We had Cybermen chasing us all around the warehouse, some of us going through doors a la Scooby Doo. The Cybermen then decided waiting outside the doors would curb that. What their logic centers didn’t count on was that we would all meet at another door that they weren’t watching. We tip-toed past the Cybermen and sighed once we thought we were far enough. …Did you know Cybermen can hear beyond what we can? They heard us sigh and resumed the chase. I doubled back once I was sure I had gotten them off my back. The plan required me to use a bit of the Source’s power and I needed that in my hand. I’m the only one that can control it, being a Horseman of the Apocalypse. I noticed that the Sailor Senshi were having a hard time using their attacks against the Cybermen. They must have used Usagi I’s knowledge. They managed to get the Sailor Senshi down to the ground and were about ready to shoot them! Better act now! “STOP!” I shouted, getting the Cybermen’s attention. “HARM THEM IN THE SLIGHTEST AND I DESTROY THE SOURCE!” I tightened my grip on it to emphasize my point.
“Give us the Source, Lacey,” boomed the Cyber-Deputy.
“Never!” I answered.
“Then we shall kill you and take it,” declared the Cyber-Deputy. “In any event, your threat is meaningless.”
“Meaningless?!” I repeated. “How?!”
“How could you have destroyed the Source?” asked the Cyber-Deputy. Oh, son, you just invited me to teach!
“Well,” I answered as I began my lecture, “what I would have done is to place the Source neatly here,” I set it down in front of me, causing the Cybermen to observe it, “and use a pinpoint attack on it, thus causing the chaotic energy in it to be released. Now, of course,” I nodded to Sailor Mars, “I’m having trouble figuring out what pinpoint attack to use on it.”
“You were a fool to admit your plan,” if I didn’t know better, I’d say the Cyber-Deputy was boasting. “We shall not permit you to attack the Source.”
“Maybe not me, no,” I mused as Sailor Mars got the idea and managed to get her hands free so she could mime pulling an arrow back on its bow.
“MARS FLAME SNIPER!” she shouted. A fiery arrow launched itself at the Source. The Source then absorbed the attack, the que for me to pick it up and thrust it at the Cybermen. The Source then spat out more powerful fire arrows right at the Cybermen’s chest units, making them give out their death rattle before falling to the floor. The Sailor Senshi then picked each other up. I came up to help them.
“The tiniest tad of warning would have been good!” griped Sailor Moon.
“Don’t be rude!” chided Sailor Jupiter.
“It’s all right,” I assured. “Let’s just focus on helping out Moon-kyung.”
——————————————————————————————–
Cyber-Leader Gi stopped her attack and looked over the railing to see the end result of what happened. “Things crumbling around you?!” I taunted.
“These losses are acceptable,” dismissed Cyber-Leader Gi. I picked up a loose stone, big enough to fit in my hand. “…A rock?” asked Cyber-Leader Gi. “You possess only one projectile.” More Cybermen approached.
“Then the question becomes,” I taunted, “who’s next and who’s lucky?”
“You cannot do much damage to us with only one projectile,” called a Cyberman.
“Maybe,” I remarked, “but one of you is gonna get it. So, who’s it gonna be?”
“Destroy her,” ordered Cyber-Leader Gi. I chucked the rock at her head, causing her to fall off the cat walk, while ducking, making the other Cybermen shoot each other in the chest unit, eliciting the death rattle. I looked over the railing and grabbed a hanging rope, climbing down it while the others converged onto Cyber-Leader Gi’s currently still body. I was hoping I didn’t kill her. Lacey checked for life signs.
“Okay, the organic bits are still alive, but the metal ones suffered some damage during the fall,” she reported. “They’re in a protective lockdown until the damage is fixed. If we’re gonna do it, we need to do it NOW!”
“…Sailor Moon, strike the Source,” I directed. Sailor Moon nodded, then summoned a wand with a gold crescent moon on it, then twirled before making a giant circle with it.
“MOON HEALING ESCALATION!” she called. The attack then struck the Source and Lacey channeled the energy around Cyber-Leader Gi. She started thrashing around in pain as the Source’s energy coursed through both her organic and metallic systems. Just then, she was surrounded in bright light. I could barely make it out, but it looked like Cyber-Leader Gi was turning into two women, one in a dress, the other in Cyber-armor. The glow faded and the two women were floated gently to the ground. One was Cyber-Leader Gi, the other…the woman we sought to free. Sailor Moon ran up to her and moved her up, shaking her to wake her. “Mama! Mama, wake up!” she begged. Just then, the woman groaned and slowly opened her eyes.
