Kamen Rider Battle! For friends and family, I shall be victorious!
Kamen Rider Guard! None shall harm my friends, family, and lady!
Tag: michael archer
“Ah, beshrew me, Lord Michael, you’re in good humor!’
“Don’t tell me to beshrew you or mention that I’m in ‘good humor’, Richard, you absurdly tall Hobbit! It’s just a tiny step from all of that to ‘Hey Nonny Nonny’, and then I’m calling the nearest psychiatric ward.”
Bio: (left)
Hailing from Upper Class London, Michael has been classically trained since birth. A student of Shakespeare, of Tudor history, and of the great English novelists, he has a few hobbies involving the comedies dealing with dry humor, his favorite being Blackadder, and a few sci-fi shows, Doctor Who being chief among them.
Bio: (right)
Richard Saunders is Emily’s brother, one who had his fair share of fat shaming and has helped Emily through a time of crisis. It was he who spearheaded Emily’s obsession with roses.
Bio: (together)
With Michael’s help of understanding court systems, he, Richard, Emily, Hiroki, and Megumi had formed the Feudal Nerd Society. Now, with Michael as Kamen Rider Battle and Richard as Kamen Rider Guard, these men protect the multiverse from Vortech’s sinister plans.
Me and my group had arrived in Main Street USA. Given that we were in an area where cartoons and people worked together, I felt no reason to hide. Alesandro looked around, a little on edge. “Alesandro, relax,” I urged. “We’re safe right now.”
“It’s not us I’m worried about, Michael,” replied Alesandro. “It’s Shocker Rift. What if they recruited the villains from here?”
“Then we kick their asses,” grunted War. “I don’t see an issue here.”
“With respect, it’s more than that,” replied Charline. “What if the villains find your Source?”
“Now THAT is a reasonable concern,” I conceded. “Kit-10, scan the area. See if you can find the Source.”
“I’ve been doing that since we got here,” reported Kit-10. “Haven’t been able to find it yet.”
“Then how do we get to it?” asked Hiroki.
“We need to get to a place with sensors Kit-10 can hook up to,” figured Irina.
“So where shall we find this place?” asked Gandalf.
“The best way to do that,” Discornia declared, “is to ask a policeman.”
“A guardsman,” I translated for Gandalf. We found a policeman. “Excuse me, Officer,” I called. “Where could one go to find advanced technology?”
“All the weird stuff’s at the castle right now,” replied the officer as he pointed with both fingers. Just then, an explosion occurred at the castle and someone flew out carrying something.
“Kit-10, did you get a good look at the flying thing?!” I quizzed.
“Well, the person himself, yes, but not the object he was carrying off,” replied Kit-10. “The person goes under the alias ‘Green Goblin’, real name: Norman Osborn.”
“Why would the Goblin attack Disney Castle?” pondered Hiroki.
“Hold on, we may get answers,” called Kit-10. “It looks like Spider-Man is swinging into action. He just knocked the Goblin off his glider and managed to get him into a dumpster. The Goblin’s dropped whatever he was carrying off and…it’s just vanished in midair.”
“Teleport?” I asked.
“The flash surrounding it sure made me think so,” confirmed Kit-10.
“Maybe we should talk to Spider-Man and the Goblin,” suggested Charline.
“Good idea,” I agreed. “Let’s go!” We headed off to the ally the Goblin landed in to see that he was already out of the dumpster and webbed to a wall while Spider-Man was questioning him.
“So, again,” muttered Spider-Man in a disbelieving tone, “Mrs. Doom kidnapped you, then her husband strapped you to your glider, programmed it to attack Disney Castle, programmed your suit to grab X, then you were compelled to fly back to Latveria with X.”
“Well, it doesn’t sound believable when you say it like THAT!” hissed the Green Goblin.
“One glaring flaw in your alibi makes it unbelievable,” replied Spider-Man, “you’re wearing your old suit! The gloves and boots don’t exactly have computers! How could they grab anything against your will?!”
“Excuse me, are we interrupting?” I called as we approached.
“Just a fat lie,” replied Spider-Man. Iron Man then flew towards us with Mickey Mouse on his back.
“Anything?” asked Mickey.
“That depends,” replied Spider-Man. “If a lie is something, then yeah.”
“Good thing you installed that retrieval teleporter on X,” praised Iron Man.
“Thanks, Dad!” bid Spider-Man. We then ALL looked at Spider-Man in stark confusion. “…Why is everyone staring at me?” asked Spider-Man.
“You just called Iron Man ‘Dad’,” replied Irina. “You said ‘Thanks, Dad’.”
“What? No, I didn’t!” denied Spider-Man.
“Spider-Man, do you see me as a father figure?” asked Iron Man.
“No, if anything,” answered Spider-Man, “I see you as a bother figure because you’re always bothering me!”
“Boy!” snapped Gandalf. “Show your father more respect!”
“I didn’t call him ‘Dad’!” insisted Spider-Man.
“No, Spidey, it’s okay,” replied Iron Man. “I take it as a compliment.”
“It’s all right,” supplied Kit-10. “I once called Pup-X5 ‘Dad’ once, and we’re about to tie the knot.”
“Guys, jump on that!” urged Spider-Man. “A robot with psycho-sexual issues!”
“Counselling dealt with that problem quickly,” Hiroki replied, “but you calling Iron Man ‘Daddy’…”
“Hey, ‘Daddy’ is NOT on the table here!” hissed Spider-Man.
“But, you DID call him ‘Dad’, Spider-man,” continued the Green Goblin, making us remember him.
“You, shut up!” snapped Spider-Man. “You’ve done nothing but lie since I webbed you up!”
“All right, all right, I WAS lying about Doctor Doom and his wife forcing me to take X,” admitted the Goblin. “They offered me dibs on studying it for our alliance. The ‘Dad’ thing, however? That happened.”
“AHA!” cheered Spider-Man. “He admitted his alibi was a lie! It was a trap! All part of my master plan!”
“Good work,” praised Iron Man, “son.” Spider-Man just sighed.
“That’s not gonna go away any time soon,” he muttered.
“So, what IS X?” I inquired.
“You wanna see?” offered Mickey.
“If it’s not too inconvenient,” I replied.
“We COULD use a fresh perspective,” mused Mickey. “Come with us.”
“I’ll take Gobby to jail,” declared Iron Man as he slung the Green Goblin’s cocoon over his shoulder and took off.
“I guess…I’ll just go back on patrol,” sighed Spider-Man. Just then, his phone rang. He looked at the number. “Oh no, Aunt May! I’m late!” he yelped. He pulled his mask up as far as his mouth and started talking to his Aunt while swinging on the rooftops. “Hi, Aunt May!” he began. “Sorry! I got into a scrape with the Green Goblin…” His voice finally faded away as he swung home.
“Follow me, please,” directed Mickey as he led us to the castle.
“Er, hello?” called War. “My Source?”
“The sensors at the castle should help me find it,” replied Kit-10. “In the meantime, the Castle awaits. Spit-spot!”
“…Did…you just quote Mary Poppins at me?” quizzed a confused War as she followed us. We were granted access to the castle and escorted to the main science bay where Dr. Banner was working with Professor Ludwig Von Drake.
“Professor…” began Mickey before he was interrupted by a an explosion that knocked Dr. Banner backwards and made him turn into the Hulk. The Hulk then hit a wall and massaged his head.
“…Ow,” he grunted. Professor Von Drake turned to us, smoking from being so near the explosion.
“May I help you with something?” he asked weakly.
“These people are here to see X and use our sensors to find some source,” explained Mickey.
“The ‘S’ is capital,” grunted War, “like Discworld’s Assassins.”
“Very well,” declared Professor Von Drake. “Dr. Banner, could you show the one needing the sensors to the necessary workstation?”
“Fine,” grunted the Hulk. Kit-10 followed the Hulk out of the room.
“Everyone else, follow me, please,” directed Professor Von Drake. He led us to a room that had a door on the other end and a workstation with a monitor near the door. “Now, to see if the cameras work,” muttered Professor Von Drake. He fiddled with the monitor before groaning in frustration.
“Mind if I take a peek?” offered Irina.
“Wear these,” directed Mickey as he tossed her a pair of heavy gloves. “The last person who touched it with his bare hands turned into ashes.”
“Got it,” replied Irina as she put the gloves on. The door opened to allow her access to X’s chamber. Once it shut, Professor Von Drake managed to switch the audio on. “Privet,” (Hello) greeted Irina. “Menya zovut Irina. Kak vas zovut?” (My name is Irina. What’s your name?)
“Ex,” was the reply. The tone…sounded hauntingly familiar.
“…Lights,” requested Irina.
“What?” asked Professor Von Drake.
“Lights!” repeated Irina. Professor Von Drake then keyed in a command.
“The lights SHOULD be on,” reported the Professor.
“They are,” replied Irina, “but now I wish they weren’t. It’s a Dalek. Shocker Rift casing, Drone Class if the color scheme is anything to go by.”
“Not what I wanted to hear,” I groaned.
“Good news, the Dalek is damaged,” continued Irina. “Better news, it’s unarmed. A perfect opportunity to destroy it.”
“What?! NO!” protested Professor Von Drake.
“Professor, with all due respect,” countered Gandalf, “that is not your decision to make.”
“Proceed with the Dalek’s destruction,” I directed.
“Spasibo,” (Thank you) bid Irina.
“Vortex Driver!” announced her belt.
“Henshin!” called Irina. The machinery of the wardrobe could be heard as it attached her armor to her. Professor Von Drake quickly opened the door to try and stop her but she was already in her Rider persona, Kamen Rider Climb. Professor Von Drake and Mickey tried to hold her back as I tried to get them out of the way. During our struggle, however, we all failed to notice a particle of light from Climb’s wardrobe land on the Dalek. It enveloped the killer and reactivated a few systems. We all stopped struggling when we heard it gurgle.
“Rift…particle…extrapolated,” it croaked. “Beginning…casing…regeneration!” It then started moving!
“EVERYONE OUT!” I shouted. We all managed to get out and seal the room.
“Why are you so panicked?” asked Professor Von Drake. “The lock has 387,420,489 possible combinations. It can’t get out.”
“That may be a drone Dalek, but it’s still a genius,” I argued. “It can calculate a trillion combinations in ten seconds flat!”
“It’s over ten seconds right now,” observed War.
“…You’re right, it should be attacking us by now,” I realized.
“It’s unarmed, remember?” reminded Climb.
“That plunger can crush a man’s skull!” I replied.
“A slow death, too slow for a Dalek,” countered Climb.
“Why do you talk about that ‘Dalek’ as if it is a bad guy?!” snapped Professor Von Drake.
“Since they aren’t native to your universe and since I’m the expert on their native universe, I’ll explain,” I began. “The Daleks are an alien race originally a humanoid race called the Kaleds. The Kaleds were at war with the Thals, embroiled in a nuclear war over control of their mutual home planet of Skaro. To try and break the thousand year deadlock, the Kaled Chief Scientist, Davros, accelerated the mutations of his species into their ‘Ultimate’ state. What he created, he placed in a metal war machine. Cue the Dalek Empire, spanning across time and space in more ways than one. Because of their liberal use of time travel, the Dalek Empire threatens to collapse under the weight of its own paradoxes.”
“…You mean…” gulped Mickey.
“That thing has something alive inside,” confirmed Alesandro.
“We have had one too many dealings with the Daleks,” muttered Gandalf.
“Well, it’s unarmed, as you say,” mused Professor Von Drake. “Perhaps we can reason with it?”
“Reason with it?” repeated Hiroki. “Professor, you DON’T reason with a Dalek. They can’t be reasoned with.”
“Nonsense,” dismissed the Professor. ‘Everything wants something!”
“Who is one of your more brilliant colleagues?” I asked.
“Shuri of Wakanda,” answered the Professor.
“And Wakanda’s population is?” quizzed War.
“6,000,000,” replied the Professor.
“All dead,” declared Charline. “If the Dalek gets out, it will kill every Wakandan. Man, woman, child, it makes little difference to the Dalek.”
“Why would it WANT to kill innocent people?!” snapped the Professor, still not believing us.
“Because we’re genetically inferior,” explained Discornia. “The Daleks hold the belief that they are the purest life-forms in existence. Any other life-form is an abomination that must be, as they so eloquently put it, exterminated. It’s the ultimate racial cleanser and now it’s loose!” The door then hissed as it opened to reveal the Dalek.
“Weapons!” I called as those of us who didn’t transform into our Rider personas readied our belts.
“Parlay!” barked the Dalek.
“…Pardon?” I quizzed.
“I invoke the right of Parlay!” replied the Dalek.
“…ARE YOU KIDDING?!” I shouted.
“Like you would know what Parlay means!” taunted Alesandro.
“I do!” barked the Dalek. “Neither side has a clear advantage!”
“You don’t have a gunstick, we have weapons to pierce your hide,” I argued. “I’d say WE have the advantage!”
“My shielding is online!” replied the Dalek. “I can cancel out any attacks, be they melee or ranged! When you tire, my shield will be down. Once you regain your strength and resume the assault, my shield will be restored and the cycle begins again!” I then sighed.
“Stalemate, then,” I muttered. “All right, we’ll hear you out.”
“Michael!” snapped Irina, remembering when she was put into a coma on Skaro.
“I don’t like it any more than you do,” I replied. I then turned to the Dalek. “Proceed.”
“You are looking for War’s Source and the Tarlaxian Scout ship!” began the Dalek. A statement rather than a question.
“Correct,” I answered.
“Both are believed to have been taken to the Eastern-European country of Latveria!” reported the Dalek. “Doctor Doom and his wife, Maleficent, intend to dissect the Tarlaxians within 103,984.8 rels!”
“…How long is a rel?” asked the Professor.
“Three Earth seconds!” answered the Dalek. Professor Von Drake then started calculating, first multiplying 103,984.8 by three, then dividing that answer by sixty, then dividing by sixty again to get 86.654 hours.
“These ‘Tarlaxians’,” he reported, “have three days, fourteen hours, 39 minutes, and fourteen seconds before they’re taken apart!”
“Latveria is also in possession of my weapon!” barked the Dalek.
“So, we go talk to Doctor Doom,” I guessed, “and convince him not to dissect the Tarlaxians while you grab your gunstick and then we’ll fight over the Source?”
“Correct!” replied the Dalek.
“…Done,” I answered.
“Not done!” barked War.
“Done,” countered Irina.
“The Daleks put you into a coma!” snapped War.
“It was Davros who put me into a coma,” argued Irina.
“Because that makes it SO much better!” growled War.
“We need the Source,” I countered. “Dalek, we agree to your terms.”
“Very well!” barked the Dalek. “We will proceed immediately! Immediately!” I called up Kit-10.
“Kit-10, there’s a change of plans,” I began. “Meet us in the hangar. We’re taking X to Latveria. Keep your stun blaster trained on it as X is a Dalek Drone.”
“…And why, pray tell, are we taking a Dalek to Latveria?” quizzed Kit-10.
“Its weapon, the Source, and the Tarlaxian Scout ship are located there,” I explained. “We have a truce until the Dalek is rearmed, then we proceed to fight over the Source.”
“A rather shaky truce,” muttered Kit-10. “On my way.” She ended the call.
“The hangar’s this way,” directed Mickey. He led us all through the castle to the hangar.
“While we’re walking, I have a question,” called Alesandro. “Did Maleficent REALLY marry Doctor Doom?”
“She did,” replied Mickey. “I wasn’t invited. Then again, it was a villains-only wedding. Iago DID get me footage of the…”
“SILENCE!” barked the Dalek.
“You’re not in a position to give orders!” I snapped as I advanced on the Dalek.
“KEEP AWAY!” yelped the Dalek as it reversed.
“I knew it,” I hissed, “you’re scared without your precious gunstick.”
“Can we please?!” snapped Mickey. “We’re here.” We had entered the hangar, united with Kit-10, and boarded an aircraft with Mickey’s usual symbol on it. We boarded the vessel and sat down in various seats while Mickey took the pilot’s seat and Professor Von Drake took the Copilot’s seat. The Dalek just stood there, twitching all the while. “Could somebody strap X in?” called Mickey.
“That is not required!” barked the Dalek. “I will remain on the floor if we encounter turbulence!”
“How do you know?!” I snapped as I fastened safety straps onto Kit-10.
“…I am Dalek Drone 8872345!” declared the Dalek.
“You’re a murderous b*****d that feels only hatred,” I hissed as we strapped in.
“All flight checks complete,” called Professor Von Drake. “We’re cleared for departure!”
“Off we go!” cheered Mickey as he fired up the engines. The hangar doors opened and we took off, making a beeline towards Latveria.
The Latverian Air Force didn’t take too kindly to our arrival. “Incoming aircraft, you are invading Latverian Air Space!” warned a heavily accented woman’s voice over the radio. “Turn back immediately or we will open fire!”
“Ignore!” barked the Dalek. “Proceed! Nothing must halt the mission!”
“…What was that?” quizzed the woman.
“For once, listen to the dust bin,” I urged Mickey. He terminated communications and we continued on our flight path. The Latverian Air Force then opened fire on us. We took a couple of hits before Mickey made a decision.
“It’s too hot for me to land!” he called. “You fellas need to make a drop towards Doom’s Castle! Professor, take over! I’m going with them!”
“Understood!” I called.
“Got it!” confirmed the Professor. He then took Mickey’s seat as the mouse opened the rear whilst we stood up. The Dalek turned towards the opening.
“Advance!” it barked.
