Zilla,” protested Nick.

“You didn’t object when I roasted Queen Bee!” snapped Zilla.

“Queen Bee?” I asked

“A Mutated Queen Bee,” explained Mendel. “It was terraforming a resort to make room for her hive. Zilla roasted her by…AHA!”

“What?” asked Godzilla.

“Found it!” called Mendel.

“You…found it?!” said Godzilla in disbelief.

“Kiryu’s brain?” I asked.

“It uses an algorithm similar to my Bat-computer,” remarked Batman, “albeit, more advanced. The G.D.F makes good hardware and software. His brain is located somewhere in geostationary orbit around Osaka.”

“We’ve been trying to find it for months!!” snapped Godzilla.

“And this is why you should trust H.E.A.T,” boasted Nick.

“How are we going to get up there?!” asked King Ghidorah. “Fly?!”

“Did the winged Hydra monster say that?” I muttered.

“Neither he nor Mothra can get there,” answered Godzilla. “It’s too high.”

“The air is thinner up there,” supplied Mothra.

“But King Ghidorah flew through space!” I recalled.

“They’re part human,” reminded Lacey. “They need oxygen as much as we do.”

“Wait, there IS the Gotengo,” recalled Zilla.

“The Gotengo! Of course!” cheered Mothra. “And I know who to call!” She used a console and dialed a number. There was a dial tone for a few seconds, then a girl appeared on the screen. She had long, wavy, green hair adorned by a rose on the left side, a leafy green strapless dress, some pinkish red markings on her collarbone, long, green opera gloves with a slight vine appearance in the fingers, and tendrils with mouths around her workspace. I could guess who she was quickly.

“Biollante?!” I yelped. “But she’s an enemy!”

“WAS an enemy,” corrected Godzilla. “That human’s soul helped her settle things after our last battle.”

“So, Erika’s back?” I asked.

“Er, yes and no,” remarked Biollante. “I’m still a new life-form with my own feelings and experiences, but I remember Erika’s. Does that make sense?”

“Perfectly for me,” replied Lacey. Biollante arched an eyebrow. “I’ve dealt with dead things like that,” elaborated Lacey.

“She’s from another universe where the dead and living go to school together,” I explained. The explanation satisfied Biollante but was replaced by confusion at seeing me and Batman.

“They just helped us find Kiryu’s brain,” replied Mothra.

“Oh, thank you!” squealed Biollante with a big, fat grin. “Where is it?!”

“It’s in geostationary orbit around Osaka,” reported Mothra. “Can you get us the Gotengo?”

“Ooh,” winced Biollante. “That’s a problem. The Gotengo was decommissioned two months ago.”

“WHAT?!” we all yelled.

“Hold on!” called Biollante. “I didn’t say getting up there was impossible, just that you can’t use the original Gotengo. After the original was decommissioned, the UN made a new one and had Admiral Douglas Gordon in command of that ship. I’ll just call up the Admiral and we’ll get you up there.” She then stood up and I realized that, instead of human legs, she had four, large, trunk-like, greenish roots for movement. She turned and flicked a switch behind her, calling up a man of European stock.

“Biollante,” grunted the man. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“Hi Admiral Gordon! We found Kiryu’s brain!” cheered Biollante. “Mothra and her friends need the Gotengo-A.”

“Just point me in the right direction and I’ll be there,” replied Admiral Gordon. “Gordon out.” The transmission ended and Biollante turned to us with a grin as bright as her food source.

“Well, looks like you guys get to rescue a brain!” giggled Biollante. “Bye!” She terminated communications.

“…Siblings,” muttered Godzilla.

Categories
Kamen Rider Vortex Kamen Rider Vortex Chapters

Chapter 54

“Another Apocalypse Driver?” I yelped when Sheela finished her story. “There can’t be two! Lacey said it would be catastrophic!”

“I have a feeling Heather doesn’t care,” mused Emily. “She’s now bent on bringing life down with her!”

“Doesn’t care about what?” asked a voice. It was Lacey. She was still in her student uniform, as she decided, but her petticoats and ascot were purple. “I wasn’t here for the story, what’s going on?”

“Heather just took a part to make another Apocalypse Driver,” I answered.

“What?!” yelped Lacey. “She can’t do that! What part did she take?!”

“Some quarter-circle from your old home,” answered Ben.

“No, not that!” wailed Lacey. “That’s part of the Apocalypse Weapon Dial! The circle on my belt buckle! That universe, because of hair-raising, deadly scenarios, hides the one for Death Scythe!”

“What could she want with it?!” I asked.

“If I were a betting girl,” answered Lacey, “to get a body.”

“Do you have any ideas where the other Weapon Dial parts are?” asked Emily.

“Indeed, I do,” replied Lacey. “The belt itself is in Dimension G-0-D-Z-1-L-L-4, a bunch of giant monsters run around in that one.” My eyes went wide and I gave a big, fat grin. If I got the naming convention of dimensions down, the belt is in…

“Godzilla’s dimension?!” I squealed. “EEEEEEEEE!!!!”

“I’m that big of a fan too,” chuckled Lacey. “Continuing, the War part is in Sludgiona’s current home, the Pestilence part is in the retro video game dimension, and the Famine part is in 8-4-C-K-T-0-T-H-3-F-U-T-U-R-3.” I then formed a plan.