“…Chibiusa?” she whispered.
“MAMA!” cheered Sailor Moon as she hugged her tightly. Neo Queen Serenity, Usagi Tsukino I was all right! She was freed from the Cybermen’s influence.
“You had us worried, Meatball Head!” shouted Sailor Mars.
“Oh, and you wouldn’t do the exact same thing?!” argued Neo Queen Serenity.
“Not without backup!” replied Sailor Mars.
“Just admit it!” snapped Neo Queen Serenity. “You’d have gone at them alone!”
“Would not!”
“Would too!”
“Would not!”
“Would too!”
“Would not!”
“Would too!”
“GUYS!” shouted Sailor Moon. “More pressing matters?! The people still under the Cybermen’s control?!”
“Your Majesty,” I interjected, “do you remember anything about the Cybermen’s endgame?”
“That’s the thing,” replied Neo Queen Serenity, “I’m aware of Cyber-Leader Gi’s personal thoughts. She was bent on making herself the Cyber-Planner of a new Cyberman Empire, separate from Shocker Rift’s influence.”
“The Cybermen aren’t content with Shocker Rift?” I asked.
“No, they view their service to Hiro as a step back, as does everyone else within the organization aside from the original Shocker. The ones that hate their servitude the most are these creatures called…Deylex?”
“Daleks,” I corrected, “and I can understand why. So, Shocker Rift is near the edge of civil war.”
“Shocker Rift chose this universe because of the Source,” continued Neo Queen Serenity, “but the Cybermen went along with it to establish it as the capital of their new empire. That’s where recent events come in and I DON’T need the Cyberiad to help me along.”
“What did they do?” I asked.
“They infiltrated Crystal Tokyo and first went after the ones that came from such a highly dense population that no one, in general, would notice,” Neo Queen Serenity went on. “They selected certain Cybermen to go into other parts of the globe and take the population there. They converted Earth about a year ago. The whole process took a month. When the authorities were made aware of it, it was too late. The Cybermen had a stranglehold on Earth. We made the palace a refuge for people to escape the Cybermen. The last act I had decided on before going after the Cybermen alone was to declare Earth unsafe. The automatic quarantine lasts for a hundred years unless I give the order to end the quarantine. Until the Cybermen are gone, I’m not comfortable with ending them yet.”
“I think a solution is available,” mused Lacey.
“You mean you can get rid of them?!” gasped Neo Queen Serenity. Before Lacey could answer, a laser shot flew between me and Sailor Moon. We all turned to see Cyber-Leader Gi standing upright with some sort of pistol in her right hand. It looked like a flip phone with the number pad and screen facing her and the ends on a joint keeping them at 120⁰ from each other. It had a cylinder on each end, one of them acting as a gun barrel.
“Sorry,” gulped Lacey, “I thought freeing Her Majesty would get rid of her.”
“Give me control of the Source,” demanded Cyber-Leader Gi.
“I can’t!” replied Lacey.
“Then I will kill Neo Queen Serenity,” threatened Cyber-Leader Gi.
“Didn’t you hear me?!” argued Lacey. “I can’t, even if I wanted to! The Source will only fry your sense of logic if you try to control it!”
“I am still connected to the Cyberiad,” replied Cyber-Leader Gi. “The Cybermen still control this planet. You kill me, the Earth dies. The choice is yours.” We all hesitated.
“…Guys, it’s over,” I declared. Everyone turned to me. “She’s right, we can’t win this one. We can only surrender.”
“Shocker Rift will…” began Cyber-Leader Gi.
“Not to Shocker Rift,” I interrupted. “The Cybermen.” She didn’t catch my wink to Lacey.
“…Most rational,” complimented Cyber-Leader Gi.
“What do you need done?” asked Lacey as she held the Source.
“The Cybermen must claim its power,” ordered Cyber-Leader Gi. “Order the Source to spread it across the Cyberiad.”
“It’s going to need both Neo Queen Serenity AND Sailor Moon’s power,” replied Lacey. Cyber-Leader Gi turned to the two.
“Donate your power to the Source,” she ordered.
“You can’t…!” protested Sailor Moon.
“Do you understand Cyber-Leader Gi’s instructions?” asked Lacey. The women turned to her to see her wink at them.
“…Perfectly,” muttered Sailor Moon. “Moon Healing Escalation.” Neo Queen Serenity gave her power as well as her daughter. The Source pulsed as it was overflowing with power.
“Now, do YOU understand her instructions?” Lacey asked the Source. “Yes, I believe you do.”