“I give the orders around here!” I shouted. “Onwards!” We all shouted “Henshin!” and leapt out of the craft. Alesandro’s belt called “Open! Turn! Imagine! The Crossbow of Striker!” Alesandro took the image of a 17th century Spanish knight, adopting his Rider name of Kamen Rider Striker. We landed in the courtyard of Doom’s castle, all the soldiers leveling their guns at us. “I apologize for our abrupt entrance,” I began, “but we need an audience with Lord Doom.”
“My husband is away,” replied a cold, callous woman’s voice. Maleficent then stepped into the courtyard, drawn to her full height. “I rule here at the moment. State your business.”
“My Lady,” I explained, “it has been brought to our attention that you have this one’s weapon,” I gestured towards the Dalek, “on top of non-human prisoners and an orange crystal sphere.”
“What interest are they to you?” demanded Maleficent.
“They are very dangerous to anyone, especially one of your magnificence,” I explained.
“Flattery will get you flattened,” threatened Maleficent. “Suppose I refuse?”
“Then…one of our sides may live to regret it,” I sighed.
“I see,” replied Maleficent. “You have a lot of gall to just barge into Latveria like that. But, you temper it with showing me the proper respect. I must say, you seem much more worthy of being a king than Aurora’s father. I will not give in to rash impulses. Shall we discuss this over dinner?”
“We cannot delay!” barked the Dalek. “You will…!”
“Be quiet!” I snapped. “Show some respect! She is a ruler and requires a fair amount of manners towards her!” I turned to Maleficent. “Please excuse my compatriot, it comes from a culture that simply takes what it wants, showing no respect for other life. A bit of a god complex.”
“Just remind it of its place,” warned Maleficent. She turned to the troops. “Stand down. They are guests in this castle.” The troops obeyed and went back to their normal duties. “Follow me to the dining hall,” Maleficent directed us. As we all powered down into our civilian forms, we followed her to a magnificent dining hall. Chefs were serving up the dishes as we sat. The Dalek twitched as it watched us. “I must say, this brashness is unlike you, Mickey,” mused Maleficent.
“I apologize,” replied Mickey, “but when life is threatened, I can’t turn my back.”
“The knowledge we would acquire,” continued Maleficent, “would be very prized. How else can we obtain it?”
“Perhaps ask the Tarlaxians?” I suggested.
“They never talked,” replied Maleficent. “We had to resort to torture, but they still refused to speak.”
“Torture?” remarked War as she tore into a drumstick with her hands. “A mere test of resilience on Tarlax.”
“We could tell you,” offered Alesandro.
“Alesandro!” I admonished.
“Actually, a fair trade,” countered Charline.
“It IS the most logical option we have,” supplied Kit-10.
“And if you’re lying?” inquired Maleficent.
“Attach us to all the lie detectors you have,” replied Alesandro, “cast a truth spell, anything to assure you we’re not lying.”
“And yet a lie was fed to you, specifically,” chuckled Maleficent.
“…Perdón?” (I beg your pardon?) quizzed Alesandro.
“The instant you came in here,” explained Maleficent, “I’ve cast multiple truth spells around you lot and probed your minds. Alesandro, was it? Has Megumi ever tried to hide anything from her team before you joined?”
“No,” replied Alesandro.
“Michael, same question,” directed Maleficent. Unfortunately, my mouth was not under my control.
“Yes, she did,” I said. “Before we fought Vortech in 1885 Hill Valley, Megumi kept Batman, Gandalf, Hongo, and Wyldstyle in the dark about the true nature of the threat. When she learned that X-PO had actually sent for them, she had an emotional collapse.”
“…A lie, sí?!” pleaded Alesandro.
“…I’m sorry, but no,” sighed Gandalf.
“…You kept a secret from me?!” accused Alesandro. “I told you that I had trust issues within my family! I thought I could start with a new family with no secrets! I can’t begin to tell you how betrayed I feel!”
“Alesandro, I…!” I began.
“¡Cállate!” (Shut up!) roared Alesandro. “You don’t deserve to speak!”
“Oh, how things fall apart,” chuckled Maleficent.
“Madam, we’ve tried to be nice,” growled War, “but our patience is at an end! Hand over that which we seek or your castle will be destroyed!”
“You dare threaten me?!” challenged Maleficent. “In my own castle, you dare threaten the Mistress of All Evil?!”
“We know worse bad girls!” taunted War.
“Please! No!” I begged. “Let’s all calm down and…where’s the Dalek?! WHERE’S THE GODDAMNED DALEK?!” The damned thing scuttled off in search of its weapon!
“Mistress, the robot has entered the vault,” reported a soldier over the comms. “Somehow, it bypassed all the security codes and gained entrance. It’s moving towards me. I’ll stop it.”
“You can’t!” I warned. “Get out of there before it kills you!”
“…One of the guests?” guessed the soldier.
“It is,” replied Maleficent. “Ignore. It only has a plunger. On screen.”
“Yes, My Lady,” obliged the soldier. The screen showed the soldier approaching the Dalek.
“Stand aside!” barked the Dalek as it held its plunger towards the man’s head.
“What are you going to do?” scoffed the soldier. “Plunge my toilet?” The plunger then grabbed the soldier’s face and created a powerful enough suction to crush the man’s skull and dehydrate the skin until the soldier fell to the floor, dead.
“All soldiers, converge on the vault!” ordered Maleficent. “Kill the creature inside!” As more soldiers moved, the Dalek placed its plunger on a glass casing. It created a vacuum that cracked the glass until it shattered, revealing the signature gunstick of a Dalek. It floated towards the empty socket and installed itself into the Dalek.
“All systems operational!” reported the Dalek. The soldiers then arrived and leveled their guns. Someone shouted an order to fire, as if it would make a difference. The bullets and laser weapons had no effect. The laser fire seemed to be absorbed into the shields while the bullets, unbeknownst to people that didn’t watch Doctor Who, were dissolved. The Dalek then aimed its gunstick and said the one word I prayed I’d never hear during this mission. “EXTERMINATE!” The soldier was gunned down by the Dalek’s weapon, scrambling his insides as he fell. The rest fell the same way. Mickey gasped, never imagining such carnage. “The Dalek race is superior!” boasted the Dalek. “All shall bow before us!” Maleficent then shut off the visual link.
“Now do you see how dangerous that thing is?!” I snapped. “Now do you see why I was holding it back?! Even when it didn’t have a gun, it could still kill people and counter your spells! Not even your dragon form could destroy it!”
“What…manner of creature IS that thing?!” breathed Maleficent, the gravity of the situation dawning on her.
“I’d like to know that myself,” boomed a voice. There, holding himself high, clad in armor with a green tunic and cloak with cowl, and a face hidden behind a silver mask, was Doctor Doom, Lord and Emperor of Latveria. “It slaughtered my best soldiers as if they were nothing,” boomed Doom. “Those men and women were trained in dealing with all manners of threats.”
“Not the threat of a Dalek, Lord Doom,” I argued. “It’s an alien mutant from the planet Skaro, from another universe. It’s been genetically engineered and locked within a metal casing, conditioned to hate non-Dalek life-forms.”
“I was put into a coma by their creator, Davros,” Irina chimed in, “and he’s a man in a wheelchair!”
“Well, with super-powered experts on that creature, we may prevail,” mused Doom.
“By the skin of our teeth, if we’re lucky,” I replied.
“In the meantime,” declared Doom as he keyed in a command on a screen from one of his gloves, “Castle Doom is in lockdown. No one goes in or out. I will not have that Dalek kill any of my people.”
“A wise decision,” I praised. “Can you, at least, tell your men to stick to surveillance while we deal with it?”
“You ARE including my wife and I in this endeavor, I trust?” requested Doom.
“Wouldn’t dream of leaving you two out,” I replied, realizing I slightly lied. Maleficent’s spells must have worn off.
“All soldiers, report all observations on the enemy,” Doom ordered over the comms. “Do not engage. Repeat, do NOT engage! I will not lose any more men.” He ended the broadcast once he got the Dalek’s location from a soldier. “The enemy is moving towards the Foundry. We shall meet it there.” He led the way to the Foundry and we met the Dalek. “Dalek, I warn you!” called Doom. “You have killed too many of my people! If you do not leave, the sonic cannons lining the walls will tear you asunder!”
“Your sonic cannons have already been adapted to!” barked the Dalek. “Your threat means nothing! My mission of reconnaissance and conquest shall continue!”
“A Recon Dalek!” I breathed. “I’m honored! Tell me, what does Hiro want with the Sources.”
“The barrier shall be lowered!” replied the Dalek.
“I take it, you’re talking about the barrier surrounding Foundation Prime?” I guessed.
“Correct!” confirmed the Dalek. “With the Rift Loop collapsed, we need no longer fear Vortech!”
“The Rift Loop collapsed?” I quizzed. “What does that mean? The Doctor set up the Loop. All of her, in fact.”
“The Doctor failed to realize,” boasted the Dalek, “that Vortech’s presence made the Rift Loop unstable! With that gone, Vortech’s life signs vanished!”
“Hold on, are you seriously telling us Lord Vortech is dead?” asked Hiroki.
“Correct!” confirmed the Dalek.
“But, what could you…?” asked Charline.
“No more questions!” barked the Dalek. “Exterminate!” At that moment, I drew my Sonic Screwdriver and leveled it at the gun. A wisp of blue smoke came out, but nothing lethal.
“Nice try!” I laughed.
“Your sonic device will not save you!” barked the Dalek. “I am already adapting around it!”
“Yeah, you Recon Daleks have a tendency to do that,” I muttered.
“You have a sonic device?” quizzed Doom.
“Yep!” I replied. “Called the Sonic…” I stopped myself, figuring Doom would take issue with the name.
“Sonic what?” asked Doom.
“It’s just sonic!” I answered.
“Sonic what?!” repeated Doom.
“It’s just sonic!” I insisted. “I’m all sonic’d up!”
“Sonic device override!” announced the Dalek.
“SONIC WHAT?!” roared Doom.
“SCREWDRIVER!” I finally answer as I pointed it at a large thing held up by chains. The chains were undone and the thing fell.
“Exterminate!” shouted the Dalek. Too late, the thing separated us from the Dalek.
“RUN!” I call. Doom knew the way to a safe room, thus he led us there. We spent the time catching our breath.
“…A sonic screwdriver?!” protested Doom. “That sounds a little contrived, even for Doom! Doom would never look at a screwdriver and say, ‘This could be more sonic’!”
“What, Doom was never bored?!” I mocked. “Doom, of all people, never had a long night or had a lot of cabinets to put up?”
“Did you just mock Doom’s habit of talking in the third person?!” snarled Doom.
“You sound ridiculous doing that!” I argued.
“Doom is currently panicked!” snapped Doom. “Talking in the third person helps Doom relax!”
“Can we save it?!” snarled War.
“You’re right,” I concede. “We have a very angry Dalek ready to kill us all. All right; assets, everyone. What do we have?”
“Most of us have transformation belts,” helped Hiroki.
“A good asset,” I replied.
“Doom and I know the layout of the castle,” offered Maleficent.
“A good asset,” I answered.
“Doom is a technological and magical genius,” boasted Doom.
“A good asset,” I concede.
“I have a magical key that functions as a sword,” supplied Mickey.
“A good asset,” I praised.
“I have the Elemental Keystone,” offered Gandalf.
“A good asset,” I replied.
“I’m a robot that can interface with any computer and I possess a stun blaster,” called Kit-10.
“Good assets,” I remarked.
“Wait a minute,” called Discornia, piping up after a while, “I have my awesome powers of light and sound, if I may boast, and I just remembered something wicked about the Source, if I may boast.”
“That’s right!” recalled War. “The Dalek is in danger if it touches it!”
“It is?” I quizzed.
“The Sources amplify the feeling attached to the aspect they signify,” explained War. “Death causes grief, Pestilence brings hopelessness, Chaos sparks uncertainty, Famine induces resentment…”
“And War inspires anger!” I realized. “The Dalek IS in danger! Now that’s enough good assets to form a plan! Doom, can you allow Kit-10 to guide the Dalek to the Source?”
“I’ll need to input various passwords,” replied Doom as he revealed a computer terminal for Kit-10 to interface with.
“That will make the work easier on me,” assured Kit-10.
“Excellent!” I praised. “Now, once the Dalek spots the Source and is close enough…”
The Dalek was guided to the Source and clapped its eyestalk on it. “Source located!” it cheered. “Beginning retrieval!” It then moved forward. Once it was in the center of the room, I noisily entered in my Rider persona of Kamen Rider Battle. It heard my steps and turned towards me.
“Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot!” I called.
“Exterminate!” it squawked. It then fired only for the shot to be absorbed by a shield Doom had erected once the Dalek got to the center of the room.
“If the Doctor wasn’t that daft, why should you assume a companion is?” I taunted. Everyone then joined me. Those that had a Rider persona had changed into it.
“Hide behind your shield!” barked the Dalek. “You and your associates, you have failed!”
“Dalek, I’m giving you one chance!” I snapped back. “Leve this universe at once!”
“You are not my commander!” replied the Dalek. I sighed.
“I tried,” I muttered. “I really gave it a chance. You all saw it, right?” The general consensus was yes. “Now, we’re fast enough for this plan to work, correct?” There was a bit of mumbling before Doom responded for everyone.
“Possibly,” he stated.
“Well, THAT needs work!” I hissed. “All right, everyone, Catchphrase time!
“Kamen Rider Climb! Mountains are a warrior’s best friend!”
“Kamen Rider Sengoku! You shall get a taste of Feudal Japan!”
“Kamen Rider War! This battlefield is mine!”
“Kamen Rider Battle! For friends and family, I shall be victorious!”
“Kamen Rider Herald O! I bring news of your defeat!”
“Kamen Rider Striker! None shall delay victory!” called Alesandro.
“I am Gandalf the Grey! Prepare to see some fireworks!”
“I am Discornia, the Dazzling Dancer!”
“I am Kit-10! You shall fall before my claws, both digital and physical!”
“All shall bow before Doctor Doom!”
“You shall be ashes at the feet of Maleficent, Mistress of All Evil!”
“I’m Mickey Mouse! The light of imagination shall show the way!”
“The Dalek race is supreme!” boasted the Dalek.
“DOOM! NOW!” I called. Doom keyed in a command and dropped the shield. We then spread out as the Dalek fired on us.
“All shall be exterminated! Exterminate!” shrieked the Dalek. Mickey stopped by a door and heard something pounding on it from the other side. He used his Keyblade to unlock it and revealed…the crew of the Tarlaxian scout ship! The crew was as follows, Captain Bladriga; a male that had multiple blades for his limbs and digits, Commander Crabordii, a female that was based on a hermit crab, and Lieutenant Draknarg, a male based on a western dragon. They seemed to be recovering from injuries and I remembered Maleficent saying they had resorted to torture to no avail. Mickey had cast a healing spell and helped them recover faster.
“Thank you!” bid Bladriga.
“How do we know he’s not part of some elaborate…?!” snarled Draknarg. He was interrupted by one of the Dalek’s shots flying over his head. “Okay, bigger priorities,” muttered Draknarg as he drew his blade. His crewmates did the same as Crabordii waved Mickey over.
“You might need this,” she offered. “A little extra protection.” The object was a Chronicle Driver! Mickey looked at it in awe, then equipped it onto his waist. It formed the belt strap automatically.
“Chronicle Driver!” it announced. He then fished out an Armor Auto-bio and pointed at his enemy with both his pointer and middle fingers. He then turned the hand sideways as if the fingers were a key.
“Henshin!” he called before inserting the Armor Auto-bio into the shelf and pressing it down into the buckle.
“Open! Turn! Imagine!” announced the belt. “The Keyblade of Lux!” Mickey’s armor attached itself to his little body, even his tail and head, and he stood proud after the eyes flashed, indicating the transformation was a success. Mickey examined himself briefly before drawing his new Keyblade and leaping into the air.
“EYES SHUT!” he warned. We all shut our eyes while the Dalek foolishly looked up.
“LIGHT!” announced Mickey as he summoned a bright light. I heard a crack, then the Dalek screamed.
“VISION IMPAIRED!” it screamed. “ENTERING SIEGE MODE!” When I was sure the light had died down, I noticed that the Dalek was different. Its sensor spheres, eyestalk, speech indicators, and armaments had retreated into the casing with covers over the holes while the collar around the neck had slammed shut, covering the neck. It didn’t move, most likely too focused on fixing the eyestalk.
“NOW!” I called. Striker and Doom grabbed the Source and attached it to the Dalek’s backside while Kit-10 and War used a small laser each to weld the Source to the casing. The Dalek started twitching.
“What did you attach to my casing?!” it demanded as it disengaged Siege Mode.
“I must say, the Siege Mode thing is smarter than your usual screaming about your blindness and firing wildly,” I mused, not answering as the Dalek’s dome and newly repaired eyestalk whirled violently around to identify the object on its back.
“What did you attach to my casing?!” the Dalek demanded again. “My…hatred…is reaching…unacceptable tolerances!”
“War’s Source amplifies the emotions and feelings associated with her aspect,” I explained, repeating the lecture Discornia and War gave. “Since you Daleks are born with hatred and anger towards the existence of non-Dalek life-forms, it’s making that hatred go through the roof until you want to destroy everything with no reason and no sense of purpose, even yourself! A blind killing machine! In other words, the Dalek Factor cranked up to eleven!”
“MY MIND IS ON FIRE!” screamed the Dalek. “ALL MUST DIE! ALL! ALL! DIE! DIE! EXTERMINATE! ANNIHILATE! DESTROY! DIE! DIE! DIE!”
“Gandalf! Maleficent! Doom! Now!” I called. Doom activated a shield around the Dalek as it fired blindly. Maleficent and Gandalf used their magic to reinforce the shield.
