//------------------------------// // Level 3: Gleaming Eyes, Dueling Swords // Story: Kamen Rider x Kamen Rider Unicorn & Ex-Aid: Tirek's Revenge // by Michael_Ravencroft //------------------------------// Sunset and Emu, after traveling down the dirt road, managed to unlock their “Limit Break”, and indeed it was their Kamen Rider powers. Unfortunately, it was only their Drivers, and not their Gaia Memories or Gashats. “Figures it wouldn’t be that easy,” said Sunset. “It makes sense, considering it’s our strongest power up, the game must’ve planted out Gashats and Gaia Memories in the game to act as prizes for certain quests, but what does concern me is how long we can maintain that form,” said Emu. After having unlocked their “Limit Break”, a tutorial emerged stating that their newly added LB gauge determined how long they could stay in Kamen Rider form until they reverted back to default form. They could fill it by taking damage or doing damage to opponents, right now both sat at one-hundred percent charge, but once activated it would steadily drain. “At least we can activate it, and deactivate it at will to conserve energy. And the higher our level is, the more the meter extends and the drain slows down. So, for now, let’s see if we can find a town or something. I don’t like that my friends are in danger and I’m stuck in here.” Parado appeared over Emu’s shoulder and chuckled. “She’s kind of like you, caring about others.” The duo finally made it to a large city, it was surrounded by an ivory colored stone wall that went on for miles around. Ahead was an archway where several villagers entered and exited, and on each side guards were standing by. Emu and Sunset pressed on, entering through the archway where it opened into a grand, medieval, fantasy city. The buildings were made of carved stone, some were worn and had lost some of their luster, but most were still sun bleached white. The road transitioned into stone pathways, the clip clopping of hooves hitting the stone could be heard as carriages and wagons went to and fro from to their various destinations. Taverns were set up every few yards, along with your typical item shops, and armories. Sunset and Emu decided to head further in, getting equipment wasn’t a big priority at the moment, seeing as how they didn’t exactly have enough bits to put towards any of that. They reached a large hill in a park that was sectioned off in the city and got the lay of the land. The boundary wall went on for miles around, further into the city were spires and larger homes. One section of the city had a large building situated near the sea. From where they stood, the building took up most of the surroundings and had a flag that had six symbols on it. Sunset’s gaze looked out a little further and she could spot a castle in the far distance at the head of this ginormous city. “I think that building over is the Guardian Academy,” said Sunset. “In this game, you train to become the next heroes that will save the world when Tirek rises again.” “As good a place as any to start,” said Emu. The two Riders managed to hitch a ride with some other hopefuls who were heading towards the Academy. About a few minutes later, Sunset and Emu arrived at the gates to this school, spotting statues of the six heroes who saved Alagantha from Tirek. Once they got there, however, things got hectic. The sound of wild neighing could be heard throughout the area, along with a powerful gust of wind that nearly knocked everyone onto their rears. The duo ran ahead, past the gate, and into the courtyard where they saw a strange sight. A burly man, dressed in Viking clothes, and wielding a rather large shovel, was wrestling with a unicorn. But this wasn’t a regular unicorn, it was glowing turquoise green, with shimmers of white. Its horn was made of an emerald crystal, and its eyes were bright blue. The man who was wrestling the beast was at least seven and half feet tall, compared to the unicorn, he was able to look the beast in the eyes. “Misty, get that spell ah yers working! This beast is a strong one!” the Viking shouted. There was an elderly woman standing across from them, she wore a kimono that was pale blue and white. Her hair was long, and flowed like actual mist in the wind. Her hands were brought together as she concentrated, gathering her mana as to cast a spell to bind the wild ethereal equine. However, the unicorn was not one to just stand there and take what was coming. The equine’s horn shined, and suddenly, it teleported along with the Viking. Misty didn’t halt her spell, but merely kept her eyes open, trying to figure out where the unicorn would appear. Her search didn’t last long as the unicorn and the Viking reappeared overhead. Misty fired her spell upwards, aiming it directly at the equine, but unfortunately, the beast maneuvered itself enough to have the Viking act as its shield. The Viking seized up as magical chains appeared around his body, binding him as he went into free fall to the ground with a big thud. The unicorn fired a beam of mana from its