“Your jamming device,” demanded Cyber-Leader Gi. It was my aPod, far superior to any iPod. I surrendered it to Cyber-Leader Gi. “A new era begins for the multiverse,” she declared as she clenched her fist and crushed my aPod. After this, I’m gonna have to either save up for my own or beg my girlfriend, Malffurem, for a new one. “Imagination,” droned Cyber-Leader Gi, “freedom, pleasure, all will fade. This world will become the new Mondas. Deploy the Source.” Lacey let the Source hover into the air before it took off outside. “We shall watch its progress,” declared Cyber-Leader Gi. She pulled out a small console and set it up so we could see the Source. It moved into the stratosphere and started pulsing, sending purple light around the globe. Cyber-Leader Gi had a monitor that displayed the status of all Cybermen on the planet. The Cybermen across the globe started glowing purple. Then…it happened…the purple light dissolved the metal of the Cybermen and replaced it with flesh, restoring the human population of Earth! “…No,” muttered Cyber-Leader Gi.
“Yes,” I declared.
“But…how?!” floundered the currently confused Cyber-Leader.
“Simple,” I dismissed.
“The Source was under my control!” insisted Cyber-Leader Gi. “I ordered it to surrender its power to all Cybermen!”
“Ah, but Neo Queen Serenity and Sailor Moon’s power lies in healing,” I explained. “The Source can only act and amplify the power it is given.”
“When you gained control of the Source through me,” supplied Lacey as the Source returned to her hand when it finished turning the Cybermen back into humans, “I asked them if they understood you. I didn’t say anything about obeying you.”
“Now, with there being only ONE Cyberman and a whole planet of people that knows how dangerous you can be,” finished Neo Queen Serenity, “life can resume as we hunt for you! Earth is now safe for travel again!”
“…You’ve made your last and fatal mistake,” declared Cyber-Leader Gi as she pressed 2, 3, and 5 on the keypad, the first three prime numbers. She then held it to her ear. “Henshin,” she declared before closing the angle of the gun so both long sides could join together. She then inserted the contraption, plugs first, into a harness on her waist. Handles popped out the side and eyes and a mouth opened, making the buckle look like a Cyberman’s head.
“Adaptus: online,” called a Cyberman’s voice before she glowed gold. The glow faded to reveal a Kamen Rider style Cyberman, with black handles.
“Kamen Rider Adaptus,” she announced in the Cybermen’s usual voice. “Hostile elements will be deleted.” She pressed the right eye on her buckle, then the left, then the mouth.
“Summoning Gunblade,” reported the belt. A Cybergun appeared with blades running along the top and bottom of the barrel.
“Right, fight time, everyone!” I announced. We all got ready.
“Henshin!” we called. My belt shouted “Open! Turn! Imagine! The Spear of Lance!” as we transformed and converted our weapons from melee to range. We all scattered and fired. Adaptus slammed her fist into the ground causing us to lose our balance.
“Of all the types of people to be a Kamen Rider!” groaned Outback. The Sailor Senshi were firing off their attacks too, but to no effect. Adaptus just kept on fighting. Neo Queen Serenity was off to the side, feeling hopeless.
“I thought I’d never wish for my powers back,” she sighed, “but now I need to protect my people and I don’t have the means to do so! What can I do?! I want to help!”
“Might I suggest this?” burbled Sludgiona. She tossed Neo Queen Serenity a device…the same device I was wearing around my waist!
“What are you waiting for?!” I called. “Make sure you say ‘Henshin’!”
“I’ve seen Black and Black RX in my day!” remarked Neo Queen Serenity as she put her new Chronicle Driver on. “I know what to say!” She held out her Armor Auto-bio and opened her Chronicle Driver. “Henshin!” she called before inserting the Armor Auto-bio and closing the belt.
“Open! Turn! Imagine!” called the belt. “The Staff of Crescent!” Her new Rider persona looked similar to her old outfit when she was Sailor Moon.
“No,” floundered Adaptus. “That is…illogical! You…cannot fight!”
“Can and will!” countered Neo Queen Serenity. We all grouped up.
“Kamen Rider Outback! Better watch your back, mate!”
“Kamen Rider Swing! I’ll be taking your legs!”
“Kamen Rider Kämpfer! Your defeat will be certain at my hands!”
“Kamen Rider Herald B! I bring news of your defeat!”
“Kamen Rider Apocalypse! Your world shall end!”
“Kamen Rider Lance!” I announced. “The softest bloom can be the deadliest!”