“And a little more power,” called Gandalf. “Elemental Keystone, activate! Element of lightning, all allies!” We were all surrounded in a cyan aura and felt an electric charge tingle through us. Us Vortex Riders spun the wheels on our belts while Mickey and Striker pressed the button on top of their belts and War rotated her belt’s sword a full 360⁰ before pressing down again.
“Final attack!” called the Vortex Drivers.
“Final Pen Stroke!” announce the Chronicle Drivers. We all leapt into the air as Gandalf, Kit-10, Discornia, Doom, the Tarlaxian crew, and Maleficent fired a stream of lightning at the shields.
“RIDER BATTLE KICK!”
“RIDER SENGOKU KICK!”
“RIDER CLIMB KICK!”
“RIDER WAR KICK!”
“RIDER HERALD O KICK!”
“RIDER STRIKER KICK!” announced Alesandro.
“RIDER LUX KICK!” shouted Mickey. We all then performed a flying kick at the shield as the rest stopped their attacks. The Dalek was still violently firing until its own shields came down and it exploded, scattering its gooey remains all over the inside of the shield. The only things left intact were the skirt section and the Source. Doom turned the shield off so we could get a look. A rather nasty smell assaulted our noses, coming from the dead Dalek. Crabordii braved a look and gasped.
“I thought the internal creature was underdeveloped with vestigial limbs and sensory organs, almost ameboid,” she recalled.
“This one seems altogether different than what you just described,” remarked Doom. “This one has functional appendages with some form of mechanical prosthesis grafted into its body.”
“Davros must have dusted off the plans for his old Imperial Daleks,” I mused as all of us Riders cancelled our transformations.
“I think I’m going to be sick,” groaned Maleficent.
“Now, at the risk of sounding rude,” snarled Doom as he turned to us, “a good number of men and women died at that creature’s hand! You brought death into my castle! Take your Tarlaxians and your Source and get out!”
“…Understandable, Lord Doom,” I replied.
“May I come with you?” asked Mickey. “I think I’d need some training for my new Rider form.”
“If you wish, then very well,” I answered. “What did your Chronicle Driver say when you transformed?”
“I think it said ‘The Keyblade of Lux’,” recalled Mickey.
“Then that makes you Kamen Rider Lux,” I explained as I took out the communicator. War held the Source and examined it for any damage. “Vorton, we’re ready to return,” I called. “Mission accomplished. Mickey Mouse will be joining us as well as other Tarlaxians”
“Good to know,” replied the Doctor’s voice.
“Doctor?!” I yelped. “What are you doing on Vorton?”
“Are you familiar with Rose Tyler?” asked the Doctor as the portal opened.
“Your first companion after the Last Great Time War,” I recalled. “You two had a romantic attraction towards each other. Why? Did she find you again?”
“No, but a clone of her did,” explained the Doctor. “Do you mind talking to her when you get back?”
“Of course,” I promised. “See you later. Michael out.” I hung up and we went into the portal, arriving back on Vorton after a minute. The Doctor and Megumi greeted us. “Where’s the Rose clone?” I asked.
“This way,” directed the Doctor. She led me to a spare room where the Rose clone was watching the first Dalek episode of the revived Doctor Who. It was the scene within Van Statten’s cage. The 9th Doctor spoke.
“What the hell are you here for?” demanded Nine.
“I am waiting for orders!” replied the former last of the Daleks.
“What does that mean?” asked Nine.
“I am a soldier!” barked the Dalek. “I was bred to receive orders!”
“Well, you’re never gonna get any!” hissed Nine. “Not ever!”
“I demand orders!” screamed the Dalek.
“Excuse me?” I called. The Rose clone shook as I had apparently startled her.
“You…are new,” she ventured as she paused the video.
“I’m Michael Archer, Kamen Rider Battle,” I introduced myself. “I take it you don’t know what or who you are?”
“…No,” muttered the Rose clone. Que the awkward silence.
“So…how are you doing?” I asked.
“Nothing…feels…right,” mumbled the Rose clone.
“Maybe if you had a change of outfit…?” I offered.
“That’s not what I meant,” answered the Rose clone. “Besides, I don’t feel like changing out of my outfit. It’s mine, not hers.” I guessed the “her” was the original Rose Tyler.
“I believe I understand,” I assured her as I sat on the bed next to her.
“…The Doctor thinks I’m Rose’s clone,” muttered the Rose clone.
“I don’t suppose you have any leads on that?” I asked.
“No one does,” sighed the Rose clone.
“Do you have a name?” I inquired. “I mean, it would only cause the Doctor heartache in both of her hearts if we called you ‘Rose’.”
“The Doctor suggested ‘Daisy’,” grumbled the Rose clone.
“A little on the nose, even for the Doctor,” I mused.
“I don’t know who I am,” sighed the Rose clone. “Every name I’ve been given feels wrong, even ‘Rose’. I suppose it’s because I’m NOT her.”
“You’re not required by any law to be Rose Tyler,” I assured her. “Be your own person.”
“But I need to conform somehow,” mumbled the Rose clone. “If I’m not her, then I need to know who I am. On the other hand, if I AM a clone, then who cloned me?”
——————————————————————————————–
I had retreated into my quarters on Vorton and took off my Chronicle Driver, tossing it onto the dresser. I needed to be alone. I looked at the calendar and saw the day circled. “Feliz cumpleaños, Tío,” ( Happy Birthday, Uncle) I sighed. Just then, the door chimed. “Adelante,” (Come in) I called. Mickey came in.
“You live in an AWESOME place!” he praised.
“Gracias,” (Thank you) I mumbled. Mickey noticed my mood.
“Is everything okay?” he asked.
“No, not really,” I muttered. “I’m thinking of leaving the FNS.”
“…I think I have a guess why,” mused Mickey, “but could you tell me so I can see if I was right?”
“I came from a totally dysfunctional family that always kept secrets,” I explained. “My uncle was the only one I could rely on. When he died, I felt like I had to get away. After Academy and the FNS gave me a fresh start. I thought I could get away from secret keeping, but what I heard in Doom’s castle gave me horrible flashbacks! Is it wrong that I feel angry at the FNS?”
“No, in this instance,” replied Mickey, “your feelings are legitimate.”
“It’s just…I’m not sure I want this kind of life!” I continued.
“Where will you go?” asked Mickey.
“I’m not sure,” I answered.
“While I’d be saddened at the implication that my arrival in all of this would mean I replaced you,” sighed Mickey, “I do know some areas in my domain that could use you.”
“I appreciate that,” I bid. “Let me think it over.”
“I WOULD strongly suggest that you talk to Megumi before you go,” urged Mickey.
“…Why?” I hissed.
“Because, if you don’t,” answered Mickey, “you’ll be leaving with no feeling of closure.” He left my room on that note.
Day 1: 1st Party
A year later, Richard and I were waiting in our respective areas at opposite ends of After Academy. A wedding there is an extravagant affair. Richard was on the western end of the campus while I was getting ready at the eastern end. To give you a bit of perspective, the main campus sits at the center of a 953,280 square mile city, 30 times that of China’s city of Chongqing. Because of how big it is, it’s not practical to walk all the way there. Both Bride and Groom are transported to the Campus Gates by carriage. It’s a 13 hour drive at both ends, with each carriage going about 65 miles an hour. It’s spaced out over three days to allow both Bride and Groom to walk around a bit and stretch, get some food in, talk to friends and family, get some sleep before being driven again, all that stuff. The driver for my carriage, a Mr. John Clayton, the cab driver Sherlock Holmes asked after during The Hound of the Baskervilles, came to the bridal mansion I was living in for a week, being pampered and dressed for the big day. He was directed up to my room and knocked before I bid him to come in. “The carriage is ready, Ma’am,” he announced.
“As am I!” I replied as I pinned my white rose hairpiece to the left of my head. “Lead on!” He led the way to the carriage, account for my top speed as I wore my dress, a massive one, I can tell you. It rustled and softly crinkled as I came down the steps and across the foyer to the front door. The maid running the mansion opened the door for us. “Thank you!” I bid.
“Good luck, Dear!” bid the maid. Mr. Clayton continued leading the way down the driveway to the carriage and opened the door for me. It was a large carriage, enough to accommodate my dress. I got myself in and Mr. Clayton helped me get the rest of my skirts in. Once that was done, he shut the door and climbed up to his seat. He made a clicking noise and the horses moved off, their hooves clicking against the road. The speed increased as we got onto the road. I pressed a button that opened a channel between me and Mr. Clayton.
“How long have you been driving these kinds of carriages?” I asked.
“Since I passed on,” replied Mr. Clayton. “It took a while to get used to. No horse in London ever went this fast.”
“It’s a pity you’re not going to see the wedding,” sighed one of the horses. “Just another day at the office, where the open road IS the office. …Hey, that’s pretty deep! I ought to write that…!” The carriage was drifting!
“EYES ON THE ROAD, YOU IDIOT!” shouted the other horse. The carriage then righted itself. “Every dent on this thing is coming out of YOUR salary!”
“I think I’ve heard enough,” I remarked as my hand hovered over the button.
“Don’t want to distract you on your big day,” agreed Mr. Clayton. I pressed the button and closed the channel. We got to our first stop, right on time and with no further incident. Emily, Tanisha, the Apocalypse Riders, Peach, Wyldstyle, Xiomara, Tonje, Moon-kyung, Charline, Discornia, and Usagi I were waiting for the carriage. Emily, Tanisha, and Moon-kyung were in their Bridesmaid dresses, blue and very fluffy. Emily had the honor of being the Maid of Honor. Wyldstyle and the Apocalypse decided to forgo the clothes they usually wear and contented themselves with dresses of brighter colors.
“There she is!” cheered Emily. Everyone ran towards me.
“Whoa now!” I yelped. Too late. I was buried under ladies that were happy for me as they were trying to hug me.
“Stand back and give her some air! For crying out loud!” protested Lacey. Everyone got off of me and let me breathe. “You look great!” praised Lacey.
“I feel great!” I replied. “Richard will be an excellent husband, I know it!”
“I couldn’t agree more,” answered Emily. “Now, come on! There’s a party dedicated to you today and we need to celebrate it!” With that, the music and party began. This was one of the two Bridal Parties, where the Bride dances and hangs out with some of her friends and Bridesmaids. We all danced, ate, sang, and had a good time. Tanisha and Tonje seemed to be all right with dancing with me. I have to admit, Wyldstyle can really dance! Soon, it was evening and time to check into our rooms. We laid ourselves down, changing into our nightwear while our dresses were washed and cleaned for tomorrow.
Day 2: 2nd Party
We all woke up and had breakfast before changing into our dresses. A new, larger carriage approached the hotel we stayed at. I was holding my bouquet as I waited. Emily, Tanisha, and Moon-kyung were to join me on the next leg of the journey. We saw the carriage driver step down and reveal himself to be… “STRAX?!” yelped Tonje. It was, indeed, Commander Strax, Madame Vastra’s Sontaran butler!
“Commander, what are you doing here?” I asked.
“As I understand the mission briefing,” replied Strax, “Mr. Clayton would be taking you to the first checkpoint, then returning to his place of residence once you have been safely delivered to said checkpoint. Once it has been confirmed that you spent the night in safety at the first checkpoint, I would bring you and your fellow warriors to the next checkpoint. It is clear that the checkpoint has not suffered a siege during the night and you are intact…although I must question your choice of armor. It seems…flimsy.” He then shook his head. “But, that is none of my concern. I shall be taking you on a four hour journey to the next checkpoint and intend to perform as admirably as Mr. Clayton had done yesterday. Once there, we shall lie in wait for any Rutan scum and…!”
“There aren’t any Rutans coming,” I explained.
“…Pardon?” asked Strax.
“This isn’t some battle tactic,” I continued. “Me and my Bridesmaids are just going to my wedding and need to stop at the next hotel so we can have fun, the HUMAN definition of fun, and spend the night. We’ll pick up my remaining Bridesmaids and proceed to the Altar tomorrow.”
“…No shooting at Rutan scum?” inquired Strax, a little disappointed.
“No shooting at Rutan scum or ANYONE,” I confirmed.
“…Very well, Ma’am,” grumbled Strax as he opened the door for us. Emily, Tanisha, Moon-Kyung, and I entered the carriage and Strax shut the door before stomping off to the front of the carriage and taking his seat. “Ruddy weddings!” he griped. “Don’t have any targets for me to shoot!” He took the reins and we set off.
“See you at the campus!” called Wyldstyle. We waved goodbye as the carriage pulled off.
“So, when should we expect you and Joshua’s wedding?” asked Tanisha to Emily.
“We haven’t gone that far yet,” replied Emily.
“Maybe we should have a double wedding!” suggested Tanisha. “You and Josh with me and Tonje!”
“That sounds lovely,” sighed Moon-kyung happily.
“I don’t think Joshua will go for that,” muttered Emily.
“Why not?” I asked.
“He’s not exactly all that big on crowds,” explained Emily.
“Oh, yeah, he gets anxious in crowds,” I recalled.
“I think a small wedding with just friends and immediate family will do him better,” continued Emily. “But, enough about us! This is YOUR day!” The three of them were then gushing over how lucky I was, how this was going to be a perfect day, all that stuff. I never took anything as perfect these days, not since X-PO’s betrayal. A healthy understanding that nothing is perfect kept me from becoming a Bridezilla. The journey, like yesterday, passed without incident. We arrived at our next stop and Strax let us out.
“Good luck, Sirs!” he called once we came out. We all glared at him. “…Good luck, Ma’ams!” he corrected himself. “May you partake in glorious battle and either live or die honorably.”
“And you,” I replied, deciding to let him have that, at least. We came into the hotel to see Livia, Sheela, Irina, Colleen, Kit-10, Amelia, Scorpainia, Flora, Lexicon, and Sludgiona. Flora, Livia, and Scorpainia were in their Bridesmaid dresses. I must admit, I was surprised when she asked to be a Bridesmaid. I decided to ask the question once everyone stopped hugging me. “Aren’t you married?” I asked.
“On Tarlax, much like Earth,” explained Scorpainia, “a Bridesmaid does not need to be single. Besides, I wish to bring good fortune to your day as you have brought good fortune to my people on numerous occasions.”
“I do what I can to protect my friends,” I answered with a smile.
“As would I,” replied Scorpainia. “Now, I believe we have a celebration to begin!” There was more dancing, more singing, more eating, just wonderful happiness. It lasted until the evening. Like last night, we checked into our rooms and changed into nightwear so our dresses could be tended to for the morning.
Day 3: The Ceremony
The last leg of the journey and I was bouncing up and down after we had breakfast. I was wearing my veil now, the see-through fabric obscuring my features until I reached the altar. This time, all of my Bridesmaids were coming; Emily, Tanisha, Moon-kyung, Flora, Livia, and Scorpainia. They looked down the street with me to look for the carriage. Soon enough, it arrived, the biggest one to accommodate for the sizes of our respective dresses. The driver of the carriage, Alfred Pennyworth, opened the door for us and helped us in. “Batman made a request, I take it?” I guessed.
“He did, Ma’am,” confirmed Alfred. “I trust the past two days had no incident?”
“Not a one,” I replied.
“Then, let’s hope our luck continues,” mused Alfred. Everyone was in and the doorway was clear of any loose dress sticking out. Alfred then shut the door and took his position at the driver’s seat. The carriage then took off as we began our five hour journey to the Campus. At the Northern Entrance was the aisle I would walk down, the Eastern Entrance would be where the Bridesmaids came in, the Groomsmen came in at the Western Entrance, and the Groom would come in at the Southern Entrance. We chatted the entire time until Alfred announced the stop. We came out and headed for our respective Entrances.
“See you inside!” called Emily. As they left, …I became nervous. I didn’t know why, I WANTED to marry Richard, long before it was revealed that I would carry his children…so why is my stomach churning? I continued to the Entrance to see Okaa-san (Mother) waiting there, happy tears coming down her face.
“My little girl,” she sighed happily, “all grown up and making her own way!” She hugged me tightly. She then noticed something and correctly guessed what was going on. “Nervous?” she asked.
“Did YOU get nervous before you married Hiroki’s dad?” I inquired.
“My dear Megumi, both of us were nervous wrecks!” replied Okaa-san. “I almost considered backing out!”
“What changed your mind?” I asked.
“Seeing him at the Altar,” explained Okaa-san. I briefly remembered that she and her late husband had a European style wedding, white dress and all. “He looked so wonderful, looking down the aisle as I came down. One look at him and all nerves were gone. He admitted to me after the ceremony that he was nervous as well, but banished those nerves at seeing me. We both resolved to handle any hardships together.” As she spoke, I became less nervous.
“Arigatou, Okaa-san,” (Thank you, Mother) I bid. The entrance doors opened and Okaa-san walked me down the aisle. The onlookers turned to see me, as did Richard and the one presiding over the wedding, Woz. The onlookers were the Kamen Riders we had fought with during the Vortech Wars, Tokiwa Sougo, the Doctor, the allies of the Vortex Riders, the Apocalypse Riders, those that weren’t my Bridesmaids, those that were not the Groomsmen, our families, and the Gateway Team. My Bridesmaids came in as followed: Emily, Scorpainia, Livia, Tanisha, Moon-kyung, and Flora. Richard’s Groomsmen came in at the same time as the Bridesmaids. The Best Man was Michael and the other Groomsmen followed in this order: Emmanuel (wearing a suit for once), Joshua, Mikhail, Alesandro, and Turretorg. Much like what Okaa-san described, the instant I saw Richard, my nerves were gone. Judging by his expression, so were his. As I walked, the familiar tune of “Here Comes the Bride” rang out. We then stood together, facing each other at the Altar. Woz opened his book before speaking.