“X-PO,” I directed, “fire up the Rider chance for Back to the Future. We have four dimensions to strike at. Lacey and I will go to Godzilla’s home, Xiomara and Emmanuel are going back to work with the Ghostbusters, Livia and Hiroki are heading into the game world, and the next two rider team will go back to the future.”

“A little sting operation?” chuckled X-PO. “All right! All Riders, to the Gateway room!” Everyone assembled in the Gateway room and I told them the situation. I assigned teams and X-PO set up the Rider Chance for Back to the Future. The hands rotated. “And the Riders are…Haitao!”

“Yes!” cheered Haitao.

“…And Joshua!”

“ACE!” called Joshua.

“All right,” I muttered. “Anyone have studs?”

“Studs?” asked Reinrassic.

“They are the main currency here,” explained Rook. “They are little discs that come in either silver, gold, blue, or purple.”

“Oh, these things!” said Reinrassic. He drew out a bag. The studs inside totaled 275,000, making our total 2,972,000. “Have you spent any of them?!” asked Reinrassic.

“There’s nothing TO spend them on,” sighed Joshua.

“All right, everyone,” I called, “If we could step away from our finances at the moment, I want everyone properly trained up and rested for the mission tomorrow. If Vortech decides to attack the dimensions for more Foundation Elements while we try and stop Heather, I want to be ready.”

“I recommend you take one of us with you,” suggested Batman.

“You raise a good point!” I called. “Batman, you’re with me and Lacey. Wyldstyle, you’re going with Joshua and Haitao. Gandalf, you need to go with Livia and Hiroki. Hongo-san, I want you with Emmanuel and Xiomara.”

“Nice!” cheered Wyldstyle. “I kind of liked that dimension!”

“In that specific time period, maybe,” mused Haitao. “Wait until you see Hill Valley in 1955 and 1985.”

“Yes, lovely areas to visit,” called a voice. It had a slight English accent. We whirled around to see a man in a white coat with epaulets, a cane, and a cybernetic right hand. I got ready to fight, but Gwen stopped me.

“Professor Paradox!” yelped Ben.

“You know this man?” asked Reinrassic.

“Ah, Ben!” called Professor Paradox. “And we’re on Vorton, too! So, the Vortech Wars are in full swing! How’s Klawjektor working out for you?”

“Who?” asked Ben.

“Klawjektor!” insisted Professor Paradox. “You were supposed to have unlocked him a while ago! Or, is my Chrono Navigator running fast?”

“What are you doing here?” asked Rook.

“Oh, just travelling the multiverse,” answered Paradox. “Bumped into the Doctor, by the way. How he gets around with that scarf is beyond me.”

“What scarf?” I asked.

“The Doctor wore a ridiculously long scarf in his fourth incarnation,” explained Michael.

“So, what, you’re a universe traveler?” I asked.

“After a fashion,” mused Professor Paradox. He held up his robot arm. “My Chrono Navigator is the multiverse’s GPS.”

“And the whole thing happened in the 50’s,” muttered Richard.

“Professor Paradox and the U.S. Military were working on a Time Travel experiment,” explained Emily. “Something went awry, and the professor was flung into the Event Horizon. He spent…oh, I don’t know…thousands of years in there. He didn’t eat, sleep, age, nor went to the bathroom. He just existed. Of course, he did the only logical thing and went bananas, that’s putting it mildly, yes, but became bored with that after a few millennia, went sane, and learned.”

“I now have complete understanding of the Space-Time continuum and can go anywhere and anywhen I want, within reason,” continued Professor Paradox.

“So, why are you here?” I asked.

“Just needed to ask a question,” replied Paradox. “You haven’t seen a pair of twin girls yet, about yea high?” He reached up to his chin. Everyone was confused. “No? I must be thinking of another moment. Ta-ta!” He then seemed to teleport away.

“Time travelers,” muttered Batman, “always seem to go loony in some way.”

“We’ll discuss that later,” I remarked. “For now, we need to train and rest up.”

“What do you want the rest of us to do?” asked Turretorg.

“Keep the defenses on standby in case Hiro decides to come knocking,” I directed. “I need us ready for him too.”

“All counter measures will be prepared,” promised Reinrassic.

“You intend to stay?” I asked.

“This requires Atasian Technology,” replied Reinrassic. “And I will provide it. I require the use of your communications terminal.” We allowed access and Reinrassic spoke in growls.

“I never heard the Atasian language,” remarked Max.

“I did, when I changed their DNA,” answered Ben. Reinrassic finished and turned to us.

“My planet, Augstaka, needs a portal to send the fleet,” he reported. I gave the go-ahead and Atasian ships flew into Vorton’s orbit. More growls came over the comms. “Fleet Admiral Asoorma requests to be beamed down,” requested Reinrassic.

“Your mom’s a Fleet Admiral?!” gulped Ben.

“Correct,” confirmed Reinrassic. “As such, she is my First Lieutenant in Military matters.”

“She’s free to come on down,” I granted. Reinrassic relayed my approval and a blue, female Atasian beamed into the Gateway room.