“I’m Batman! The Dark Knight rises!”
“I am Sludgiona, the slimy creator!”
“I am Lexicon! There is historical precedence for your failure!”
“I am the Pretty Guardian who fights for love and Justice!” pronounced the current Sailor Moon. “I am Sailor Moon! And now, in the name of the moon, I’ll punish you!”
“Protected by Mercury, the planet of water!” announced Sailor Mercury. “The Guardian of Wisdom! I am Sailor Mercury! Douse yourself in water and repent!”
“Protected by Mars, the planet of fire!” called Sailor Mars. “The Guardian of War! I am Sailor Mars! In the name of Mars, I’ll chastise you!”
“Protected by Jupiter, the planet of thunder!” proclaimed Sailor Jupiter. “The Guardian of Protection! I am Sailor Jupiter! I will let you feel so much regret, it will leave you numb!”
“Protected by Venus, the planet of beauty!” cheered Sailor Venus. “The Guardian of Love! I am Sailor Venus! Allow me to punish you with love!”
“Protected by Pluto, the planet of underworld!” called Sailor Pluto. “I am Sailor Pluto!”
“Protected by Neptune, the Planet of Oceans!” announced Sailor Neptune. “Guardian of the Deep Sea! I am Sailor Neptune!”
“Protected by Uranus, the Planet of the Wind!” proclaimed Sailor Uranus. “Guardian of the Heavens! I am Sailor Uranus!”
“Protected by Saturn, the planet of Ruin!” called Sailor Saturn. “Guardian of Silence! I am Sailor Saturn!”
“Kamen Rider Crescent!” finished Neo Queen Serenity. “In the name of the solar system, I will punish you!”
“NOW!” I called. The Vortex Riders spun their wheels while Crescent and I pressed the button on top of our buckles.
“Final attack!” called the Vortex Drivers.
“Final Pen Stroke!” cheered the Chronicle Drivers. We leapt into the air and performed our kicks.
“RIDER OUTBACK KICK!”
“RIDER SWING KICK!”
“RIDER KÄMPFER KICK!”
“RIDER HERALD B KICK!”
“RIDER LANCE KICK!”
“RIDER CRESCENT KICK!”
“RIDER APOCALYPSE KICK!”
“Everyone!” called Sailor Moon. “Lend them your energy!” The Sailor Senshi charged us as our kicks hit Adaptus, causing her to be knocked back and reverting back to Cyber-Leader Gi. She dialed a number on her phone and held it to her ear.
“Cyber-Leader Gi, requesting immediate evacuation,” she called. “Repeat, immediate.” A portal opened for her and she dove headfirst into it.
“And that, as they say,” I declared as we all powered down, “is that.”
“I need to call Papa,” realized Sailor Moon. She activated her communicator.
“Sailor Moon,” came Endymion’s voice, “we’re getting reports that the Cybermen have turned back into humans!”
“They’re true, I promise,” assured Sailor Moon. “We also got someone back!” She handed the communicator to Neo Queen Serenity.
“Hello, Mamo-chan,” she greeted. This time, there was love in her voice.
“…Usako?” breathed Endymion. “Is it…I mean, are you…?”
“I’m back,” confirmed Neo Queen Serenity. “We can end the planetary quarantine. I’ll be home straight away.”
——————————————————————————————–
We returned to the palace and told Endymion what happened. The people that took refuge heard the story and cheered. They were free and were released back into Crystal Tokyo to find their loved ones. Endymion and Neo Queen Serenity were still together as we told him what happened with Cyber-Leader Gi. “A Kamen Rider?” he muttered. “I thought they ended that franchise with the movie, Kamen Rider J.”
“You mean you don’t know about the Heisei Era Riders?” asked Lacey.
“Heisei Era Riders?” asked Neo Queen Serenity. “There were Kamen Riders that were called Heisei Riders?”
“Yeah! They got that name in the year 2000, 19 years before Emperor Hirohito abdicated. Oh, wait, you took the throne in the 21st century in this universe. Is there a tv show called Kamen Rider Kuuga in your universe?”
“No, I don’t think so,” mused Neo Queen Serenity.
“Hey!” protested Usagi II. “Who took the cookies?!” Neo Queen Serenity looked up at the ceiling, looking very nervous. “…Mama,” hissed Usagi II.
“Let her have this,” suggested Rei, Sailor Mars. “She’s been the Cybermen’s prisoner for too long. For once, she can eat whatever she wants.”
“I do that anyway!” snapped Neo Queen Serenity. “I AM Queen!”
“A chubby one,” muttered Rei.