“Dearly Beloved,” he proclaimed, “we are gathered here to witness a truly auspicious moment in the history of the multiverse! We gather now to witness the union of Richard Saunders and Hishikawa Megumi, two veterans of the Vortech Wars! If any wish to object, speak now, or forever hold your peace!” No one said a word. “Do the Bride and Groom have any words to say?” asked Woz.
“We do,” we both said in unison. This was the time for our vows. We decided that Richard would start.
“Megumi,” he began, “when I first laid eyes on you, my heart kept telling me to pursue my affections to you. Granted, it took a certain someone to shove us both along on that path during the Vortech Wars,” we looked at Emily who stuck her tongue out at us, “but my feelings did not change that day. I want to be with you as long as we’re together. I swear to support you in all of your endeavors and help provide for us both so we may be happy.”
“Richard-chan,” I vowed, using the nickname I gave him when we were dating, “our lives, since we first met, were not easy. I seem to recall butting heads with you a lot. However, that is irrelevant as I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I promise to do my part in supporting us and making our lives happy.”
“I know this is a little redundant,” mused Woz, “but, Richard Saunders, do you take Hishikawa Megumi to be your lawfully-wedded wife, to keep solely to her in sickness and in health, for rich or poor, until death do you part?”
“I do,” answered Richard. The smile on his face showed he intended to follow through on that vow.
“Hishikawa Megumi,” asked Woz, “do you take Richard Saunders to be your lawfully-wedded husband, to keep solely to him in sickness and in health, for rich or poor, until death do you part?”
“I do!” I replied, my conviction equaling Richard.
“Have you the rings?” asked Woz. A pillow floated towards us with the rings on it. Richard and I took one each. I then held out my hand. Richard took it and placed the ring on my finger.
“With this ring, I do thee wed,” he promised. He then held out his hand. I took it and placed the ring on his finger.
“With this ring, I do thee wed,” I vowed. We held hands as Woz gave his speech.
“Iwae!” (Rejoice!) he called. “The ones who have united in holy matrimony! The Bride and Groom who shall be forever as one in the fight against evil! The Riders who stand together and lead the fight to bring peace throughout time and space! And their names are Hishikawa Megumi and Richard Saunders, Kamen Riders Royal and Guard, Queen and King of the Feudal Nerd Society! This is the day where you two kiss to finalize your union!” At that, Richard lifted my veil. We couldn’t embrace each other for the kiss fast enough! It felt like hours for us, but it must have been 10 seconds. When we parted, we noticed the crowd cheering! I felt a happy tear come down my face as I took in the overwhelming support of my union with Richard.
Day 3: Reception
Richard and I were in a carriage for just us two as we led the way to the reception. Richard and I danced with all eyes on us. I must say, Richard can REALLY dance! He lifted me into the air a few times, causing us to laugh. After the dance, it was time for the dinner. We sat together and chatted before Mr. Fred Saunders, my new father-in-law, rang his glass. It was time for a speech. “My friends,” he began, “this is truly a joyous occasion. We have all wanted to see them unite in some fashion, but, now that it’s happened…” a wicked smile crossed his features. Here comes the funny, “I suppose it never occurred to you two or your friends what you were doing to your poor, aged parents? Of course, you’re happy, but what about OUR needs? Hm? All of you? I heard that you lot intend to be permanent students at After Academy! Leaving us behind? I must say, it’s all a damned inconvenience!” His expressions were exaggerated, so he wasn’t being serious on what he was saying. “While you lot are happily settling in on campus,” continued Fred, “we’ll be retiring alone! You all know a bit about Saunders’ domestic life! My wife can be tyrannical around the house! It can only increase once she retires from the force!” He gave an exaggerated frown and did the peely-carrot-of-shame motion at his wife, Linda. She stuck her tongue out and flipped him off, causing Richard, Emily, and I to chuckle, as well as a few of our friends. “Now, there’s still time to reconsider, yes?” We all looked at each other, then shook our heads. “No? All right, then.” He then dropped the joking attitude. “In all seriousness, you two have earned this. You always deserve happy moments, no matter what your enemies say. I wish you nothing but the best of luck.” He smiled as he said this. “All right, I’ve taken away enough time from the Maid of Honor and the Best Man.” He sat back down as Emily stood up.
“Well, thanks for the entertainment, Daddy,” she began, making us chuckle. She then turned to me and Richard. “Richard, there ARE moments where you can infuriate me and moments where I infuriate you. Just know that, even though I make fun of you, I never stopped loving you, nor will I stop loving you. We both manage to make one another mad, but that’s just the give-and-take that accompanies twins sometimes. What else accompanies us is the fact we know each other so well and I’ve been seeing that closeness between you and Megumi. Megumi, you have been there for me in cases where no one else could. You’ve helped me face my demons and it got me to deal with them alone, knowing how you helped me. I wish you two nothing but happiness throughout your days. To the Bride and Groom!” She raised her glass.
“The Bride and Groom!” repeated the crowd. A sip of our drinks later, it was Michael’s turn.
“Richard, there ARE moments where I feel like Blackadder dealing with one of his, er, ‘friends’,” he began, “most recently when you told me to beshrew you and mentioned I was in good humor. As I warned, it was a tiny step to ‘Hey Nonny Nonny’, and then I’d call Arkham. However, you have been an excellent friend to me since we met. I began as the stereotypical rich brat and you got me down to earth very fast. Megumi, you brought us all together and revealed to me all of the problems and viewpoints in the world. I would have been a fool if I didn’t change. You two have been an excellent steady hand on my moral path and I wish you nothing but the best life together. To the Bride and Groom!”
“The Bride and Groom!” replied the crowd. Another sip, then we ate and talked. Soon came the cutting of the cake. Richard and I both held the knife and cut into it, getting a slice for each other. We then took our slices, then fed them to each other. Afterwards, we danced a little more before tiring out. We heard a moan and turned to see Mikhail with his head in his hands.
“Mikhail?” asked Richard.
“Daijōbudesuka?” (Are you okay?) I asked.
“Romulan ale should be illegal!” growled Mikhail.
“…It IS,” I replied. The music came back on and we went back to dancing!
Kimi wa STAR Mabayuku SHINE (You are a star with a blazing shine!)
(O-O-O-O-O, O-O-O-O-O)
Jibun ja Kizukenai (You cannot notice it yourself!)
(O-O-O-O-O, O-O-O-O-O)
Kokoro RELAX shite Asu wo IMAGE (Relax your mind and picture the future,)
Yukue, Jiyuujizai (jizai) (Whereabouts and freedom! (Freedom!))
Akirame kake chatta Yume ni REBENJI (Giving up and challenging in your dreams again,)
Rounayaku nannyuo no PRIDE (The pride of young and old, men and women!)
Everybody SHUFFLE shiyou, Sedai (Everybody, Let’s shuffle!)
rensa suru SMILE (Generations all linked with smiles!)
Let’s Party ENJOY shinakya mottainai (Let’s Party! Don’t waste it and just enjoy it,)
datte, jinsei wa ikkai (Because you only live once!)
RAINBOW wa sora dake janai (Rainbows aren’t just only in the skies,)
Mune ni mo kakaru ze (Party P.A.R.T.Y) (but also in our hearts! (Party P.A.R.T.Y))
Donna MIRACLE mo oki houdai (Any miracle can happen!)
UNIVERSE FESTIVAL! (Party P.A.R.T.Y)
Rashisa ga (tsumari jizentai) soudai (Being unique is (basically oneself) exhilarating!)
(O-O-O-O-O, O-O-O-O-O)
Shourai wa kimi ni naritai (I wanna be like you in the future!)
(O-O-O-O-O, O-O-O-O-O)
Sude ni dare mo ga motteru yasashisa idenshi (Everyone already has kindness in their genes,)
Toki ni miushinai (shinai) (and sometimes it may be lost! (Lost!))
Kizutsukeba ttemo Kizuna ni CHANGE (Even if we hurt each other, we can change with our bonds!)
Jinrui mina kyoudai (All of humanity are brothers and sisters!)
Everybody Zettai teki sonzai (Everybody, we’re an absolute being!)
Zenin nanka no tensai (All are geniuses in something!)
Let’s Party Senpai kouhai to kanpai (Let’s Party! Seniors and juniors toasting to each other!)
RIVAL mo issai (Rivals are also outstanding!)
Tsuzukeru koto ga daijisa (The most important thing is to keep going,)
suki koso jouzu nare (Be good at what you like!)
Tsumazuita tte kamawanai (It’s okay if you stumble somewhere,)
Nanakorobi yaoki style (Just do it Fall Down 7, Get up 8-style!)
Meguriai zutto tsuzuku sekai (A world of constant encounters,)
Guuzen nanka janai (Nothing is a coincidence!)
Let’s Party Ten ga tsunagari ai (Let’s Party, connect all the dots,)
sen ni naru issai (All join into a single line!)
Everybody SHUFFLE shiyou, Sedai (Everybody, Let’s shuffle!)
rensa suru SMILE (Generations all linked with smiles!)
Let’s Party ENJOY shinakya mottainai (Let’s Party! Don’t waste it and just enjoy it,)
datte, jinsei wa ikkai (Because you only live once!)
RAINBOW wa sora dake janai (Rainbows aren’t just only in the skies,)
Mune ni mo kakaru ze (Party P.A.R.T.Y) (but also in our hearts! (Party P.A.R.T.Y))
Donna MIRACLE mo oki houdai (Any miracle can happen!)
UNIVERSE FESTIVAL! (Party P.A.R.T.Y)
After the titles play again, a brief replay of the scene where we transmat up to the ship will remind us what happened. Dalek Transmats are unpleasant feeling, let me tell you right now. After that unpleasant trip, we all got out to make sure there weren’t any of those stupid pepperpots. We secured all the area needed. Madame Vastra, Strax, and I secured a northern corridor. Xiomara, Emmanuel, Hiroki, and Philip secured an eastern corridor. Jenny, Shōtarō, K-9, and Tonje secured a western corridor, and Irina and Sheela secured a southern corridor. It was awkward silence time, even with the steady noise of the ship. I never knew what made that noise around Dalek facilities and ships. “That rhythm is starting to annoy me to no end!” hissed Strax.
“Save it,” I hissed back.
“Silence, girl!” snarled the Sontaran. That’s the disadvantage of being a clone race, like the Sontarans, you can’t tell the difference between genders. Back to the awkward silence. The Doctor was at work with a console in the junction we were securing.
“So,” I mused, “just making idle conversation here, I’m a tad bored, Commander Strax, if we were enemies and you, of course, beat me in battle as a Sontaran soldier, what would you do?”
“Well,” answered Strax, “given that you haven’t made any attempts to make an enemy of me, I find that situation unlikely. However, in a strictly hypothetical situation, of course, I would most likely submit you to each of the processes on Field Major Styre’s manual on human resistance to torture.”
“Styre?” I yelped, remembering the episode he starred and subsequently died in. “I didn’t realize he published.”
“Posthumously,” Strax explained. Madame Vastra shook her head.
“Brutes,” she muttered. “Michael, if you’re so bored, maybe you should find out what the Doctor’s doing?” I saw the irritation in the Silurian’s eyes.
“I…see your point,” I gulped. I headed over to the Doctor. I know, some men will call me a wimp. Tell me, would YOU argue with a lizard woman from the age of the dinosaurs you knew had eaten humans before? No? Didn’t think so. I leaned over the Doctor’s shoulder and cleared my throat.
“Tea time already, Strax?” asked the Doctor, not even looking in my direction.
“Okay, I’m a lot taller than him, for one,” I said, annoyed.
“Yes, but you have the potential to be brutish as him,” remarked the Doctor.
“Not true!” I argued.
“So, you’ve had no wars?” countered the Doctor.
“As ever, Doctor, the soul of tact!” I replied. “What are you doing, anyways?”
“Just figuring things out, as usual,” answered the Doctor.
“Anything I can do?” I asked.
“Not on this end, no,” muttered the Doctor. “I, on the other hand, just need to find the temporal origin of this ship…ah, got you!”
“You have answers?!” I asked. “Where and when did this ship come from?!” The Doctor didn’t answer, she just pulled out a laser spanner and messed with the transmat!
“And then one more pick-up before I shut this off for good!” she called.
“Doctor?! Answers?!” I asked. The Doctor said nothing as she and I shoved some plungers out of the way as they shimmered into view. Wait, plungers?
“Unauthorized computer access detected!” said the harsh, grating, metallic tones of the plunger’s owner. The Daleks had bypassed the guard positions we had set up by transmatting in their own ship! We were quickly surrounded.
“What?!” yelped the Doctor. “I wasn’t doing anything!” The transmat started smoking. “That was like that when I got here!” Xiomara and her group were herded aside to make way for someone I didn’t want to see. The horribly scarred remains of a man glided their way past. The person used a black Dalek skirt with white sensor globes to move, had a black shirt with only his right arm to his name, a control panel in front of him, sunken in, fried shut eyes with a single blue orb in his forehead to see, a metal cage around his scalp, silver shoulder pads, and a back rest. His hand was robotic in origin, one he most likely built himself after someone shot it off. He cracked a blackened smile as he clapped his robot eye on the Doctor.
“You might have a new face, Doctor,” he in a voice that had was aided by a cybernetic voice box, “but I see you are still the same old prattling fool!”
“Davros,” hissed the Doctor. “Not so much a bad penny as a mad penny.”
“Oh, great, I meet the lunatic behind the existence of these dust bins,” I groaned. “I knew the Rani said you were involved, giving orders, but I didn’t think it was as part of the invasion force.”
“What have you done with the population of the Earth?” asked the Doctor.
“I have…given them new employment,” answered Davros as he turned to the Daleks. A horrible thought struck the Doctor.
“The Daleks!” she gasped. “They’re…?”
“Yes, Doctor,” chuckled Davros. “Your precious humans.”
“Necros and Satellite Five!” I called.
“Yes, making Daleks from human genetic material is hardly a good idea,” supplied the Doctor. “For a start, they may be driven mad by their own flesh and gain a concept of blasphemy. For another, it may spark another civil war.”
“Blasphemy?” asked a Dalek. “I have no understanding of the word! It is not registered in my vocabulary bank!” That made me arch an eyebrow.
“My mistakes on Necros and the mistakes made by the Emperor on Satellite Five have been corrected,” continued Davros. “Many qualities needed for Daleks are buried in all manner of life. What better way to unleash those qualities than to make Daleks? Silurians are cold hearted, Humans are divisive, and Sontarans are war-like; most excellent qualities.” He turned to the Daleks. “Confine them to the holding cells!” He glided away. “Whilst I reformat a Dalek production line to accept a Time Lord body.” The Daleks led us to our holding cells, even going so far as to put us in separate cells. That would tear Vastra and Jenny apart and the Daleks knew it.
“I know, I know,” sighed the Doctor as she came to her cell. “I’ll make myself at home, shall I?”
“Enter!” barked one of the Daleks.
“By the way,” snarked the Doctor as she did so, “I’d like a wakeup call at seven and two soft boiled eggs for breakfast.” Laser fields activated over the openings. “And plenty of butter on the soldiers!” called the Doctor as the Daleks trundled away. Well, most of them, one took the bait.
“Why would you need butter on soldiers like the Daleks?” it asked.
“Oh, please tell me Davros didn’t delete toast soldiers during your mutation!” I wailed.
“Not mutation!” argued the Dalek. “Purification! And the soldiers of toast shall be exterminated!” It trundled away.
“Not before the Sontarans destroy them first!” called Strax. I rolled my eyes.
“Daleks,” sighed the Doctor. “So predictable.”
“Madame,” I called to Vastra, “there is such a thing as toast in your time, right?”
“There is,” interjected the Doctor before Vastra could get a word in, “but the electric toaster hadn’t been invented yet.” She fiddled with some wires and deactivated the energy shields of our cells. She then blew on her new TARDIS whistle with said vehicle appearing. “And now that we know when and where this ship came from,” continued the Doctor, “we can stop this travesty before it happens.”
“You may know, but WE don’t!” called Philip.
“I’ll tell you on the way,” promised the Doctor as she opened the TARDIS. “Do cultivate a sense of urgency.” We entered the TARDIS and got to the controls. Philip, Shōtarō, Jenny, Vastra, myself, Hiroki, and Irina hung back while the rest worked the controls. Strax was clearly enjoying helping pilot the TARDIS.
“Doctor, it is a privilege to pilot this magnificent device with you to go to battle against an enemy such as the Daleks!” cheered the Sontaran nurse.
“Well, if things go well,” muttered the Doctor, “we should be arriving at their ancestral seat any second now.”
“Ancestral…” I began, then an unanswered question was answered. “SKARO?! We’re going to the Dalek home world?!”
“If things go right,” replied the Doctor. “And so far, nothing can go wro…” she didn’t get to complete that sentence as the TARDIS shook violently. “I NEED TO STOP SAYING THAT!”
“WHAT’S GOING ON?!” yelled Irina.
“TIME SCOOP!” shouted the Doctor.
“Not the Death Zone!” I wailed.
“No!” answered the Doctor. “Somewhere else!” We landed roughly. The scanner wasn’t working. “Drat,” hissed the Doctor. “We’ll have to poke around.” We stepped outside onto…what…? “It can’t be!” breathed the Doctor. “This isn’t possible!”
“We landed in the one place the Doctor shouldn’t have gone to, Trenzalore!” I whispered.
“Why?” asked Sheela.
“See that giant version of the TARDIS’s exterior?” explained the Doctor. There it stood, taller than Burj Khalifa. “Well, that is the TARDIS, but in the future. The interior dimensions are bleeding into the exterior in this time. Inside there is the late Doctor, may I rest in peace.”