“Home looks a lot more civilized than when I last saw it,” sighed the Atasian woman. Asoorma, if I got Sheela’s story right. “Ah, Ben. I understand YOU had a helping hand in it,” remarked Asoorma. “Now that I see the full scale of your help,” she held her hand out. Ben shook it. “Thank you for saving my people, Ben Tennyson.”

“No biggy,” assured Ben.

“Are you the one in charge?” asked Asoorma.

“No, that would be Megumi, there,” replied Ben as he pointed to me.

“Queen Megumi Hishikawa, at your service,” I introduced. “Walk with me, I’ll brief you on the situation while your son addresses the Atasian troops.” I led Asoorma away as the rest moved to get themselves ready.


“Admiral’s Log: Stardate 53159.932. I had just received word that an anomaly was making frequent appearances in orbit above New Unity, a colony founded after final events with Data’s brother, Lore, had taken place. I am concerned that the inhabitants of New Unity, freed Borg Drones, would be under attack by their former Collective, but Hugh, the leader of the colony, and personal friend of mine, said that the Borg do not deal with generating these types of anomalies. The new Enterprise H is on its way to the Colony and will be entering orbit shortly. End Log.” The computer chimed that it finished recording what I said. I got up from my chair, moving towards the door. This Enterprise is certainly…flashier…than the one I commanded. I made my way to the bridge. I was hoping to not get caught, but someone said, “Admiral on the bridge!” Everyone stood to attention.

“At ease,” I assured. I noticed the Captain’s chair was empty. “Whereabouts is Captain Sh’Kar?”

“In the Captain’s Ready Room, sir,” replied the Helmsman, a Caitian man.

“Thank you,” I said. One thing I WILL say, the Captain’s Ready Room is not all different from what I’m used to, just behind the bridge instead of beside it. I chimed my presence.

 “Enter,” boomed an Alto voice. The door slid open and I saw Captain Sh’Kar, daughter of Nor’theen. The Klingon woman stood when she saw me. “Admiral Picard,” she noticed. “I was unaware you would be coming here.”

“Just a small visit,” I assured Sh’Kar as I sat in the chair across from her. She sat back down. “How’s the ship getting on for you?”

“So far, it’s going well for the crew,” replied Sh’Kar. “Many of them would have sold their soul to be on a ship named Enterprise.”

“What about you?” I asked. Sh’Kar then understood.

“I will admit,” she sighed, “this is nerve-wracking. However, the crew doesn’t need to know that.”

“Most of the crew,” I suggested. “It helps to have an inner circle.”

“I suppose,” muttered Sh’Kar. Her Klingon values made her a bit guarded, but Worf recommended her highly. The Communications chime then came on.

“Sareth to Captain,” called a man’s voice. I nodded.

“Go ahead, Sareth,” boomed Sh’Kar.

“We are approaching New Unity,” reported Sareth.

“On my way,” replied Sh’Kar. We left the Ready Room and entered the bridge. She took her place at the Captain’s chair while I stood by Sareth, a middle-aged Vulcan and head of security. “Hail them,” ordered Sh’Kar.

“Hailing frequencies opened,” confirmed Sareth.

“This is Captain Sh’Kar of the Enterprise,” boomed Sh’Kar. “We are responding to a request for Federation help from this planet.” The viewscreen changed to show a young man strapped in by metal, wires, and tubing, the classic Borg Drone look. Normally, I would have flashbacks of when I was in such a condition, but this was a friendly face.

“And we are glad to see that our request was answered,” replied the Borg. “I am Hugh, leader of New Unity. We are glad to see a Federation ship, especially one with the name of Enterprise.”

“And we are glad we’re among friends,” answered Sh’Kar.

“I see that Picard is here as well,” cheered Hugh. “Good to see you again!”

“And you, old friend,” I replied. “I trust politics do not bore you?”

“No, I have fresh challenges every day,” chuckled Hugh. “Would you please come down? I would like to discuss this in person.”

“I see no problem with that,” I mused.

“Neither do I,” remarked Sh’Kar. “Send us the preferred coordinates and we’ll meet you there.” Hugh sent over the coordinates and ended communications “You two, with me and the Admiral. Transporter room 2,” Sh’Kar ordered two ensigns. We made our way to the transporter room and stood on the transporter pads. “Energize,” ordered Sh’Kar. The operator set the controls and beamed us to Hugh’s office. Hugh greeted us with handshakes all around.

“You look great, Cap…Admiral Picard! A Starfleet Admiral?” he realized.

“Things have changed when we last met,” I replied. “This is Captain Sh’Kar of the starship Enterprise H.”

“Pleasure to meet you, Captain,” greeted Hugh.

“The pleasure is mine,” reciprocated Sh’Kar. “Forgive me if I sound short, but I understand that there is a frequent anomaly?”

“No need to ask forgiveness,” assured Hugh. “We would like this matter dealt with as quickly as possible. If you would follow me.” Hugh led us out of his office and into the city that made up the Capital of New Unity. It was…intriguing…to see Borg acting as they did before assimilation. Still, there wasn’t an aura of menace that usually comes with the Borg. “As you can see, in the years since our last encounter with the Federation,” reported Hugh, “we’ve learned to work as individuals and as a group. It has sprouted a new civilization, your charter, if memory serves.”