“I heard that!” snapped Neo Queen Serenity. “Who’s the one who ate those cupcakes before this all went down?!”
“How did you know that?!” shouted Rei. “Spying on your own subjects! There ought to be a law against that! Maybe I SHOULDN’T let you have cookies!”
“At least I didn’t wear heels in battle!” argued Neo Queen Serenity.
“Your boots had just as much of a heel as my shoes do!” countered Rei.
“You’re always trying to annoy me!” accused Neo Queen Serenity. “Don’t you remember that time I saved your life?!”
“Yeah, I remember!” replied Rei. “Wasn’t that when you tripped and fell on your face?!”
“Oh yeah?! Well, next time, I won’t even bother!” declared Neo Queen Serenity.
“Fine!” answered Rei.
“Fine!” confirmed Neo Queen Serenity.
“Fine!” finished Rei. The two ladies then folded their arms, turned their backs to each other, and hmphed. Ami, Sailor Mercury, let a small giggle loose. Batman leaned to Usagi II.
“Are they always like this?” he asked.
“Ever since they met in High School,” groaned Usagi II. “When I travelled back in time as a little girl, I saw them fight like that firsthand.”
“…Time travel?” moaned Batman, not liking the subject.
“Ami-chan,” remarked Neo Queen Serenity, “might I ask what’s so funny?”
“You just went back to basics real fast,” she replied. “I’d have thought being Cyber-Leader Gi would be traumatizing.” Neo Queen Serenity then went deep in thought.
“…I hurt everyone as her,” she mumbled.
“That wasn’t you, Usako,” insisted Endymion.
“I don’t know about that,” argued Neo Queen Serenity. “I DO have a sense of order. The Cybermen may have amplified that, but it was still my desire to create order. That desire made people look the same and I do NOT want to inflict that kind of harm again.”
“Mama, you’re not Cyber-Leader Gi,” replied Usagi II. “You’re not a Cyberman of ANY rank. The best way to not be a mindless drone is to wake up and enjoy life in both its order and its chaos.”
“…I need to bring her back into this universe,” decided Neo Queen Serenity. “Moon-kyung, do you mind if I join you?”
“Your Majesty, I would be honored,” I replied. “That is, if your family’s okay with it.”
“…Keep her safe,” instructed Endymion.
“Will do!” I replied. I then called up Vorton. “Guys, mission accomplished! We’re ready to go home!”
“Understood,” came Megumi’s voice. “I’ve asked all of us to meet in the Gateway Room. We have…something to discuss.” The portal opened and we all headed off to meet with Megumi and the rest of the F.N.S. I was introduced to Jason the Inkling, Mickey Mouse, Princess Peach, and Dell Conagher, the newest additions to the team, much like Neo Queen Serenity, Usagi I, was. She introduced herself. I noticed that Victor and Alesandro were standing at the back, glaring at us. “I’ll get right to the point,” began Megumi. “I hid the fact that I didn’t tell Batman, Hongo, Wyldstyle, and Gandalf about Vortech and also hid the fact that I had an emotional collapse after that. I told you guys that we never kept secrets, but that was the fattest lie I’ve ever told. I know Emily and Joshua told Liam and Moon-kyung, but that doesn’t excuse what I did, or rather, DIDN’T do. Colleen Doyle, Alesandro Ortiz, Liam McIntyre, Victor Young, Deung Moon-kyung, I’m sorry for hiding this from you. I should have just obeyed my conscience and told you. Whether or not you decide to stay with us, know that I will always consider you a member of our family and, as such, try to do right by you.”
“…I appreciate that,” replied Victor.
“We all do,” supplied Colleen.
“…Arigatou gozaimasu,” (formal Thank You) thanked Megumi as she bowed, a little misty eyed. “Now, Richard, your team found something?”
“It’s related to the vote we took on whether or not we’d tell the new guys,” he explained. “Pup-X5 noticed that the results of the vote were tampered with.”
“Tampered?!” yelped Emily.
“Yeah, what raised a red flag for me,” read Pup-X5’s tablet, “was that Emily and Joshua swore up and down that they voted no, but the results say yes. I took another poll and found major discrepancies. The only ones that matched were those who actually said no, Hiroki and Xiomara.”
“You two?!” protested Megumi. “Why you two?!”
“They didn’t need to know EVERYTHING!” argued Hiroki.
“Right now, that’s not the point,” interjected Richard. “We need to figure out why we got the wrong results.”
“Techies, you know what to do,” directed Megumi. We all headed off to figure out this mystery.