“That’s your tomb?!” gulped Tonje.
“Yes, and I shouldn’t be here,” answered the Doctor. She saw a ledge. “This way,” she directed. We climbed the ledge. “Something tells me the answer to all this lies ahead inside the TARDIS.” As we traveled, we saw some Weeping angels, but they seemed scared, as if they were running from the Doctor’s tomb.
“Something doesn’t add up,” I muttered. “Trenzalore’s future was altered when the Time Lords gave you a new regeneration cycle. Why is this still here?”
“I can’t see that far ahead in my time stream,” answered the Doctor. That was when we heard footsteps. We turned to find ourselves surrounded by beasts. They were stocky humanoids, had the snout of a boar, four eyes, one on each side of the head, starting from the face, two sets of large ears, one over the other, clawed hands, and vestigial wing flaps around the arms. They had sharp teeth in a snarl.
“Tetraps?!” I yelped. “How did the Rani con these people again?!”
“I see you haven’t looked closely at these Tetraps,” called a voice. The Rani stepped from behind the rocks in front of the Tetraps. “I had traveled to Mondas to get the schematics for the earliest Cybermen and applied them to these Tetraps.” I looked closer to see some shiny parts under the fur. “Beautiful slaves, aren’t they?”
“You say that as if you expect a round of applause,” hissed the Doctor.
“Have a care, Doctor,” warned the Rani, “you are not here to play the clown!”
“Was it you that used the Time Scoop that brought us here?” asked Sheela.
“And it is here that I shall make my greatest experiment,” answered the Rani.
“Well, I apologize for the inconvenience,” quipped the Doctor, “not to mention my curiosity.”
“What do you want to know?” asked the Rani.
“What you’re doing in my future gravesite for a start,” replied the Doctor.
“I simply needed a good site for my newest experiment,” remarked the Rani.
“Would this experiment have anything to do with me?” asked Philip.
“It DID require you,” said the Rani.
“Did?” quizzed Shōtarō. “What made you stop using Philip?”
“I gathered the necessary data from the Daleks,” explained the Rani.
“Then, why are you making Gaia Memories?” asked the Doctor.
“My own needs,” finished the Rani. I was starting to get a little peeved.
“I don’t know as I like the cryptic remarks you’re giving here,” I snarled.
“Fine, I’ll explain,” sighed the Rani as she opened a gate. “Gaia Memories hold more than the powers and memories of things; they also hold the experiences of different species.” She held up a bluish-green Gaia Memory with an illuminated H. She then pressed the button.
“HUMAN!” announced the Memory.
“Is that why you fought us?” asked Emmanuel. “To gather data?”
“Not exactly,” answered the Rani. “I came to gather a species’ time stream.”
“I don’t follow,” admitted the Doctor. The Rani pulled out a white Gaia Memory with nothing on it.
“This is a blank Gaia Memory,” lectured the Rani. “When I install it into my TARDIS, I can read the memories of any species of my choosing. The only limit, however, is the Time Lords. For some odd reason, I can’t just plug this into my TARDIS and read my own species time line. My theory is that because we’re not supposed to know our futures, that limit carried over. So, I did something no TARDIS ever did, and went to Gallifrey’s future, where we’re nothing more than time streams littering our planet.”
“You’re insane! Gallifrey’s time locked! No one’s ever done that!” shouted the Doctor.
“Well, I did,” argued the Rani. “Now, of course, I’m familiar with the laws of time, so I told no one when I came back. It’s going to happen eventually, so why resist it? Before I came back, I stuck this blank Gaia Memory into the time streams of every Time Lord that will go extinct on Gallifrey. After that tedious trial, I discovered that not all Time Lords will die there. So, I travelled to other Time Lord’s tombs throughout the universe, even my own. The last one I visited was the Master’s tomb.”
“Does that Time Lord die as male or female?” I asked. “Just curious.”
“Spoilers,” interjected the Doctor, bringing up the memory of her wife, River Song. “In any event, you’ve proven your power to make Gaia Memories, but I can’t help there’s something a great deal more to visiting tombs and breaking the laws of time.”
“Really now?” asked the Rani.
“What are you doing making Gaia Memories like Davros with his Daleks?” asked the Doctor. “And what do you intend to do with them?”
“Tarsek, get over here!” barked the Rani. A Cyber-Tetrap lumbered forward and pulled out some equipment. “So far, I have 25 Gaia Memories, bar the Time Lord one. With this and the Zone Gaia Memory, I will initiate the Never-Ending Hell Maximum Drive with the Gaia Memories I created.”
“The Zone Gaia Memory?!” yelped Philip.
“You plan to conquer this universe?” called Shōtarō.
“Hardly,” scoffed the Rani. “Using the Maximum Drive, I intend to slice through the Time Vortex, undoing it and making it nothing more than a mass of energy.”
“A dimensional manipulator!” realized the Doctor. “You intend to turn our universe into a dimensional manipulator!”
“While you escape in your TARDIS!” I snarled.
“I shall be back, once the turbulence has subsided,” answered the Rani.
“But how will that work out for you in the long run?” asked Sheela.
“Because I intend to make my own universe,” replied the Rani. “That’s why I used the time scoop, to get to your tomb, Doctor.”
“You know of my habit of having companions,” quizzed the Doctor. “Why are these people involved?”
“Workers are required in my new universe,” answered the Rani.
“You have the Cyber-Tetraps,” I pointed out.
“And Vortech can give you minions,” continued Xiomara.
“The Cyber-Tetraps are needed for my military police,” dismissed the Rani, “and Vortech had his usefulness fulfilled.”
“I see,” realized the Doctor. “Turning this universe into a dimensional manipulator will make the Foundation Element lose power, forever frustrating Vortech’s plans. This whole thing was a means to an end for you.”
“Now that you understand the experiment,” declared the Rani, “I need access to your tomb.”
“I don’t think so!” snarled the Doctor.
“Drivers ready!” I called.
“JOKER! CYCLONE!” announced Philip and Shotaro’s respective Gaia Memories.
“Henshin!” we called.
“CYCLONE! JOKER!” shouted the W Driver All riders were in their suits with Phillip safely out of harm’s way.
“I’m hardly scared,” taunted the Rani as she pulled out her belt and strapped it on. She then pulled out the Eternal Memory and pressed the button.
“ETERNAL!” it called. She then put it into the Memory slot.
“Henshin,” she announced and tilted the Memory slot.
“ETERNAL!” repeated the Memory. Her suit formed and Kamen Rider Eternal stood there.
“We keep the Rani out of the Doctor’s tomb at all costs!” I commanded. The Doctor managed to get in to reinforce her…er…casket if you will. With the Cyber-Tetraps pushing us back, Eternal strode towards the tomb. W did a last-ditch maneuver by pulling out the Joker Memory and putting it in the Maximum Drive slot.
“JOKER! MAXIMUM DRIVE!” announced the Memory.
“Joker Extreme!” called W in both Shōtarō and Phillip’s voice. W then leapt into the air and extended both of his feet. He then split in half! First the Joker half struck her, then the Cyclone half. The two halves reunited, thank goodness, and I prepared my attack. I inserted my i.d tag into my blade and converted it to rifle mode.
“Final attack!” yelled my weapon.
“RIDER BATTLE BLAST!” I shouted. The shot hit the ground, ending in a large explosion. I chuckled. “No way is she getting up from that,” I boasted. The smoke cleared. The Cyber-Tetraps were lying dead, but Eternal still stood. She charged after the Doctor! “STOP HER!” I yelled. She entered the tomb! I got in to see Eternal toss the Doctor aside and smash the console open. The rest had caught up.
“What is that?!” called Sengoku as he pointed to a mass of blinding white light in the shape of many strings huddled together.
“That’s the Doctor’s time stream,” I explained. “All Time Lords break down to become their time streams. Leaving bodies behind is passé to them.” Eternal then jabbed the incomplete Gaia Memory into the Doctor’s time stream. She then pressed the button, causing the Doctor to clutch her head in pain. Eternal then extracted the Gaia Memory as it changed colors. It was as red as the planet Gallifrey and had an illuminated T. Eternal did a test and pressed the button.
“TIME LORD!” announced the Memory.
“Finally!” giggled Eternal. “Now I can begin!” She fled to the top of the tomb and pulled out another Gaia Memory. It had an illuminated Z on it. She pressed the button and put it in one of her Maximum Drive slots.
“ZONE! MAXIMUM DRIVE!” called the Gaia Memory. That was when other Gaia Memories flew into the other Maximum Drive slots and went from A to Z.
“AUTON! BORAD! CYBERMAN! DALEK! ETERNAL! FENDAHL! GRASKE! HUMAN! ISOLUS! JAGRAFESS! KRYNOID! LAKERTYAN! MALMOOTH! NOTHING! OMNIPOTENCE! PLASMAVORE! QUEEN! REAPER! SONTARAN! TIME LORD! USURIAN! VOGON! WEEPING ANGEL! YETI! ZONE! MAXIMUM DRIVE!” announced the Gaia Memories. Eternal then drew her knife as power flowed through her. We made it outside and saw her prepare her blade.
“This is it!” called Eternal. “NEVER-ENDING…!” She didn’t complete her sentence as something knocked the knife out of her hand. The object then flew over Philip’s body and converted him into data, sucking him up into itself!
“Don’t be alarmed!” assured Sengoku. “We’re about to see W use the Xtreme Memory!”
“The what?!” I asked.
“A bird-like Gaia Memory directly connected to the True Gaia Memory!” explained Sengoku. W then closed his belt, allowing a rather bulky, metallic bird to slide over the Cyclone and Joker Memories. The middle band started glowing as the belt opened again with the bird split in half, revealing a small turbine with an illuminated X.
“XTREME!” announced the belt. A small whirring noise, like a fan belt, was heard, followed by a small piece of epic orchestra. W then started pulling on the silver band dividing him and pulled it apart to reveal a white, crystalline middle section. The unibrow disappeared and in its place were X protrusions on each side of the head. He gained a set of shoulder pauldrons in the shape of sideways W’s. A sword and shield then appeared in his hand.
“What in the…?” yelled Eternal. W then grabbed the Heat, Joker, and Cyclone Memories, and two new ones, one was yellow with an illuminated L, the other was green with an illuminated P. He then put the Cyclone, Heat, yellow, and Joker Memories into the shield, then put the green one into the sword hilt. The weapon then spoke.
“CYCLONE! MAXIMUM DRIVE! HEAT! MAXIMUM DRIVE! LUNA! MAXIMUM DRIVE! JOKER! MAXIMUM DRIVE! PRISM! MAXIMUM DRIVE!” announced the weapon. If I were to go on the letters, I’d say Luna was the yellow Memory and Prism was the green one. W then drew the sword out with colors flowing around it. He tossed the shield in the air and jumped, landing on the spinning shield and flying towards Eternal.
“BICKER CHARGE BREAK!” called W in both voices. When he reached Eternal, W swung the sword at her, the energy causing a lot of her Gaia Memories to shatter. The only ones that survived were Yeti, Dalek, and Eternal. Speaking of, Kamen Rider Eternal couldn’t handle the exploding Gaia Memories and keep her balance near the edge of the tomb’s roof, and so she fell.
“Saa, jigoku o tanoshimu!” called Sengoku. Eternal’s suit had disappeared, revealing the Rani as she started glowing yellow. “What the?!” gulped Sengoku as we cancelled our transformations.
“Time Lords have a way of cheating death,” explained the Doctor. “Whenever an old body gets frail or is too badly damaged, our DNA rewrites itself and our cells rearrange themselves to make a new body. The side effect is that our personalities can change as well.” The Rani stood up to glare at us, then she stumbled to a small mausoleum. She fumbled for a key, leading me to believe the mausoleum was the Rani’s TARDIS. Before she put the key in the lock, her regenerative energy exploded as her face and body morphed. She grew a few inches, her chin and nose were pointed, her hair pulled back to reach her shoulders in a 50’s bob and it darkened to brown. The light died so we could see her pale skin and emerald eyes, piercing into our soul.
“I only had that body for fifty years!” she snarled in an Irish accent. “Do you have any notion what you’ve done?!”
“Stopped you from making a dimensional manipulator out of this universe?” asked the Doctor with a smirk.
“Sarcasm will get you nowhere, Doctor!” snarled the new Rani. She scuttled into her TARDIS and fled Trenzalore.
“You know,” mused the Doctor, “for once, I agree with the Rani. How about we leave this beastly place?” We were all in agreement. We still had to get to Skaro to stop the Dalek invasion. The Doctor piloted the TARDIS herself this time, muttering something about humans making the TARDIS jumpy, so I got a translation from what Hiroki said after the Rani fell. “Saa, jigoku o tanoshimu,” means “Now, enjoy Hell,” a perversion on W’s catchphrase. The TARDIS landed in an observation tower on a planet with sand everywhere, red skies, and no plant life to speak of. The buildings were metallic in nature.
“So, we’ve made it?” I asked.
“Daleks conquer and destroy!” screeched a voice I’m familiar with.
“Skaro,” replied the Doctor, “home of the Daleks. It looks like they’ve been busy too. Last time I was here, this place was in ruins.”
“After the sewers revolted?” I asked.
“You mean the sewers of Skaro are revolting?” asked Emmanuel, trying to understand the grammar I used. I shook my head, confusing the poor man.
“The Dalek word for sewer is the same as the word for graveyard,” I explained. “The creatures inside the tanks are genetically hardwired to live, no matter the condition. But, even they’re not immune to aging. Overtime, the creature breaks down, rots, decays, liquefies.”
“And so, the still fresh Daleks rip the old ones out of their casings and drop them into a sewer?” guessed Xiomara. She shuddered when I nodded. “Remind me never to consult them for retirement plans.”
“We need to get down,” I observed.
“Right!” called the Doctor. She grabbed a Dalek arm from a broken casing. “This Dalek manipulator arm should be compatible with that control switch.” K-9 moved to speak. “No, it’s not a plunger, before you ask!”
“Master!” warned K-9. “Daleks are patrolling on the ground below us!”
“And watchtowers are scanning for intruders,” I continued.
“Stealth is key, then,” remarked the Doctor. We managed to slip past the watch tower and found ourselves at the edge of a green river. There were stepping stones across the way. “Watch your step,” warned the Doctor as she tested one out. “I don’t fancy taking a dip in a pool of toxic Dalek waste.” As we crossed the river of radiation, we noticed a control panel that was allowing toxic waste to fall across our path. “Step aside,” called the Doctor. She found the pipe flow controls and redirected the waste into a gaggle of Daleks down below, allowing us passage. “A simple case of reversing the polarity,” chuckled the Doctor. “Even a pudding brain could’ve handled that.” We noticed that the path had laser walls that switched on and off at different intervals, so we timed our way through the walls. We made our way to the lift, but a black Dalek was guarding it. We stayed out of sight.
“If only we could bluff Daleks,” I muttered.
“What about the old hacking method?” asked the Doctor as she got to work on a control panel. The Dalek then started spinning.
“DIZZY! DIZZY!” it yelled. It then exploded, clearing the way for us.
“Going up!” called Irina. We climbed onto the lift and went up. On the roof of the building was a machine that had a Dalek skirt with a big globe on top. There were no weapons to speak of and a grey hexagonal eye in the center. The globe opened to reveal Davros.
“Welcome to my new empire, Doctor,” he announced. “It is fitting that you should be the first to fall to the power of the Daleks!”
“Drivers ready!” I called. Shōtarō and Philip brought out their Gaia Memories. Philip then went a safe distance away from any Daleks that will inevitably surround us.
“JOKER! CYCLONE!” said the two Gaia Memories.
“Henshin!” we all called.
“CYCLONE! JOKER!” announced the W Driver
“Kamen Rider Sengoku!” began Sengoku, “You shall get a taste of Feudal Japan!”
“Kamen Rider Climb! Mountains are a warrior’s best friend!”
“Kamen Rider Claw! My weapons shall turn you into ribbons!”
“Kamen Rider Arch! My skills outdo Robin Hood!”
“Kamen Rider Seeker! It’s not gold I seek, but your end!”
“Kamen Rider Swing! I’ll be taking your legs!”
“Kamen Rider Battle! For friends and family, I shall be victorious!”
“Kamen Rider W! Saa, omae no tsumi o kazoero!” The Doctor had a bit of trouble coming up with a catchphrase.
“Er…I am the Doctor, the healer of time and space!” …Awkward silence. “Er, anyways, nice to see you again, Davros. Surely, you must be running out of escape pods by now?” That was when a TARDIS materialized in the shape of some Dalek equipment. The Rani stepped out in a new outfit, simple pants, a simple shirt, and a lab coat. She brought the Daleks with her.
“GET THEM!” she roared.
“All hail Davros!” called a Dalek.
“I’ve got something up my sleeves, but I need cover!” yelped the Doctor.
“Everyone, we protect the Doctor at all costs!” I declared. We started fighting the Daleks before the Rani joined the fray.
“ETERNAL!” announced her Gaia Memory.
“Henshin!” she called as she put the Memory into her belt and activated it.
“ETERNAL!” said the Memory as her suit formed. She drew her knife and attacked me! I kept blocking with my sword.
“Come now, ma’am,” I taunted. “Surely you don’t want your childhood destroyed!”
“Irrelevant!” replied Eternal. “You ruined the greatest experiment ever!”
“You were going to turn your universe into a dimensional manipulator!” I argued. “You would take the Doctor’s place as the last of the Time Lords! That was Hell, even for a wanderer like the Doctor!”
“Unlike the Doctor, I could have lived with it!” hissed Eternal.