“Yes, indeed,” I replied. All of a sudden, a blue hole appeared in front of us. “And THAT!” I said.

“That’s the anomaly that plagues us!” exclaimed Hugh. The Borg nearby were clearly scared.

“I don’t understand,” muttered Sh’Kar. “When you contacted Starfleet, you said it was in orbit.”

“It WAS,” replied Hugh. “This is the first time it’s ever been on the planet.” At that point, something seemed to go through. It looked like a man. I feared the worst.

“Q, if this is your doing…” I growled, wishing it weren’t. That was when the figure tossed a man through. The man that was tossed was the same member of the Q Continuum I frequently encounter. He appeared to be in a lot of pain.

“Picard…run!” croaked Q.

“Oh, how the mighty have fallen!” laughed the figure. It stepped out of the hole as it closed. The figure was a man made of…well…space. He was made of the blackness of space with stars studding his body. He clapped eyes on me. “Ah, Captain Picard!”

“Admiral,” I corrected. “Are you the one behind the blue holes appearing above New Unity?!”

“I am,” replied the man. “I am Lord Vortech, future ruler of the multiverse and master of Hypertime.”

“You are also terrorizing these people,” snarled Sh’Kar.

“I’m sorry, bumpy head, who are you?” asked Vortech.

“I am Captain Sh’Kar of the U.S.S Enterprise H,” said Sh’Kar, bristling.

“Ah, a new ship to carry the Foundation Element of this universe!” cheered Vortech.

“Picard,” gasped Q, “don’t let him take the ship!”

“Foundation Element?” I asked. “Multiverse? Hypertime?”

“I’m sure you understand the concept of parallel worlds?” asked Vortech.

“The Federation HAS had encounters with alternate universe versions of ourselves,” replied Sh’Kar.

“Splendid, a frame of reference,” mused Vortech. “Hypertime is like time, only it moves and flows like a river, branching off into tributaries, sometimes rejoining the main line. And, with each universe, there is something holding it together, like the foundation of a building, hence, Foundation Element. The name, Enterprise, is one such Foundation Element. This particular Element can transfer from ship to ship, but still carries the spirit of your universe, your charter. And I WILL have that ship! Terrorizing these mere playthings was needed to get you here!”

“You have committed an act of aggression on a warp-capable civilization and an ally of the United Federation of Planets!” I snarled. “If you do not cease your activities…” My threat was cut short as multiple smaller holes spat out various crew members!

“Ah, that went faster than I anticipated,” mused Vortech. He then activated a device, allowing a viewscreen to come up. The man he was talking to was in some sort of black armor and large helmet. He was on the bridge! “Ambassador Hell, I trust everyone is off the ship?” asked Vortech.

“Indeed, sir,” called the man. “Every single inhabitant of this vessel is now on the planet. The Enterprise is ours. All we need is a way back.”

“I’ll be up there shortly,” answered Vortech. “Is Engineering taken?”

“The entire ship is ours,” reported Ambassador Hell.

“Get off of my ship!” boomed Sh’Kar.

“Or what?” asked Ambassador Hell. “You’ll fight me?”

“I’m giving you the choice to get off my ship of your own free will,” growled Sh’Kar.

“Careful,” I warned.

“Why would I do that?” asked Ambassador Hell.

“So you don’t die in the explosion,” replied Sh’Kar. “I refuse to let Federation technology fall into enemy hands!”

“What explosion?” asked Ambassador Hell. Sh’Kar looked at me, revealing her intent. So new, yet so determined.

“Computer, this is Captain Sh’Kar of the U.S.S. Enterprise. Destruct Sequence 1, Code 1, 1-A,” she ordered.

“Vocal patterns not recognized,” reported the computer.

“What?!” roared Sh’Kar.

“Did you really think I wouldn’t block vocal access to the ship?!” asked Ambassador Hell.

“Splendid! Beam me up!” called Vortech. Vortech was beamed up and appeared next to Ambassador Hell. “I know you don’t have the capability to do so, but do NOT attempt to follow me. I have more power than Q over there.” We then saw the Enterprise leave through a large portal. Sh’Kar howled, the totality of her anger reverberating across the planet. Someone is playing a larger game, someone that terrifies people like Q.

Categories
Kamen Rider Vortex Kamen Rider Vortex Chapters

Chapter 51

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.”

Categories
Kamen Rider Vortex Kamen Rider Vortex Chapters

Chapter 49

The portal opened in the sky and we landed with a thud! Ex-Aid landed on his head. “Itai!” (Ow!) he winced as picked himself up and massaged his head. We examined our surroundings.

“A race track?” muttered Wyldstyle. Three race cars zoomed by.

“Goodness!” called Gandalf. “They’re even faster than Wargs!”

“Move!” shouted Batman as the cars came around for another lap. He shoved us out of the way while he got ready to jump on the car being driven by the thief. The thief got out of the way as the flag indicated the end of the race.

“Players must beat record lap to win Gold Token,” said an announcer. One of the cars separated it’s rear and folded it down. The sides split away and let hands pop loose. The front flipped up and rotated to become a backpack and allowed a blue head with a purple helmet to pop out. This was Drag-Strip of the Stunticons, and he was mad!