horn, making Misty raise a protective barrier to keep herself safe. The unicorn was a powerful creature, and actually made Misty strain to keep up with its boundless energy. Emu looked to Sunset, who was watching all of this, but more precisely, she was watching the unicorn. “Sun-chan, you alright?” “I think…I think that’s my Unicorn Memory,” said Sunset. “You sure about that?” Parado asked. Sunset placed a hand over her chest and closed her eyes. The unicorn gave another wild neigh, which echoed in Sunset’s mind and heart. A determined expression was etched onto her face as she said, “I am sure, that’s my Unicorn Memory.” Emu crossed his arms and said, “Then go to it, this your player quest.” With the okay given, Sunset dashed into the fray, making several of the other would be attendees of the Academy shout out for her to not get in their way. She passed by the Viking who shouted, “Lass, don’t get near that thing!” Sunset skidded to a stop and glared up at the ethereal beast. “UNICORN!” The magical creature halted its attack and shifted its attention to Sunset. “Young one, please leave, it’s too wild, and too strong! You’ll get hurt!” Misty warned. “I’m not afraid of her, and you’re not bad, are you girl?” Sunset asked. The unicorn gave a brae and snorted as it landed on the ground a few feet away from Sunset. “You’re just lost and confused, in a world you don’t know, a place that’s familiar yet unfamiliar.” Sunset began walking towards Unicorn, keeping her hands out where the equine could see them. “I know, because that’s how I felt once upon a time.” The unicorn snorted and turned its head away from the approaching girl, even kicking at the dirt. Sunset got a little closer and reached out with her arms towards Unicorn. “I know what you need, this anger is born from loneliness, but you’re not alone. What you need…” Unicorn finally, slowly, turned its head towards Sunset, allowing her to place both hands on either side of its muzzle. Sunset drew herself closer and touched her forehead to the base of Unicorn’s horn. “…is a friend.” The ethereal mare finally calmed down, closing its eyes in the process. The equine’s body began to sparkle and glow brighter, until it was completely gone in a shower of sparkles. Those sparkles collected into a single shape, forming the Unicorn Memory. Sunset took the Gaia Memory into her hands, and suddenly felt a light wrap around her. In bright flash of turquoise light, Sunset’s armor had changed. She was adorned in turquoise colored armor, with a black under mesh. The armor had silver that outlined different designs and the segmented joints. Sunset’s red cape had changed to a bright white, and hung off her left side. “Thank Celestia, some decent, not revealing armor!” Sunset gratefully exclaimed. Emu broke away from the crowd and joined his friend. “Nice work, Sun-chan, at least now one of us has a way to transform.” The Viking and Misty walked towards Sunset and Emu, both turned to face each other, with the latter feeling a bit intimidated. The Viking let a hearty laugh and clasped Sunset on the shoulder, although she figured he was trying to be gentle, his great strength still made her arm hurt from the impact. “Great work, Lass, ya tamed the beast and it granted ya it’s power,” said the Viking. “It just showed up out of nowhere and began rampaging across the campus. Thankfully, you seemed to have made a connection with it, thank you for your help young one,” said Misty. Sunset waved her hands, “It’s no problem, really.” “Allow me to introduce myself, they call me Rock Fist. And the lovely lady here, is Misteria,” said Rock Fist. “Or ‘Misty’ for short, dear.” Misty looked to Emu and cocked her head to the side. “You seem to have quite the healing aura about you, young man, tell us, are you both seeking to become Guardians?” “Um, yes – yes! We’re looking to become Guardians!” Emu answered. “Well then, come with us, all ya back there as well. Welcome to Guardian Academy!” ***__________ x [+]E[+]__________*** Sunset and Emu got a tour of the Academy before being assigned rooms. Unfortunately, this Academy had a dorm for guys and one for girls, which meant that Sunset and Emu wouldn’t be able to converse much, or keep an eye on each other should Tirek try something. They still had no idea how much influence Tirek had over this game world, it was something that Sunset contemplated as she lied down in her bed, staring up at the ceiling. If Tirek wanted to kill us, he would’ve done so already. I don’t get why he brought us here…? How much control does he have over this game? Ugh, it’s so frustrating! I can’t tell if I can even trust these game characters! They seem nice enough, but I can’t take a chance that they’ll suddenly turn into monsters the moment Tirek shows up! For now, the only ones Emu and I can trust are ourselves. The door to Sunset’s dorm room opened, Sunset reached for her sword, which had transformed into an emerald blade with a silver guard and hilt. The moment the door was fully opened, Sunset was greeted with a view of a large stack of