“Forgive me if I’m skeptic!” I replied. Davros continued monologuing!
“After all this time,” called the lunatic, “finally, my Daleks will take their rightful place!” The Doctor made a pylon powering Davros’ throne explode, making him jolt. “You will not be so fortunate next time!” promised Davros. “Attack them, my Daleks!”
“They’re trying to do so!” taunted Strax. “Let me say, they’re hardly the best examples of warriors.”
“You say that as if this is war!” laughed Seeker. “Señor Strax, this isn’t war, this is sport!”
“Of course, the conquistador would say that!” I joked.
“I’ll get you later for that, Michael!” said Seeker hotly, as she converted her blade into rifle mode. She then put her i.d tag into the rifle.
“Do not anger me!” warned Davros. “You are a pathetic insect against my Dalek creations!”
“Final attack!” announced Seeker’s weapon.
“RIDER SEEKER BLAST!” called Seeker. She then shot another pylon, making Davros quiver again.
“Stop that!” he roared. Eternal put her Gaia Memory into the knife.
“I should have done this when I fought W,” she muttered.
“ETERNAL! MAXIMUM DRIVE!” announced the Memory. W started going into spasms as he went grey.
“Eternal Requiem,” called Eternal as she brought the blade down on W. The Gaia Memories flew out and W’s transformation was cancelled. Philip woke up and got Shōtarō out of danger. That was when a pale gray, mechanical velociraptor jumped into Philip’s hands. Shōtarō smirked.
“Reckless, as always, I see,” he mused as he pressed the button on the Joker Memory.
“JOKER!” called the Memory. Philip did some fancy folding on the raptor to reveal that the tail held a Gaia Memory with an illuminated F.
“FANG!” announced the Memory.
“Henshin!” called the two men. This time, Shōtarō put the Joker Memory in first and passed out. It appeared in the left-hand slot of Philip’s belt as he put the Fang Memory into the right-hand slot and tilted it. The rest of the Fang Memory became a raptor head with a horn on the snout as the W Driver opened.
“FANG! JOKER!” announced the Driver. The suit was a little different to say the least. It was white on the right half with the Joker colors on the left. It was a little spikier than the original.
“Time to go for the finisher!” snarled W. He pressed the horn three times.
“FANG! MAXIMUM DRIVE!” announced the W Driver
“Fang Streiser!” called W as he performed a flying roundhouse kick, which projected the head of the Fang Memory biting down on Eternal and the pylon she was in front of. The Eternal Memory flew out of the belt before shattering completely, cancelling the Rani’s transformation. The pylon blew up, making Davros jolt again.
“A foolish error on your behalf!” boasted Davros. “Daleks, EXTERMINATE!” The Daleks fired. “This will be my ultimate victory!” ranted their creator. “You cannot stop it!” He then noticed something. “Wait, where’s the Doctor?!”
“Oh, don’t mind me!” called the Doctor. She was fiddling with a control panel.
“NO!” shouted Davros. “YOU HAVE CONFOUNDED ME FOR THE LAST TIME!! I WILL DESTROY YOU AND THE MISERABLE, INSIGNIFICANT PLANET THAT IS EARTH!”
“I think you said that a while ago,” I observed. We kept the Daleks busy. “Doctor, what are you up to?” I asked.
“A little messing around,” explained the Doctor. An image of her face popped up on the screen.
“What are you doing?!” shouted Davros. “CEASE AT ONCE!! THE DALEKS ARE MEANT TO OBEY ME! THEY! WILL! OBEY! ME!”
“For future reference,” called the Doctor as she finished, the image on the screen changing to that of Davros, “it’s a really bad idea to route all your targeting software through a single computer node!” The Daleks then started shaking as if they were resisting movements but couldn’t.
“Weapons targeting is being overridden!” reported a Dalek. “I cannot control! I cannot control!” The Daleks started haphazardly firing on Davros and the Rani!
“Oh no, I’m not wasting this regeneration!” yelped the Rani. She scuttled into her TARDIS and fled.
“No! Stop! I AM YOUR CREATOR!” shouted Davros.
“We cannot override the Doctor’s commands!” screamed a Dalek.
“CURSE YOU, DOCTOR!” shouted Davros.
“That’s the first time he ever said that specific phrase,” I observed. There was a massive explosion in the sky as Davros started going up.
“And that’ll be your fleet exploding, Davros,” revealed the Doctor. We turned on our heels, after the Doctor blew on her TARDIS whistle. “I hope you’re well insured. See you next time, Davros.”
“DALEK!” announced a Gaia Memory voice. As the TARDIS reappeared, we turned to see Davros put a Gaia Memory into a Dalek gun from his chair. “DALEK! MAXIMUM DRIVE!”
“DALEK EXTERMINATION!” roared Davros. A single blue bolt of light flew towards us. We got out of the way…well…all but Kamen Rider Climb. She was hit by the blast.
“IRINA!” I shouted. The rest is a blur, your Highness, but we put her in stasis for the trip here.
Go ahead, play the Doctor Who theme. Imagine your own intro sequence. Now, imagine the names “Jodie Whittaker, Michael Archer, Emmanuel Babineaux, Sheela Kumar, Irina Kuznetsov, Hiroki Hishikawa, Tonje Haugen, Xiomara Elizondo.” Now, imagine the title of the show. You can see it in bold, capital letters. Doctor Who! Now imagine Jodie Whittaker’s grinning face in the stars then fading into the episode’s title, The Dalek Extermination of Earth! before we cut to the interior of the Dalek Command Saucer. “Time capsule detected!” reported the Dalek running Scan-Ops.
“Battle computers estimate a ninety-seven percent chance that it is the Doctor!” read off the Dalek running the battle computer mainframe.
“Oh, I think we can up that to one-hundred percent,” replied a voice from the shadows. “However, I give you my word, this time, there’s a zero percent chance of the Doctor’s survival!” As the voice ranted, the TARDIS landed in an old station of the London Underground that had been exposed by bombing. Outside, the Daleks were squawking orders to the humans.
“Do not resist the will of the Daleks! All humans must present themselves for processing!” they bellowed. We all poked our heads outside.
“So, where and when is this?” asked Xiomara.
“London in the year 2055,” replied the Doctor, “or, at least, what’s left of it.” She sighed in annoyance. “Who else but the Daleks would cause so much destruction?”
“Well, no point staying down here,” I mused.
“Right,” agreed the Doctor. “We need to find a way up onto the street. I don’t want to be late for the surprise welcome party.”
“Oh, look,” observed Irina, “a locked door.” It was a shutter style door.
“Well, Doctor,” I jested, “these broken shutters are nothing your magic wand can’t handle.”
“You mean the Sonic Screwdriver?” asked the Doctor.
“Po-tay-to, po-tah-to,” I dismissed.
“The Sonic Screwdriver is a tool of the Time Lords!” argued the Doctor in annoyance. “It is technological in operation, not mystical!”
“It’s a device that can perform a multitude of tasks with either the flick of a switch,” I countered, “or an incantation. It can function as a crude laser or unlock doors. That’s what a magic wand does.”
“Well, at the moment,” replied the Doctor as she pulled out the charred remains of a Sonic Screwdriver with the TARDIS at the end of it, “a Sontaran shot it. I haven’t gotten around to fixing it. Michael, be a dear and get the toolkit.” She then got a faraway look. “I really need to use it more often. I don’t know why I stopped.” She then pushed me into the TARDIS. “In any case, off you go!”
“Wait! But…!” I couldn’t complete my sentence as the door was shut on me. “I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHERE IT IS!” A beep from the console alerted me to a path being shown in yellow light. I figured out who made it as I grinned at the console. “Is there anything Time Lords can’t put into their time machines?” I asked rhetorically. The console then showed me a person in simple clothes on its view screen. “Yes,” I muttered, “humility isn’t a Gallifreyan’s strong suit.” I followed the path into a room built like a futuristic tool shed, complete with the TARDIS’ old roundels. “Not even the Doctor knows what the roundels are,” I muttered to myself. I grabbed the toolkit and returned outside. The toolkit apparently also has telepathic circuits as I knew what tools were inside and what their main functions were.
“Excellent!” cheered the Doctor. She knelt down at the door controls that she had opened up. “Now then, pen torch.”
“Pen torch,” I replied as I handed her the tool. It was a pen with a powerful torch at the end, or flashlight, if you’re from America. The Doctor pulled a small clamp arm out and attached it to the edge of the opening after she turned the torch end on. After adjusting the light, she could see what to do.
“Magnetic clamp,” she requested.
“Magnetic clamp,” I replied, handing her the tool. She put it across the internal workings to make a circuit.
“Astro-rectifier,” requested the Doctor.
“Astro-rectifier,” I confirmed. It was used to give temporary power to the circuit the magnetic clamp was making. The doors opened and the Doctor removed her tools. As I put them back, I started wondering to the Daleks’ purpose here.
“What do you suppose brought the Daleks here?” asked Irina, voicing my thoughts.
“I’m fairly sure that they didn’t get lost on their way to a plumbing convention,” mused Emmanuel.
“I never asked Davros why the manipulator arm looks like a plunger,” muttered the Doctor as we went up onto the street.
“Why ask Davros anything?” I asked. “He just wants to cause destruction.”
“But, a plunger?” quizzed the Doctor.
“Daleks are the masters of Earth! Daleks are the masters of Earth!” shrieked a Dalek. A saucer then blasted a large hole where a double-decker bus was resting.
“Daleks reign supreme!” called another Dalek.
“Alert!” screeched a third. “Vortex riders detected!”
“Right on cue,” quipped the Doctor. “Not so nice to see you again.”
“Time Lord genetics detected!” reported a Dalek.
“Confirm identity of Time Lord,” ordered a Black Dalek.
“I obey!” obliged the subordinate. A probe stuck itself into the Doctor and flew towards the Dalek.
“I already got vaccinated!” she protested.
“TARDIS located!” screamed a Dalek that traveled to the Underground.
“You don’t even have legs!” called Hiroki.
“They don’t need them,” I gulped. “Stairs may have been a problem for early model Daleks, but not these new ones.”
“Identity confirmed!” reported the Dalek that stuck the Doctor with a needle. “It IS the Doctor!”
“Exterminate!” ordered the Black Dalek.
“Drivers ready, everyone!” I directed. “Protect the Doctor!” We got our i.d tags out and readied ourselves.
“Henshin!” we all announced. We donned our familiar Rider suits and charged the ranks of the Daleks as the Doctor looked at a wall of blue light.
“A Dalek energy shield,” she muttered, “and heavily guarded too. There’s nothing getting past that in one piece. There must be a power source nearby. And chances are we’ll find a few more Daleks too.” As she looked around, we fought off the Daleks.
“Might want to add us to your ‘Ka Faraq Gatri’ files!” I quipped. “The Doctor’s getting lonely being your only arch-nemesis!”
“Ka what now?” asked Sengoku.
“It’s Dalek for ‘Oncoming Storm’!” I explained. I then stabbed a Dalek right between the manipulator arm and the gun stick. A bit of green dripped from my blade. I then turned it into rifle mode and fired on three more. As we fought, the Doctor found something. It was a console that had the same globes that are on the Daleks’ skirts.
“AHA!” she cheered. “What do we have here?”
“Dalek technology?” asked Swing.
“Unmistakably Dalek technology,” confirmed the Doctor. “And if my calculations are correct, and they are, then this is one of the power sources to that energy field.” She started fiddling with the electronics inside. The unit started shaking. “Take cover!” called the Doctor. Those of us that could fell on our fronts and covered our heads. The Daleks, regrettably, do not have a way to do so. I couldn’t see their deaths, but I could hear them. Judging by the boom and the following death rattles they made, I guessed that the shrapnel pierced their casings and killed the creatures inside. We got up and saw the grisly aftermath of those Daleks. They weren’t moving.
“Non-Dalek lifeforms detected!” screamed a Dalek’s voice. “Exterminate! Exterminate!”
“Stay calm!” called the Doctor. “More Daleks incoming! We need to get to safety!”
“Where in this time zone is safe?!” asked Arch.
“Especially now that a Special Weapons Dalek is coming!” I yelped.
“You’re right,” agreed the Doctor. “There’s nothing we can do here. The Daleks will have us surrounded. So, where to next? Let’s take a punt, shall we? Back to the TARDIS!”
“Problem,” replied Seeker, “the Daleks are surrounding the Underground entrance. That Special Weapons one is with them. If only Wyldstyle were here.”
“How easy you forget,” chuckled Climb as she drew out the Wyldstyle i.d tag. She swapped hers out for the new one.
“Wyldstyle Steel!” announced her belt. She got the Wyldstyle Steel on and used the Special Weapons Dalek and some street lamps to make a laser beam to slice through the Daleks and get back to the TARDIS. We got inside and started working the controls, this time with Arch and Sengoku standing to the side. The Doctor told them to head down to a room near the pool and retrieve a valuable asset. We landed in Central London again, but in a different time.
“2015,” sighed the Doctor. “A good year, or at least, it will be if we can find the next power source to break down the Dalek’s force field.”
“And you think that we can find it here?” asked Sengoku as he and Arch brought a robot in. It was shaped like a dog, was gray, and had its name on one side. It had a red visor with a probe that could be extended from the eye. It had a pair of radar dishes to look like dog ears and had a wire tail. It had a dog tag, a set of controls on its back, and a hook for someone to attach a lead (leash) on it. It looked quite battered.
“K-9!” I cheered. K-9 didn’t move.
“He’s had quite the tumble with some Sontarans,” explained the Doctor as she opened K-9 up. She fiddled with the electronics and muttered to herself. “Let’s see…can’t quite…ah, yes…need to align that…oops, almost forgot where arrow A points…and Bob’s your uncle! One fully operational tin dog!” She closed the dog and switched it on. As the eye glowed red, she went to the front, holding her hand out to sniff. The probe extended as K-9 gathered data on the hand, then the head tilted to see the face.
“Master?” quizzed K-9 as the probe retracted. The Doctor stroked her dog’s head, making the tail wag. “Last time I saw you,” said K-9, “was with Mistress Sarah.”
“This is the Mark IV K-9?” I asked.
“Yes,” confirmed the Doctor. “I picked him up after Sarah…passed.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry,” I sympathized, remembering Sarah Jane Smith’s actress having a battle with cancer. She died in 2011. Then I remembered what the Doctor said earlier. “K-9, when were you around the Sontarans?” K-9’s response, apropos, given that he doesn’t know me and my friends, was to deploy his stun blaster from his snout.
“Negative! Negative! Negative!” barked K-9 as his ears rotated backwards. “Retreat! Retreat! Retreat! Intruders are not welcome in the TARDIS!”
“K-9! HEEL!” ordered the Doctor.
“Master?” asked K-9.
“I picked these people up to help me with a Dalek problem in 2055,” explained the Doctor. “Now, recognize Michael, Emmanuel, Hiroki, Irina, Tonje, Sheela, and Xiomara: friends.” K-9 slowly retracted his blaster and extended his probe. We cancelled our transformations and held our hands out for him to scan. When he was finished, his tail wagged.
“All are now recognized as friends, Master,” reported K-9. “Correction; Mistress.”
“Calling me Master is fine,” assured the Doctor. “Now, shall we get moving?” We left the TARDIS with K-9 at the Doctor’s heels. We were in Central London. A tree was about to be planted, but the truck’s crew was on break. I then remembered something.
“Doctor,” I observed, “there was an area that would have had a tree in 2055. It would have easily been long enough for us to climb the bus and get to another part to find the energy field power source.”
“I think Richard and Emily would call it going halfway around your butt to get to your elbow,” muttered Irina.
“They used another word, but yes,” agreed Hiroki.
“That could be our best option,” mused the Doctor. “K-9, see if you can plant that tree.”
“At once, Master,” obliged K-9. He found a panel at the truck’s rear and extended his probe to interface with it. A claw arm on the truck then grabbed the tree and put it in the ground.
“OI!” called one of the crew members. The whole crew saw us. The Doctor drew out a wallet with a blank card, at least, blank to me. She presented it to the crew.
“I’m the Doctor, this here’s the relief crew your Foreman asked for,” she answered.
“You trying to be funny?!” snapped the man. “I’m the Foreman and this paper’s blank! I didn’t ask for a relief crew OR a doctor!” The card, called Psychic Paper, didn’t work.
“More clever than you gave him credit for, eh?” I muttered to the Doctor.
“Look, sir,” argued the Doctor, “planting this tree is VITAL to the survival of the human race. For, in the future, that tree could very well alter the course of human history, being a beacon of hope, showing every man, woman, and child that perseverance will ensure their survival and you’re not buying a single word I’m saying, are you?”
“What gave that away?” quizzed the Foreman. He was dialing a number on his mobile, the police, in all likelihood. Sadly, he couldn’t complete the call.
“Master! Hostiles, incoming! Danger!” warned K-9. We turned to the sky to see the Dalek fleet! We landed on the date the Daleks invaded Earth!
“All hail the Daleks!” called one of those pepperpots as it shot one of the crew. The Daleks were firing everywhere on the screaming masses.
“Time to go, I think!” yelped the Doctor. We turned to face a Dalek right behind us. Its eyestalk was a few centimeters from my face.
“All humans are to surren…!” it barked. The Dalek didn’t complete its sentence as I whacked it off with a knife hand chop. “MY VISION IS IMPAIRED! I CANNOT SEE!” We got out of the way of the gunstick as the Dalek fired wildly. We retreated into the TARDIS.
“Daleks conquer and destroy!” called another Dalek.