“HOW CAN A FLESHLING BEAT ME?!” he shouted. The last car opened. It was done up in a European driver’s style with the driver on the right side of the car. The driver was a guy in a red suit done up like a race car and he had a tire going from the left shoulder to the right side. His helmet was like a Kamen Rider. The passenger was a pink-haired woman in a yellow outfit and skirt with pixels, buttons, and yellow petticoats. She wore a headpiece on the right side of her head that looked like a green speaker with a yellow pixel note with a green outline on it. She was arguing with the mystery Kamen Rider, er, Driver.

“Drive-san!” called Sengoku.

“Poppy!” cried Ex-Aid. The two people stopped arguing. The woman, Poppy, ran up to Ex-Aid and hugged him. The Kamen Driver, Drive, looked at Sengoku.

“Who are you?” he asked.

“I’m Hishikawa Hiroki,” introduced Sengoku as he used the Japanese name order, “Kamen Rider Sengoku! I can’t believe I’m talking to Tomari Shinnosuke, Kamen Rider Drive!”

“Kamen Rider?” I asked.

“What?” quizzed Drive.

“You have a car,” I observed.

“Well, you ride cars,” argued Drive.

“Yeah, but I just saw you come out of the driver’s seat,” I reminded.

“And being a stupid driver at that!” snapped Poppy. Drive turned on her.

“You were being a backseat driver!” argued Drive.

“I was in the passenger’s seat!” snarled Poppy.

“You still gave advice that I didn’t ask for!” shouted Drive.

“This is why I don’t drive, usually,” said Sonic to Mario.

“I can-a understand,” assured Mario.

“There’s only one problem here,” snarled Drag-Strip, “and it’s you fleshlings! I can’t win with you idiots harassing me!”

“We’re trying to win here!” roared Drive.

“I’M the only winner here!” argued Drag-Strip. “That walking fashion disaster said that this was a racing game called Super Sprint and racing is my thing! Now, step aside and let me win!”

“Might I interject?” asked Clash as she cancelled her transformation. Everyone turned to her.

“WHAT NOW?!” roared Drag-Strip. “What does a fish-lady know about this?!”

“Mermaid,” corrected Livia. Before Drag-Strip shrugged her off, Livia continued. “Look, our team needs that token the thief has. You guys want to beat his best time, if not win. I’m an expert at this game and I did some real racing.” That statement surprised me. “I’ve got an idea, but it needs teamwork and, Signore…er…”

“Drag-Strip,” introduced the Stunticon.

“Signore Drag-Strip, I’m gonna need to take the wheel as you seem to have forgotten some of the most important aspects of racing,” continued Livia.

“What are you talking about?!” snarled Drag-Strip. “I’m the fastest racer around!”

“What about split second decisions?” asked Livia. “What about maneuverability? What about knowing when to slam the brakes on? These are important too.” Drag-Strip’s visor flickered.

“What do you mean know when to slam the brakes on?!” he yelped. “It’s a race! You can’t put them on!”

“Let me take the wheel and I’ll show you what I mean,” offered Livia. “Besides, I can help you win. When you do, you don’t even need to give me credit.” Drag-Strip considered her words, then sighed and transformed.

“You better not screw me up!” he threatened. Livia took her hair flower and veil off, entered Drag-Strip, and set them on Drag-Strip’s floor as she buckled up.

“I’m surprised Decepticons have seat belts,” I mused.

“They’re useful for keeping prisoners,” chuckled Drag-Strip darkly.

“Charming,” snarked Livia. Drag-Strip was at the start line.

“Poppy, do you mind staying in the stands with us?” I asked.

“Why?!” wailed Poppy.

“You’re not an expert at racing games,” replied Para-DX. “Drive doesn’t need another annoyance.” Poppy gasped. She then looked down.

“…Pupepopasulk!” she mumbled.

“Parado!” protested Ex-Aid. He then went to Poppy. “Poppy, we can cheer them on together. It will help them win. Want to help?” Poppy looked up, then smiled.

“Right!” she declared. She then went to the stands with us as we cancelled our transformations aside from Drive as he moved his car to the start. The thief did so as well. The racers were ready.

“Not all players are ready,” called the announcer. Just then, I noticed Batman talking to Hiroki and Hiroki put the Batmobile at the start. Batman got in.

“Let’s drive,” he rasped.


This is it! I can’t wait! My ride grumbled. “I hate this. I hate this! I hate THIS! I HATE THIS!”

“Silenzio!” (Be quiet) I hissed. “We’ll take first place.” I released the brake a bit, causing Drag-Strip to move forward a centimeter. The thief flinched. Drive gave the hand motion that he was watching me. Batman did nothing.

“3! 2! 1! GO!” called the announcer. I hit the gas, then braked to turn right via drifting. The straightaway had a puddle near the end, so I drifted right again near the edge, making a complete 180 on the turn and went up the next straightaway, then drifted left 45 degrees. I then drifted right after the straightaway and gunned Drag-Strip’s engine, then drifted right again and crossed the finish first. This went on for the next two laps. Soon, we finished in 1st! The thief, 3rd place, slammed his hand on the wheel, Drive was in second and handled his place more gracefully, and Batman was dead last. The Dark Knight brooded about it.