books. “Um, hello, I-I’m not sure if someone’s there, I was told I have a roommate. If you could, I require a little assistance, these tomes are quite heavy!” the girl asked. Sunset shook her head and placed her sword back into its sheath. “Oh, crap, sure! Hold on!” Sunset hurried to the girl and quickly took half of the books her roommate brought. “There you go, now you can…see…” The girl behind the books had a light tan complexion, with rimless glasses, her eyes were like sparkling amethyst, and her hair was a deep violet. She’d be a dead ringer for Twilight, except this girl had pointed elf ears, but still, the likeness was uncanny. The Twilight lookalike became a bit worried when Sunset hadn’t finished her sentence and was just staring at her. “I-I’m sorry, is there something odd about my appearance?” The not-Twilight asked with a blush. Sunset shook her head to snap herself out of her trance. “What – Oh! – no, no, no, you’re alright! It’s just that you remind me a lot of a girl I knew back in my ho – ahem – village. She’s a good friend of mine.” “Oh, my apologies.” The not-Twilight placed her stack of books on the desk on her side of the dorm room, with Sunset placing the rest there too. “Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Midnight, Midnight Moonshadow.” Sunset’s eye twitched at the mention of that name, the name belonging to Twilight, but that of her alter demonic ego. “Midnight, my name’s Sunset Shimmer.” “Wait…” Midnight looked at her with a bit of scrutiny. “Are you the same Sunset Shimmer who tamed that ethereal unicorn on the courtyard?” “Um, yes…” Midnight’s face immediately lit up with excitement, even her pointed ears twitched a bit. “Oh my, I didn’t know they made you my roommate! I have so many questions to ask you! How did you manage to tame the beast, what’s your background in the mystic arts, did you use a spell or some unspoken incantation, were you able to connect to the beast because of your magical aptitude or was it more of an emotional connection –?!” “MIDNIGHT!” Sunset interrupted. “Slow down.” Midnight blushed in embarrassment and lowered her head. “I’m sorry! I…I have been told that I have a habit of ‘spitting out’ questions when I’m excited…forgive me, I did not mean to irritate you.” Sunset crossed her arms and chuckled. “You’re exactly like my friend. I think we’re going to get along quite well.” “Are…Are you sure I will not be a burden? I can request a change in room assignment.” Midnight suggested. “One thing you learn about friendship is accepting your friends for who they are. And I suspect you’re pretty smart, can ramble when she’s excited about a particular topic, and can research like no one’s business.” Judging from the increasing blush she was seeing on Midnight, Sunset was sure she hit the mark. “And I can be crass sometimes, also considered pretty smart, but I am a bit more physical when it comes to certain things, be it magic or combat, and I’ll always be there for my friends. Think you can manage having a roommate like me?” Midnight raised her head, her smile was wide as she shook her head in affirmation. “My first friend on my first day! I’m so happy. Well, it’s getting late, and classes start early, we should get some sleep.” Sunset agreed, she was a bit tired from the walking, battling, and bit of emotional shock from seeing Midnight. Sunset wasn’t sure how she was going to go to sleep, especially with all her armor on, and part of her didn’t really want to take it off for fear of attack. Then again, Tirek’s had multiple opportunities to attack…probably toying with us. Ugh, whatever, I’ll fight him no matter how I’m dressed! And on that note, how do I take off this armor? That was a question, Sunset watched as Midnight opened a large bag that contained her nightly clothing and began to undress, but paused. “Oh, I did not ask, do you wish to leave, I do not have a problem with you staying in the room.” “We’re both girls, it’s no problem.” Despite having said that, Sunset made sure to keep her eyes elsewhere. Sunset began to think, since this was indeed the game world, one should be able to store items or take off and replace armor. Sunset pressed her hand against her heart and again the menu with her stats appeared. She tapped it a couple of times until it showed her the menu for her armor. One of the options said, “Would you like to store your armor?” Sunset pressed the “yes” button and soon her body glowed and then she yelped. Midnight turned around and saw that Sunset had ducked under her sheets. “Um, Ms. Shimmer, are you alright?” “Y-Yep! Perfectly fine! Well goodnight!” Midnight shrugged and snuffed out the lamps to their room, letting darkness overtake the room, save for the small amount of moonlight coming from their window. Sunset peeked her head out from under the sheets and sighed. “Great, damn game made me nude…I swear a boy made this game.” ***__________ x [+]E[+]__________*** Rainbow Dash had to change back to normal, thanks to Poppy, she was able to find a secure place where nobody would see her transform back, except