“I’d love to stay and reminisce,” muttered the Doctor as we gathered around the controls, this time with Xiomara and myself being left out, “but, you know how it is. Things to do, planets to save.” We took off and returned to Dalek controlled Central London in 2055. The tree we planted had indeed grown with branches long enough to get to the roof of the bus.
“Drivers ready!” I called. We got our i.d tags and struck our poses.
“Henshin!” we announced. After we donned our suits, we climbed up the tree and landed on the bus. Poor K-9 was almost left behind!
“I got him,” called Arch. He swapped out his i.d tag for the Batman one.
“Batman Steel!” announced the belt. He then fired the grapple gun onto the latch for K-9’s lead.
“Master Arch, what aaaAAAUUGGH!” yelled the tin dog. K-9 was brought up rapidly onto the bus’s roof. He’s one that claims he has no emotional programming but judging by how his tail was stiffer than usual, I’d say Arch spooked the poor dog.
“Next time, just let poor K-9 use his hover generators,” moaned the Doctor as she reassured her dog.
“Intruders detected!” reported a Dalek. “Protect the energy shield!”
“Exterminate the Doctor!” ordered a Black Dalek.
“I obey!” obliged a third. After dispatching those Daleks, we had managed to get a lift truck to get us up to where we could see the generator, but the only ledge was on the second floor instead of the top floor.
“Let’s see, judging by the decay,” said the Doctor as she licked fingers after touching it, “I’d say it was completed in 1867. We just need to go a couple of years before and move the ledge up.” She then took out a whistle, blew into it, and the TARDIS appeared. “And the TARDIS whistle works just fine!” cheered the Doctor. We got back into the TARDIS and headed for 1865 Central London. This time, the Doctor decided to hang back with Claw. The landing was…bumpy, to say the least. As we staggered out, we cancelled our transformations again. Our shoes crunched against newly fallen snow. “Here we are,” whispered the Doctor, “Victorian London. The Gelth, Weng-Chiang, a giant dinosaur in the Thames, I’ve got a tale or two to tell from my time here.” She examined the snow. “It must be winter,” she observed. “Strange how quiet it is, and there’s a sinister look to the snow.” I then saw old friends of the Doctor.
“Hey! It’s the Paternoster gang!” I called. I approached the gates to try and introduce myself, but they shut on their own accord.
“Creepy old gates slamming shut of their own accord in the middle of the night,” muttered the Doctor. “Never a good sign.” We headed to an old crane, but part of it was frozen in ice.
“I think I can handle this,” called Hiroki. “Or, rather, with Wyldstyle’s help, I can. Henshin!” After the Henshin sequence, he activated Wyldstyle Steel and built a large flame thrower. After that, we moved the ledge to the top floor where it was needed. We were about to get into the TARDIS when we saw a shaggy, brownish, bear-like creature spraying the TARDIS with some sort of aerosol that made ice on contact. The thing was bipedal, had fearsome claws, and when it turned, we saw yellow eyes and teeth.
“A Yeti!” I exclaimed.
“Yeti?” asked Xiomara.
“What on Earth is the Great Intelligence up to now?” moaned the Doctor. That’s when the Yeti laughed. That surprised me, they usually roared.
“The Great Intelligence?” growled the Yeti. “That thing is nothing more than a Cosmic Annoyance. I’m a Yeti of Vortech’s design. The Mark IV Yeti, if you will.”
“That dolt’s interfering here?” I snapped.
“He intends to control this universe,” explained the Yeti. “After seizing the Foundation Element of this universe, a Dalek gunstick, he figured the best thing to do would be to get rid of you, Doctor. And, with the avatar of the true Gaia Memory in our possession,” Sengoku was surprised, “ah, I THOUGHT that remark would startle you, Kamen Rider Sengoku, the self-proclaimed Rider Encyclopedia. Yes, we have Philip. Shōtarō followed after him, but we lost him.”
“Henshin!” announced the rest of us.
“Careful!” warned Sengoku after we finished transforming. “If they have access to the true Gaia Memory, they may possess the power to make their own.”
“And a Gaia Memory looks like…?” I ventured. The Yeti then grabbed a USB flash drive and pressed a button near the plug. It was brown like the Yeti’s fur and had an illuminated Y on it.
“YETI!” announced the flash drive after the Yeti pressed the button.
“That’s a Gaia Memory,” explained Sengoku. “They carry the memories and powers of certain things, like the wind, or metal, or Yetis, in this case.”
“Amazing what one can build with Master Vortech’s abilities,” crowed the Yeti. He then pulled back a fur flap on his right arm and put the Gaia Memory in at a diagonal and then pushed it flush against his arm’s internal mechanics.
“YETI! MAXIMUM DRIVE!” announced the Gaia Memory.
“Yeti Freezer,” declared the Yeti as he got ready to swipe his claw. We raised our weapons to strike, but the Yeti swiped the air, making ice encase us. We froze on the spot. “I am hardly the only one in this city’s timeline with a Gaia Memory. Sengoku, you’ve probably heard of Kamen Rider Eternal. That Rider’s been essential in making the two Gaia Memories my master has in his possession. Speaking of which, Lord Vortech wouldn’t want you running around and ruining things, so I’ll just deal with you now. With you lot gone, the Vortex Riders are that much weaker and the Time Lord will finally die. Say goodbye, Doctor and Company.” He raised his claw to strike, but something interrupted him.
“SONTAR-HA!” it roared. Something tackled the Yeti and knocked him to the ground while a pair of women got us out of the ice. Being of a colder body temperature than humans, the Doctor recovered more quickly than us.
“Is everything quite all right?” asked one of the women, wearing a black veil.
“Apart from being frozen, Madame,” I shivered. “I think we’ll be okay. We’re not feeling sluggish, at least. The Doctor, even less so.”
“So, you know the Doctor?” asked the other woman. “Is he still in there?” She was pointing to the TARDIS.
“No,” corrected the Doctor, “SHE’S right here. Good to see you again, Madame Vastra, Jenny. I presume Strax is dealing with the Yeti?” The person that tackled the Yeti was then flung off. He picked himself up and grabbed a large club. He had a potato shaped head, reached up to my solar plexus, had three fingers, and a crazed expression.
“I’m going to enjoy eviscerating you, Sontaran!” roared the Yeti.
“Prepare to meet complete and utter dismantling at the hands of a Sontaran Warrior!” declared the creature, a Sontaran.
“Strax, return here at once and put that club down!” commanded Madame Vastra.
“But, Madame!” protested the Sontaran, Strax.
“Now!” ordered Vastra. Strax grudgingly put the club down and joined with Vastra and the other human.
“And the young woman with you is your wife, Ms. Jenny Flint, correct?” I asked.
“That’s…right…” stammered Jenny.
“Now that the Sontaran lap dog has returned to its master,” growled the Yeti, “the TARDIS key! I can’t have you returning to 2055!”
“I don’t think so!” snarled the Doctor.
“JOKER!” announced the voice of a Gaia Memory. We all looked around, Sengoku trying more feverishly to find the source of the voice.
“Henshin!” called a voice behind us.
“JOKER!” announced the mysterious Gaia Memory. A small orchestral hit played. We turned to see a Kamen Rider in black with purple trim, red eyes, rounded shoulder pads, and a long silver unibrow evoking the letter W. The belt he wore was red with a silver outer lining that held a black Gaia Memory with an illuminated J. The Memory Slot was tilted to look like an L resting on its point.
“Kamen Rider…Joker!” introduced the mysterious Rider as he flicked his left wrist to make a J with his thumb and pointer.
“YOU?!” roared the Yeti. “How did you find me?!”
“Nothing escapes a Hard-Boiled detective, Dopant,” declared Joker.
“Half-boiled, you mean!” argued the Yeti.
“That’s not a Dopant, Shōtarō-san,” replied Sengoku. “That’s a robot powered by a Gaia Memory with Kamen Rider Eternal’s help and Philip’s coercion.”
“Then, where’s Philip?” demanded Joker to the Yeti.
“Like I’d tell you!” roared the Yeti. He pressed his Gaia Memory’s button again.
“YETI!” announced the Yeti Memory. He then put it in his neck and swung it down. “YETI! MAXIMUM DRIVE!” Joker then took out his Gaia Memory and put it into a slot on his right leg. He then pressed a button on the slot.
“JOKER! MAXIMUM DRIVE!” called the Joker Memory. Energy gathered around his foot.
“Rider Kick!” announced Joker.
“YETI CRUNCHER!” shouted the Yeti as energy flowed around his teeth. As the Yeti charged with an open mouth, Joker leapt at the Yeti and delivered a powerful kick, shattering the Yeti’s teeth. “MY TEETH!” screamed the Yeti. The kick was still travelling as the ice around the TARDIS shattered.
“And we’ll be going back to 2055,” cheered the Doctor. “All of us, Paternoster Gang and new Rider included.” We got into the TARDIS and Joker started looking around.
“Welcome to the TARDIS,” I introduced. “Yes, it’s bigger on the inside and it can travel to any planet, any time. Now, please don’t gawk. We’re landing.”
“Couldn’t we take a breather?” asked Joker.
“Not likely, given that Daleks are surrounding the TARDIS,” I answered, looking at the screen. Sengoku explained what Daleks were as we got ready to fight. “Er, Ladies and Gentlemen,” I gulped. “The Daleks have a hostage and have recovered the Yeti. They seem to be with a Kamen Rider.” Joker looked into the screen when he heard me say “Kamen Rider”. This Rider had a white suit with a black cape, blue gloves in the style of flames, yellow eyes, and three prongs like a crown. He had a belt like Joker, but the Gaia Memory was white and had an illuminated E. He was holding a knife at the throat of someone in what I would call a fashion disaster outfit. A red Dalek with prongs around its neck and three dome lights instead of two was at the head of the group. This was a Dalek Supreme.
“Doctor, we know you are in there!” boomed the Supreme. “We are willing to cease the attack if you surrender yourself to us in exchange for Philip!” It was referring to the human the Kamen Rider was holding his knife to.
“Come now, Shōtarō,” declared the Rider, “surely a hard-boiled detective could understand the reality of the situation. Surrender the Doctor and we’ll stop attacking London.” After confirming the mysterious Kamen Rider’s identity, I pressed the external communicator.
“Eternal, surely you know about the Daleks,” I replied. “They’ll exterminate you on the spot once the Doctor steps out, as well as Philip.”
“Our leader has ordered them and their master not to do so,” called Kamen Rider Eternal. The Doctor took over negotiations.
“‘Their master’?” she said. “That was the phrase you used? The Daleks answer to no one, not even their creator.”
“Given that I saw him shout orders at a couple of these tin cans,” answered Eternal, “I’d say that claim is in dispute.”
“Davros barked orders and the Daleks said that they obey?” I muttered.
“Something seems wrong here,” mused Madame Vastra.
“Perhaps it’s a Dalek duplicate,” guessed Strax. The thought hadn’t occurred to me.
“Which one?” I asked. Multiple possibilities ran through my head.
“Their hostage, most likely,” figured Jenny.
“You have five seconds to obey!” demanded the Dalek Supreme.
“It could be a bluff,” guessed the Doctor. “It could be that they may strongarm Shōtarō or myself into obeying.”
“Four!” counted Eternal.
“Then again, why would the Daleks need Philip?” asked the Doctor. “Now that they’ve learned how to do so, they can make their own Gaia Memories without him.”
“Three!” counted the Dalek Supreme.
“Doctor!” I yelped, guessing her endgame.
“Two!” counted Eternal.
“Power down,” ordered the Doctor to all Riders. “I think we’d better do as they say.” As we powered down, I noticed Shōtarō’s civilian form was dressed in film noir detective clothes, complete with fedora, er, trilby, er, whatever. We headed for the doors.
“ONE!” counted the Dalek Supreme. We stepped out when it said that.
“Good afternoon!” greeted the Doctor.
“Doctor, you’re proving to be a thorn in our side,” hissed Eternal.
“Oh, no tea and chat?” asked the Doctor. “For someone who claims to be Eternal, you’re forgetting what makes eternity bearable. Tea, a good meal, a story, brilliant lights,” she seemed to be shooing one of us off in secret. Xiomara then got an idea and got to the lift truck. “You see, you surround yourself and poor Philip with the ultimate racists. The ultimate terrified people.”
“You imply that the Daleks know fear, Doctor,” argued the Supreme. “You are incorrect!”
“Oh, but you DO know fear,” countered the Doctor. “Where else does your hatred stem from? You fear anything that isn’t a ‘pure’ Dalek, the Dalek Civil War is a prime example. You would smash anything that Daleks didn’t make because the materials didn’t come from Skaro or any planet in your empire of ruin.”
“We’ve built an empire of purity!” shouted the Dalek Supreme. “The Daleks on those planets do not have to deal with other races! It was Davros who said so! When all other life-forms are suppressed, when the Daleks become the supreme beings of the universe, then there is true peace! There is no war in our empire, Doctor! We succeeded where the Time Lords have failed! Yet, you still dare to oppose us!”
“Yes, we do!” declared the Doctor as Philip surreptitiously went over to our side and handed Shōtarō a belt that looked like the driver he had mirrored itself, holding two Gaia Memories instead of one. “We dare to believe we can survive!” said the Doctor. “We hold the future in our hands! We dare to keep all of our dreams alive! It’s time we took a stand!”
“You can win if you dare!” I sang. Everyone turned to me in confusion. “The Doctor started it by quoting the Transformers movie.” While that went on, Philip showed Shōtarō a green Gaia Memory with an illuminated C.
“What?!” yelped the Doctor. “No! I…okay, yes, but it was the good one!”
“Doctor, you waste our time!” bellowed the Dalek Supreme.
“Past tense!” jeered Xiomara. “She wasted your time!” She was holding the remains of the shield generator.
“Energy shield losing power!” reported a Dalek.
“Protect the final generator!” ordered the Supreme.
“Two down, one to go!” called the Doctor. “It appears that we still have work to do!”
“Exterminate!” screamed a Dalek as it fired. We dodged. We got ready to transform, Shōtarō put the new belt on and one just like it appeared on Philip’s waist. They pressed their Gaia Memory buttons.
“JOKER!” announced the Joker Memory.
“CYCLONE!” called the green one.
“Henshin!” we all shouted. Philip then put his Gaia Memory into the right slot of his belt. It transferred through data into Shōtarō’s belt as Philip fell asleep. Strax got him into the TARDIS as Shōtarō put the Joker Memory into the left slot and tilted both sides.
“CYCLONE! JOKER!” announced the belt. It started with a technical guitar to Joker’s orchestral hit. The suit looked like Joker’s but the was a silver band going down the middle with the right half green and sporting a silver cape.
“And Kamen Rider W (pronounced Double), the two-in-one Kamen Rider, is here!” said Sengoku. W spoke in both Philip and Shōtarō’s voices.
“Saa, omae no tsumi o kazoero!” they taunted. We then charged the ranks of the Daleks. The Doctor set to work trying to find the final generator with K-9. It didn’t take long to find it as Daleks came out of the wall near the house we altered.
“Destroy the TARDIS!” ordered a Dalek. Good plan, won’t work.
“More Daleks?” gulped Shōtarō’s voice from W.
“Stay alert!” called Philip’s voice from W. As Philip spoke, W’s right eye flashed. We kept the Daleks off the Doctor’s back while she and K-9 found an energy field guarding the path to the generator.
“K-9, if you please,” requested the Doctor. K-9’s blaster came out and shot the mechanism making the shield. “…I was expecting a little finesse, but I’ll take it.” K-9 drooped his head slightly. We then approached yard doors. On it was “I.M. Foreman. Scrap Merchant. 76, Totter’s Lane.”
“The scrap yard where it all started!” I declared. “Whizzing through time and space with Susan, Ian, and Barbara on the 22nd of November 1963!”
“The doors are locked,” muttered the Doctor, concerning herself with the present situation. “Back to 2015 it is!” She summoned the TARDIS and we piled in; Philip still sound asleep. I turned to Sengoku.
“Philip’s soul entered the Cyclone Memory,” he explained. “It’s how W gets the powers of the wind. Philip’s soul then entered Shōtarō to act as strategist.”
“And, their catchphrase?” I asked.
“‘Saa, omae no tsumi o kazoero’?” quizzed Sengoku. “It means ‘Now, count up your crimes’. Shōtarō’s mentor, Kamen Rider Skull, was the first one to say that.” The TARDIS then gave its landing noise.
“Here we are!” called the Doctor. She then fished something out of the toolkit. It turned out to be Missy’s Laser Screwdriver!
“I thought she abandoned that when she was the Prime Minister!” I yelped. “What are you doing, carrying that around?!”
“Swiped it from him before he died on the Valiant,” explained the Doctor.
“She? Him?” queried Seeker.
“Madame, Monsieur, who are you talking about?” asked Arch.
“An old acquaintance of the Doctor, with a higher degree in Cosmic Science while the Doctor barely scraped by with a 51% on the second attempt,” I explained.
“That is confidential!” snapped the Doctor. “Besides, I was a late developer! He underwent a sex change regeneration before me. She now calls herself Missy, but I still know her as the Master.” We stepped out of the TARDIS. The Doctor headed to the chain over the yard’s doors when we heard something familiar. “That’s a TARDIS arriving,” muttered the Doctor. “The new Type 90.” This TARDIS took the shape of a pillar box, Britain’s free-standing post box. The top opened to let a woman out. She was in the clothes of an early 20th century nanny, complete with a ridiculous hat. Her expression was not one I would personally expect on a nanny, this was cold and calculating.
“Oh dear,” sighed the woman in a Scottish accent. “Don’t go away, Doctor!” She had climbed out of her TARDIS and walked towards us. “My coordinates seemed to have slipped a tad,” mused the woman. “Still, not bad after a round trip to Gallifrey.”