“What kind of crazy turning was that?!” asked Drag-Strip.

“Drifting,” I explained. “I intentionally oversteered, making you lose traction in your rear wheels, but still maintained control over you. That’s what I meant when I said to know when to slam on the brakes.” Drag-Strip hmmed to himself.

“We went through four tracks with the thief,” he revealed. “A couple more times, then I’ll see how well I drift on the track after that.

“Another track?!” protested Batman as the track changed. “Give me a break here!” I took the wheel again and we waited for the countdown. This one had a lot more turns.

“3! 2! 1! GO!” called the announcer. We took off. I limited my drifting as there were too many turns, but we got 1st again as we dodged puddles and oil patches. We waited for the track to change again. It was short with shortcuts and a wiggly path. I got my hands off the wheel as I leaned back.

“Aren’t you gonna drive?” asked Drag-Strip.

“Call this a mid-term test,” I replied. “I want to see how you drive with a passenger.”

“…All right,” he muttered. The race began again, and we took off. On the first lap, Drag-Strip didn’t use the shortcuts. “That was more trouble than it was worth,” he explained. He took them on the second lap and finished in first without shortcuts. The track changed and I got out. I put my hair flower and veil back on.

“Now, it’s all you,” I called. “Good luck.” Drag-Strip was ready.

“We’ve got to win that token soon,” muttered Hiroki.

“Hush,” I hissed. “Drag-Strip’s got it.”

“3! 2! 1! GO!” called the announcer. The track had an over pass after a turn. Drag-Strip went with normal steering while Batman and the thief tried to drift. That’s a mistake. Drive was right on Drag-Strip’s bumper. Drag-Strip kept his head and drifted right to avoid a puddle. He dodged a tornado as Drive spun out. He went under the overpass and turned onto the parallel track. He then turned left and went down another parallel to the finish line. This went on until the end of the race.


We cheered Drag-Strip’s victory. “WOO!” cheered Wyldstyle. “Nice driving!”

“Those other cars didn’t stand a chance!” called Batman.

“Shall we claim our prize, teach?” asked Drag-Strip to Livia.

“Now THAT’S how you win,” replied Livia. We headed to the winner’s circle when Wyldstyle noticed something.

“Why isn’t the thief’s car here?” she asked.

“Sore loser,” I guessed.

“Are you sure?” asked Hiroki as he pointed somewhere. “Look over there.”

“It’s the thief!” called Sonic as the thief rounded a bend.

“What is he doing?!” yelped Gandalf. He was driving right for us! He drove up the Batmobile and jumped out of the car, grabbing the token!

“NO!” called Mario as a portal opened behind the thief. Batman fired his grapple gun, but it came up short as the thief went through the portal!

“Oh, COME ON!” snarled Batman. We all went into the portal and ended up on some sort of black background as if there was no up. We were still 2-D and surrounded by enemies.

“Oh brother, we’re in Robotron: 2084,” gulped Livia. “A 2-D shoot ‘em up where the player must fight robots that rebelled against humanity.

“So, what do we do?” asked Gandalf.

“This!” hissed Batman as he got ready. We got ready to fight. “I’m tired of chasing! No more Mister Nice Bat!” declared the Dark Knight. We fought off the hordes and got ready for the next wave. The enemies then included one we saw before.

“Cybermen active!” called the enemies.

“Cybermen?!” yelped Hiroki.

“Bad guys?” guessed Emu.

“Yes, now fight!” I replied. We took care of that wave.

“If this is a game,” mused Parado, “it seems like something is going wrong.” The third wave had more enemies, Lex-bots, Orcs, …Winkies?!

“Wait a minute!!” I yelped. “I don’t understand! We freed you guys!”

“You robbed us of our power!” roared a Winkie as his halberd swung at me. I decked him and he faded into pixels. The last wave had the thief! We all made our assault and he fell in half while dropping the token. Suddenly, I felt myself balloon outward. I looked myself…SWEET 3-D BODY, HOW I MISSED YOU! We were all 3-D again and I could see that Emu, Parado, and Poppy were of Japanese descent. I picked myself up and headed for the token, when a large purple hand swiped it up. I looked up to see Drag-Strip smirking.

“Er, what are you doing?” I asked. “We won the games and can share the trophy!”

“I suppose I must thank you, fleshlings,” chuckled Drag-Strip as I heard large footsteps. That’s when more Transformers stomped into view. One of them looked like a grey Optimus with a square-like helmet. The second was a red bot with a purple visor and face guard in a dour expression. He looked like he transformed into a sports car and was busy polishing himself. The third was white and blue with a panicked expression on his orange face. The fourth was black and had a crazed expression. “There you are!” said Drag-Strip. He went from last to first. “Wildrider! Breakdown! Dead End! And, last, but not least, Motormaster! I finally figured it out!”

“What?” snarled Motormaster.

“What Menasor’s problem is,” explained Drag-Strip. “We aren’t utilizing our strengths when we form him. Motormaster obviously has superior strength, so needs to be Menasor’s torso. Wildrider can hit fast and Menasor is right-handed. Dead End can defend well and Menasor uses his left hand to defend himself. Breakdown can catch up to me in terms of speed and is an excellent left kicker, perfect for Menasor. I can provide the speed needed to run as Menasor’s right leg.”

“You think this combo will work?” snarled Motormaster.

“Beyond the shadow of a doubt,” assured Drag-Strip.

“Then, let’s try it,” growled Motormaster. “Stunticons, form Menasor as Drag-Strip suggested.” They transformed into vehicle mode, then feet sprouted from Drag-Strip and Breakdown’s rears as they stood on those feet. Motormaster lowered his rear wheels and split them to form legs. His cab split and formed sockets. Wildrider and Dead End split down the separation between front and back seats and extended to become joints as hands came out of their rears. They flew up and joined in the order Drag-Strip suggested and a large head with a helmet sporting two black horns came up. The gestalt slammed its fists together and roared to the heavens. It then stood still, then started laughing.

“Well,” boomed the gestalt, “what do you know? There IS a benefit in teamwork.”

“Oh no,” I sighed. “You got complete mental control, don’t you, Menasor!?” I said. The gestalt robot grinned.

“The first Decepticon Combiner to achieve total mental synchronization!” he boasted. He turned to Livia. “I must thank you,” he laughed. “If it weren’t for you, my individual components would never have made it as far as they did! And, with the Foundation Element here in our grasp…”

“I should have known you were working for Vortech!” I shouted. “It’s so old, cliché even!”

“This is not a play,” interjected Menasor, “but, you could say it’s the final curtain for you!”

“CURTAIN!!” I howled in laughter. Menasor didn’t take too kindly to that.

“Stop laughing!” he roared. “Don’t you realize your lives are in my servos?!”

“SERVOS!!” I howled again.

“Megumi, I think he wants to kill us!” gulped Poppy.

“But, of all the villains I had to face,” I got out, “it had to be someone with clichés out the wazoo!”

“That’s it!” roared Menasor as he tossed a human-sized hand held device to the thief. The thief grabbed it and held it. It looked like it had a screen in the center, two barrels near a red A button and a chainsaw near a purple B button. The thief pressed the A button and evil music played.

“Baiyō!” (Cultivate!) announced the thief as he put the device on a handle on his right arm.

“INFECTION!” growled the device as he and his legs merged back together with his torso and became a more monstrous version of himself. “Let’s Game! Bad Game! Dead Game! WHAT’S YOUR NAME?! The Bugster!”

“The thief’s a Bugster?!” yelped Hiroki.

“Snatcher,” introduced the thief. “Level 3.”

“I am Menasor, the king of the road!” boomed Menasor.

“Well, if it’s catchphrases, let us get ready,” I declared. Parado and Emu got out their Gashats. Poppy got out a teal version of the device Snatcher used and put it on a buckle on her waist.

“Gachān!” said the device. Poppy then got out a pink Gashat and pressed the button.

“Toki Meki Crisis!” (Heart Beat Crisis) it announced in Poppy’s voice. That sounded like a dating sim.

“MIGHTY ACTION X!” called Emu’s Gashat.

“PERFECT PUZZLE! What’s the next stage?” announced Parado’s Gashat. Shinnosuke turned the ignition key on his speedometer style belt.

“Start your engine!” cheered the belt. Shinnosuke then inserted a small car with its rear undercarriage pointing up.

“Rider…” began Hongo.

“HENSHIN!” we called. I.d tags went in, Gashats were inserted, and Shinnosuke’s small car was pushed like a lever.

“GASHATTO!” announced the Gamer Driver before it was opened. “GACHĀN! LEVEL UP! Mighty Jump! Mighty Kick! Mighty! MIGHTY ACTION X!”

“Dual up!” called Parado’s Gashat as it formed the suit. “Get the glory in the chain! PERFECT PUZZLE!”

“Gashatto!” cheered Poppy’s Gashat as she put it into the device at an angle. She then pressed a button above the B button.

“Buggle up!” declared the device. The Gashat spoke again.

“Dreaming Girl! (Wow!) Koi no Simulation! Otome wa itsumo Toki Meki Crisis! (Wow!)” (Dreaming girl! (Wow!) It’s a simulation of love! A girl’s heart is always a Heart Beat Crisis! (Wow!)) sang the Gashat as a suit formed. Poppy’s suit looked more like her normal appearance, but a heart replaced the speaker headpiece and she had blue eyes.

“DRIVE! TYPE: SPEED!” announced Drive’s Belt. A suit appeared out of thin air for Shinnosuke and formed while the tire slammed itself onto him.

“Kamen Rider Clash!” began Clash. “A duel with me shall end in your defeat!”

“Kamen Rider Sengoku! You shall get a taste of Feudal Japan!”

“Kamen Rider Royal! Evil will ultimately bow to me!”

“It’s-a me! Mario! How-a high can you-a jump? I can-a go higher!”

“I’m Sonic! Sonic the Hedgehog! Gotta go fast to beat me!”

“I’m Peach! I shall clear this battlefield!”

“Kamen Rider Para-DX! Fate is like a puzzle!”

“Kamen Rider Ex-Aid! No Continue de clear shite yaru ze!” (I’ll clear this with No Continues!)

“Kamen Rider Poppy! I shall guide you to defeat!”

“Kamen Rider Drive! Let me take you for a ride!”