“Speaking of the Master,” I hissed.
“Missy, if you must,” corrected the woman. “I do hope you can spare a moment of your time, Doctor, especially with Daleks on the way.”
“Sarcasm always was a weak point, even with you,” snarled the Doctor.
“May I say,” I interjected, “that that hat looks utterly ridiculous. I preferred the beard version of you. Anthony Ainley was a fantastic version of you.”
“I rather like this form,” countered Missy. “It allows me to travel incognito.”
“Maybe in the early 20th century,” argued the Doctor.
“Well, Time Lords need a sense of style,” said Missy softly, “some of us, anyway.”
“Now look, if you’re here to be rude…” hissed the Doctor.
“I came here to warn you,” interrupted Missy, “an old Time Lord acquaintance of ours is involved with the Daleks.”
“Old school chum?” I asked.
“Well, which is it? You? Rallon? Drax, Rassilon forbid?” quizzed the Doctor.
“I believe she was once called Ushas,” recalled Missy.
“You mean the Rani?” yelped the Doctor. “She’s a jackanape like you, causing nothing but trouble!”
“She has something called the ‘Eternal Memory’ in her possession,” reported Missy.
“You mean it’s a woman as Kamen Rider Eternal?!” exclaimed W.
“A Time Lady, no less,” continued Missy. “She’ll certainly try to kill you, Doctor. The High Council thought you should be made aware of her.”
“How very kind,” snarked the Doctor. Missy tensed up in irritation.
“You are an incorrigible meddler, Doctor!” she hissed. “Still, the Council believes your hearts are in the right places. Now, be careful, will you? The Rani’s learned a new trick or two with the Eternal Memory.”
“I refuse to be worried by someone as cold and typically Arcalian as the Rani!” rebuffed the Doctor. “She’s an unimaginative plodder, like yourself!”
“Her degree in neurochemistry was higher than my own in cosmic science, loath though I am to admit it,” answered Missy.
“Yes, well, she was put in a house that values study,” conceded the Doctor.
“I do suppose you’re right in her being unimaginative,” continued Missy. “She stole my little ‘surprise’ from when I first came to Earth.”
“Oh?” asked the Doctor.
“Examine the chain around the doors,” instructed Missy. As the Doctor moved to do so, she was stopped by Missy’s umbrella. “However, be careful.” The Doctor pushed the umbrella aside. She then felt on the door around the chain and felt something off when her hand was at the seam of the door. She followed it all the way to the top and then felt around the chain in that area. I’d say a special invisible string was being used.
“A volatizer?” guessed the Doctor. Missy nodded. “Oh, grief!” said the Doctor. “If it should fall, it’ll explode, taking the scrap yard, surrounding buildings, and people with it. She’s most likely rigged it up so opening the door or cutting the chain will make it fall.”
“Well, I hope Missy has a witty way of dealing with it, since it was her original idea!” I demanded. Missy had vanished. I heard her TARDIS going away. “COME BACK!” I shouted. Too late.
“Good luck!” called Missy’s voice.
“Never mind her,” called the Doctor. “I have a plan.” She carefully pulled the string upwards, slowly, I might add, until we could see a black cylinder with a drum on top, the volatizer, I believe. “All right, someone fetch the magnetic clamp.”
“I got it,” I responded as I went into the TARDIS. I grabbed the clamp and then headed outside to hand it to the Doctor. She used one end of the clamp to get a grip on the volatizer and get it over the doors without falling. At that point, a Dalek saucer flew overhead.
“You will obey the Daleks!” barked a Dalek.
“I’ve just about had enough,” snarled Swing. She took the volatizer off the clamp.
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING, YOU CRAZY VIKING?!” I yelled. She turned to the ship.
“This is a Time Lord explosive!” Swing shouted. “I hope my clumsy human fingers don’t do something clumsy!” She then tossed it at the saucer! “Oops! You guys handle it!” After the saucer exploded, she turned to me. “What was that about me being a crazy Viking?”
“Er, nothing, just rambling!” I said quickly.
“Thought so,” muttered Swing. While that went on, the Doctor, W, Sengoku, and Claw made a ramp from the scrap.
“Alright, back to the TARDIS!” called the Doctor when they were finished. We piled in and returned to 2055, hacking through Daleks who were confused about the ramp that mysteriously appeared. “All right, I should be able to get to the last generator from here,” remarked the Doctor as she climbed the scrap. We stopped by a control panel before the Doctor said “Oh, blast!”
“What’s the matter?” asked Claw.
“A Dalek and Eternal are guarding it,” replied the Doctor. “I can use this device to override the Dalek’s controls system, but I need someone to take care of Eternal.”
“We took care of Eternal once,” called W. “We can do so again. This ‘Rani’ is inexperienced in terms of the Gaia Memories.”
“Get to it, then!” encouraged the Doctor. W took off as the Doctor started messing with the controls.
“SYSTEM MALFUNCTION!” yelped the Dalek. “HELP ME!” Eternal was confused.
“Lady, you’re making a mistake, siding with evil” called W. Eternal turned to see W pull out new Gaia Memories. One was red with an illuminated H and the other was silver with an illuminated M. He pressed the buttons.
“HEAT!” announced the red one.
“METAL!” called the grey one. He then swapped out the Cyclone and Joker Memories for the new ones, Heat in the right slot and Metal in the left.
“HEAT! METAL!” announced the belt. A bit of rock music played followed by a metallic synth as the right side went red and the left side went silver. A long staff appeared with a red grip looking like a W.
“Let’s go, Time Lady!” challenged W. Eternal cocked her head. “We had a run-in with an old acquaintance of the Doctor. Apparently, she was male once, and called herself the Master. Calls herself Missy nowadays.” Eternal gripped her knife.
“So,” she hissed, “that jackanape decided to interfere! I don’t when or HOW she regenerated since HE used up his and was in the habit of borrowing bodies!”
“Let’s just say,” I replied, “a certain war changed that. You, of all people, should be familiar with the Great Time War.”
“I am, and I didn’t participate,” answered Eternal. “The last Dalek I fought was the cause of my first regeneration. I liked that body!”
“So, the incidents with Loyhargil and sleep deprived humans were your favorites?” I asked. That got her. She started throwing punches while W was dodging and swinging his staff. I jumped in with my sword and went on the attack. We traded blows for a while, but, W and I had to end it. W pulled the Metal Memory out and put it into the staff.
“METAL! MAXIMUM DRIVE!” announced the Memory. Fire started coming out of both ends of the staff.
“Metal Branding!” called W in both Shōtarō and Philip’s voices. I inserted my i.d tag into my sword.
“Final Attack!” announced my weapon.
“RIDER BATTLE SLASH!” I called as I swung my sword at a diagonal while W swung the staff and unleashed a torrent of flames. Eternal sparked before the belt she used spat out the Gaia Memory she was using. The suit disappeared to reveal a woman in ginger hair and goth clothes with a knee-length skirt and a lab coat. Her emerald eyes were burning into my soul as her black lipstick adorned lips parted in a snarl. She turned to the Dalek that the Doctor hacked into.
“It looks like my work is done anyways,” hissed the Rani. “See you later.” She stepped into a rusty boiler and closed the lid. Judging by the noise and its fading away, I figured out that it was the Rani’s TARDIS. When it faded completely, the Dalek screamed.
“The coast is clear!” called the Doctor. “Time to shut down the energy shield and put an end to this!” The Dalek then fired on the generator before exploding. We heard a noise like machinery winding down. “And that’s our cue!” guessed the Doctor. We made our way back to where the shield was and found a dais with a control panel on board.
“A Dalek Transmat!” I breathed.
“Last time I saw this model was during that whole mess with the Hand of Omega,” mused the Doctor. She managed to get it working. We all got out of our suits and Philip came out of the TARDIS. “Shall we?” invited the Doctor. We used the Transmat to beam ourselves upwards onto a Dalek ship. I just hope there aren’t any Daleks where we beam into.
We arrived back on Vorton safely. Eiji, Kōsei, and Ankh were amazed at their new surroundings. “Oh, good!” cheered X-PO. “You guys got the cake!”
“Yeah, and we were almost toast, too!” hissed Batman.
“You cut that pretty close, X-PO,” snapped Wyldstyle.
“Couldn’t you have opened the rift sooner?” asked Touché as we cancelled our transformations.
“Is that the cake from Portal?” asked Richard. “You guys were in Portal? Man, I wish I had been there!”
“You really don’t, my dear brother,” argued Emily. “With Hiro gaining his own Super Charge sequence and with the main enemies of Eiji-san here, we had our work cut out for us.”
“Speaking of cutting,” muttered Gandalf as he eyed the cake. “Perhaps a slice of…” Tanisha took the cake out of Batman’s hands and held it above her head out of Gandalf’s reach.
“It’s not for eating!” growled Batman. I then looked around.
“Hey, where’s Hiroki?” I asked as X-PO took the cake. “I have another Rider for him to geek over.” Mikhail and Lukas came up.
“He, Tonje, Emmanuel, Michael, Sheela, Xiomara, and Irina went on an adventure with a new Doctor,” replied Mikhail. “They’ll be back soon. Something about a Dalek fleet over their native universe’s Earth.”
“Can we get something to eat?” asked Eiji. “That adventure wore me out.”
“The adventure, or Putotyra?” asked Ankh.
“Follow me,” I directed as I led the way to the cafeteria. When we showed off the cafeteria and demonstrated the replicators, Eiji, Ankh, and Kōsei got their food. Ankh seemed to be eating a lot of popsicles.
“Isn’t that a bit…unhealthy?” asked Emily.
“I don’t eat food in the sense that you humans do,” explained Ankh. “Heck, my senses are dulled. I can’t taste food, Colors are washed out, and sounds are distorted and muffled. The only time I experienced the full range of the five senses was when I possessed a detective.”
“The Greeed are voids that can’t be filled,” elaborated Eiji. “Thus, they want to turn the world into Cell Medals.”
“And…you’re working with him?” I asked.
“Let’s just say, he’s learned a thing or two,” chuckled Eiji.
“That reminds me,” mused Ankh as he drew a bag out of his body. “Kōsei, do you know anything about these?” The bag was full of studs!
“Not a clue,” admitted Kōsei.
“Those are studs, the local currency,” I explained
“There are 150,000 studs in that bag,” counted Vortoranii.
“You can have them,” muttered Ankh as he tossed the bag to me.
“That’s 980,000 studs!” Vortoranii said, then laughed like Count Von Count.
“Guys,” called X-PO, “I hate to sound needy, but, unless you want to miss this, Irina and the others came back and she needs medical attention!”
“What?!” yelped Emily. We made a mad dash for the med bay. Irina was hooked up to an IV and had an NG tube in her nose. Her pulse was low, but steady. Tonje, Hiroki, Emmanuel, Michael, Sheela, and Xiomara were there along with a woman with blonde hair reaching her neck and a coat with the hood down at the bed, running the medical equipment. The TARDIS was there as well.
“Emily! Good!” called the woman. “She was hit by a handheld, low yield, Dalek blaster. Davros seemed to have it on his person.”
“Where’s the Doctor?” asked Emily, going into full Medic mode. “I want the full story of what happened while I work.”
“Well, Doctor?” asked Michael to the woman. I goggled.
“The Doctor passed the torch to her?” I guessed.
“In a manner of speaking,” replied the woman.
“That IS the Doctor,” explained Michael. “I’ll explain later. Doctor, if you please.”
“Oh, come on,” argued the woman, the new Doctor, “surely you want to tell the story.”
“Oh, very well,” muttered Michael.
“CHARGE!” ordered my princess. As her team entered the rift, the rest of us started wondering what we should do.
“I don’t know about you, meine Freunde,” called Lukas, “but I’m going to go tune up the replicators.”
“I’m going to rest my back,” sighed Livia.
“Same here,” agreed Richard. That was when a familiar sound started playing.
“Anyone hear that?” asked Joshua.
“That’s the TARDIS!” called Mikhail.
“What’s he doing coming back here?!” I asked as the TARDIS materialized in the gateway room. The door opened and a woman poked her head out. She caught sight of me.
“AHA!” she cheered. “I need your help, Michael! Something’s going down around my universe’s Earth. Mind coming with?”
“Hold on, how do you know my name, Ma’am?” I asked.
“Never mind that,” dismissed the woman, “I’ll explain later. Just pick six others to come with us!” I was surprised but did so.
“Er, Tonje, Hiroki, Emmanuel, Irina, Sheela, and Xiomara, you want to see the TARDIS again?” I asked.
“Eh, why not?” mused Emmanuel. As the people I picked entered the TARDIS, I glanced around.
“Doctor?!” I called. No response. The woman then headed to the console. “Doctor?!” I called again. Still no reply. I tried a different approach. “Professor?!”
“Oh, come on,” replied the woman. “You’re making me nostalgic.”
“Ma’am, I don’t believe I know what you’re talking about!” I snapped.
“Oh, just put your hands on the telepathic circuits,” instructed the woman.
“Michael, who is this woman?!” asked Tonje.
“I don’t bloody know!” I yelled. It’s rare that I ever use bloody in that context. We all put a hand on the TARDIS’ telepathic circuits and reviewed the most memorable moments of the pilot.
“One day, I shall come back. Yes, I shall come back,” faded to “They will persuade other Daleks to question. You will have a rebellion on your planet!” fading to “You exist only because your will insists that you exist. Your will is all that is left of you,” fading yet again to “You’ve no home planet, no influence, nothing! You’re just a pathetic bunch of tin soldiers skulking about the galaxy in an ancient spaceship!” fading again to “Well, a place where one embarks and disembarks from compartments on wheels drawn along these tracks by a steam engine; rarely on time,” fading to “But did you bother to tell anyone that they might be eating their own relatives?” with another man saying “Certainly not! That would have created what I believe is termed… ‘consumer resistance’,” fading to “I have pity for you!” and a Dalek counting fifteen and the man saying “Goodbye Davros. It hasn’t been pleasant,” fading to “You want dominion over the living, yet all you do is kill!” fading again to “Great men are forged in fire. It is the privilege of lesser men to light the flame. Whatever the cost,” fading once again to a woman saying, “If you are an alien, how come you sound like you’re from the north?” and a man replying, “Lots of planets have a north!” fading to “Don’t challenge me, Harriet Jones! ‘Cos I’m a completely new man! I could bring down your government with a single word!” fading again to “Wrong with me? It’s not my fault. Why can’t you give me any decent food? You’re Scottish. Fry something!” fading one last time to “You know you’ve got a lot in common with the Tivolians? You’ll both do anything to survive. They’ll surrender to anyone. You will hijack other peoples’ souls and turn them into electro-magnetic projections. That will to endure… That refusal to ever cease. It’s extraordinary. And it makes a fella think! Because, you know what? If all I have to do to survive is to tweak the future a bit, what’s stopping me? Oh! Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah: the ripple effect. Maybe it will mean that the universe will be ruled by cats or something in the future. But the way I see it, even a ghastly future is better than no future at all! You robbed those people of their deaths; made them nothing more than a message in a bottle. You violated something more important than time: You bent the rules of life and death. So I am putting things straight! Here, now, this is where your story ends!” All of those quotes and an image forming in our minds slowly became clearer and clearer to show the woman, the Time Lord, that was piloting a type 40 TARDIS with a chameleon circuit stuck as a 1960’s London Police Box. We were dazed at the story that unfolded.
“So…the Doctor we’re familiar with…” muttered Emmanuel.
“Had many different faces…” finished Irina. I turned to the woman.
“Seriously?” I asked.
“Yep!” confirmed the woman.
“You’re him?!” I continued.
“That’s right!” grinned the woman.
“Even the blonde hair?” I asked.
“Yes!” said the woman, a little annoyed.
“You’re the…Thirteenth Doctor?” I asked.
“Yes!” repeated the woman, the Doctor. “You humans have a rather enormous capacity for repeating the facts!” The TARDIS then shook.
“Doctor, what’s going on?!” asked Sheela.
“Bit of temporal ripples!” explained the Doctor. “Someone, or something, is creating a rather large distortion in time about the size of Paris! It seems to be centered around Earth, my universe’s Earth.”
“So, who caused the distortion?” I asked. I did NOT like the response.
“Typical Daleks!” hissed the Doctor as her fingers danced around the console. “What IS their fascination with Earth? That’s MY fascination!”
“GOD…FLIPPING…WHHHYYYY?!” I shouted. “Couldn’t it be early model Mondasian Cybermen?! THEY knew how to be creepy!” The TARDIS rocked again. “Are they firing on us?!” I asked.
“I may need some help maneuvering the TARDIS,” called the Doctor. “Hiroki! Michael! Emmanuel! Sheela! Xiomara! Give me a hand!”
“We’re not Time Lords!” protested Hiroki.
“Put your hands on the telepathic circuits again,” directed the Doctor. “The TARDIS will fill you in on its operation.” Information about all the panels on the console filled our minds. It soon integrated with human limits and it became easy as pie!
“Oh, many a fan of your adventures would sell their souls just to have this kind of knowledge!” I cheered.
“Seems simple enough,” mused Sheela.
“So, what are we supposed to do?” asked Irina as we took our places, “stand here and look glamorous?”
“Well,” chuckled the Doctor, “you could always get us some tea. Maybe a bit of paperwork.” Tonje punched the Doctor in the shoulder. She and Irina then stormed up the stairs and headed into a hallway. “TONJE! IRINA! JOKE!” said the Doctor as she massaged her shoulder.
“They’ll be back when we’ve landed,” I assured. We then set to work on weaving the TARDIS through Dalek laser blasts and the saucers that said lasers came from.