“I am Gandalf the Grey! Prepare to see some fireworks!”

“I’m Wyldstyle! Time to think outside the box!”

“I’m Batman! The Dark Knight rises!”

“I am the start of a group of warriors! I am Kamen Rider!”

“No, you’re dead!” roared Menasor. He swung a fist down, but we got out of the way.

“What a lunatic!” I sighed. “Gamer Riders, take care of the Bugster! We’ll handle Menasor!”

“Got it!” called Ex-Aid. He then drew out another Gashat and blew into it like you would with an NES cartridge. He then pressed the activation button.

“GEKITOTSU ROBOTS!” (Clash Robots) it announced. The title screen showed up and a little robot came out. Ex-Aid closed his Gamer Driver.

“Gachon!” called the belt. Ex-Aid then put the new Gashat into a slot on his original Gashat’s left. “GASHATTO!” Ex-Aid then swung his fist in a circle.

“Dai, Dai, DAI HENSHIN!” he cheered as he opened the Driver.

“GACHĀN! LEVEL UP!” announced the Driver. “Mighty Jump! Mighty Kick! Mighty! MIGHTY ACTION X!” The little robot then became new armor and gave Ex-Aid a large metal left fist. “A Gacha! Buttobase! Totsugeki! Gekitotsu Punch! Gekitotsu Robots!” (Punch it out! Duke it out! Impact Punch! Clash Robots!) Ex-Aid went on the offensive, but Snatcher dodged repeatedly.

“You can’t catch me!” he boasted. “I’m too fast for you!”

“Where are the Energy Items when you need them?!” moaned Ex-Aid.

“Found them!” called Poppy. The Energy Items were discs with different symbols on them. Ex-Aid took one with a running figure.

“SPEED UP!” announced a voice. Ex-Aid then started running at top speed and punched out Snatcher. He then took out the Gekitotsu Robots Gashat.

“GASHUN!” called the belt. Ex-Aid then put the Gashat into a slot on his left hip. “GASHATTO! KIMEWAZA!” (Finishing Move) There was a power-up noise loop as Ex-Aid pressed a button on the slot holder. “GEKITOTSU CRITICAL STRIKE!” Ex-Aid’s fist rocketed towards Snatcher and it hit him, then Ex-Aid slammed his regular fist into the robot fist. Snatcher sparked before exploding and fading into pixels. The Gamer Riders then joined us as we fought Menasor. Good thing too, we weren’t making a dent in him! Drive was knocked aside and landed near me.

“We gotta finish him quickly!” he called. “Or else, we’re gonna run out of gas!”

“I’m trying to come up with something!” I shouted. Sengoku then landed near us.

“Well, come up with something quicker!” he snapped. Peach was smacked out of the sky as she floated towards Menasor.

“That thing is resisting our Smash moves!” called Sonic. “We gotta try something!”

“Come on!” I snarled to myself. “What’s that creature running on?! Super Energon?!”

“What’s normal Energon?” asked Drive.

“The fuel for the Transformers,” I replied. “That’s what their civil war is all about.” I then realized something. “Some processes drain their internal Energon reserves at a quicker pace than usual, like combining.” Then, inspiration hit me, and a new attack beamed into my head.

“Are your brain cells in top gear?” asked Drive.

“Oh, they are!” I called. “Dai Super Charge!” I changed into my final form and gave everyone the excess energy I put out.

“What’s going on?” asked Batman.

“Everyone, get ready to jump high into the air!” I directed. I was met with confusion. “JUST DO IT!” I shouted. We all crouched low.

“Why are we doing this?” asked Clash.

“Menasor’s combined form is taxing on the internal fuel reserves on his individual components,” I explained. “A concentrated attack will make him fall apart.”

“THAT IS…NOT TRUE!” roared Menasor.

“True enough to make you splutter like that!” declared Peach.

“JUMP!” I shouted. We then jumped straight up. “Now, KICK!” I directed. We went in for a flying kick! “RIDER VORTEX BUDDY KICK!” I announced as we hit Menasor. He sparked at his joints and fell apart into his individual Stunticons. They were panting at the loss of Energon.

“We gotta get out of here!” shrieked Breakdown. “They’re gonna kill us!”

“It would be a good idea to get out of here,” sighed Dead End. “What was the point of coming here anyways?”

“For once, I agree with you two,” rumbled Motormaster. “Stunticons, retreat!” They transformed, summoned a portal, and went through. The token, on the other hand, fell out of Drag-Strip. We heard victory music again as the thief returned in his bisected state.

“GAME CLEAR!” announced a voice. I then heard varying “GASHUN’s” all around as the Gamer Riders powered down.

“Nice Drive!” praised Drive’s belt as Drive took his car out of his brace and cancelled his transformation.

“That was a rush!” called Sengoku as he, Clash, and Ichigō cancelled their transformations. I stayed in my transformed state as Batman inched towards the token, glancing around to check for any interruptions. He snatched it up, then got ready for battle again, swinging his batarang around. All that went by was a pixelated tumbleweed.

“All right, let’s get out of this digital nightmare!” hissed Batman.

“I must admit,” mused Gandalf, “I quite liked that one with all the magical monsters. It reminded me of home.” I opened a rift for us and we all headed into it to go back to Vorton.