for Hiiro. At his behest, Rainbow Dash had some blood work, as well as a couple of other tests to see why she was immune to this strain of the Bugster Virus. While Rainbow could stay in Kamen Rider form for a long time, it does drain energy and puts strain on the body. After an hour or two, Hiiro came back with his results and found out that there was nothing in her bloodwork that showed any infection. Rainbow had informed Hiiro that she and her friends weren’t infected, even though they played the game. Hiiro decided that the two of them should take an ambulance to Sunset’s place to retrieve the girls, believing that they may be the key to curing this infection. “Based on what we know of this strain, it attacks children and young adults like yourself, Dash-san, but after all our testing, you don’t show any symptoms or any trace of the virus. And you say you are not the only one who’s not infected?” Hiiro asked. “Yeah, my friends and Unicorn – Sunset – we all played the game during our slumber party last night. But this morning, we all felt fine. I talked to my friend, Twilight, a moment ago and everyone’s still at Sunset’s place,” said Rainbow Dash. “Once we get them back to the hospital we’ll begin locating the source of your immunity,” said Hiiro. “Is there anything you could think of that might be helping you stay immune?” Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head, wondering how much this other world Kamen Rider was willing to believe. “I guess it’s because my friends and I have magic.” Hiiro raised an eyebrow. “Look, keep an open mind considering what all we deal with. My friends and I have a connection to another world’s magic, and it somehow became our own. We’ve used it to save our world from magical threats before we got our Kamen Rider powers.” Hiiro gave the notion some contemplation, it wasn’t like he could outright dismiss the idea of magic being involved, after all, himself and his colleagues teamed up with other Kamen Riders in the past, and one of them was a wizard. The GPS in the ambulance directed them to turn right, and soon they were at Sunset’s loft. Once there, Rainbow Dash exited the ambulance with Hiiro right behind her. Rainbow knocked on the door, having been answered by Applejack. “Dash, yer here, and…uh…who’s that?” Applejack asked with suspicion. “I’m Dr. Kagami Hiiro, I’m here to bring you all to the Canterlot General Hospital.” Applejack still gave the man a suspicious look. “Relax, AJ, he’s a Kamen Rider like me. They’re here to give us a hand with this virus thing,” said Rainbow Dash. Applejack opened the door all the way, allowing Rainbow and Hiiro to see that others were already dressed and ready to leave. Hiiro did a quick checkup of the girls to make sure that they were not showing any symptoms, using his strange stethoscope, he raised it to each girl and pressed a button on it. A screen appeared before Hiiro as he passed the scope over each girl. After a minute, the scan came back clean. “Alright, you’re all still uninfected, we need to get you to the hospital, now,” said Hiiro. “Now wait just a minute, what about our families?! We each have sisters and brothers who are sick with this unknown disease, and we’d like to know how they are doing?!” Rarity insisted. “I’ll give you all a briefing on the situation on the ride over.” Without much prompting, all the girls filed into the ambulance and turned around back to the hospital. Along the way, Hiiro did inform of the situation thus far, regarding their base of operations, the Bugsters, this new strain, and the incident at Knightmare Studios. “Wait, Microchips?! He was working at Knightmare?!” Twilight asked. “He’s still currently unconscious, but yes, it turns out he is employed there. Officer Armor has informed us as much, and he’s still investigating. It’s strange that another of those Bugsters appeared, and directly targeted him,” said Hiiro. “Well, we know him from school, so we’ll totally help out with asking him,” said Pinkie Pie. “I just hope Sunset’s okay, I mean, Tirek almost ruled all of Equestria the first time he came back, and almost destroyed the world the second time with the help of Nega-Shocker,” said Starlight. “Don’t worry, so long as Emu is with her, they’ll make it back.” “Oh, and by the way, they know I’m a Kamen Rider, my parents too, but my folks don’t know that Unicorn is Sunset. Also, none of their folks know that either of us are Kamen Riders, or that Twilight’s helping us out, so mind keep that under wraps too?” Rainbow asked. Hiiro took a brief glance to Rainbow and then the rest of the girls. “That sound likes an exhausting effort.” “Tell us about it,” the girls said in unison. Hiiro made a turn, transitioning from the suburbs to the city proper. However, once Hiiro made the turn, they saw something standing in the middle of the road. Standing at about nine feet tall, was a monster. Its upper body was muscular and blue, while its lower body was covered in black fur and had goat legs. Its tail was that of a purple cobra with red eyes that wagged back and forth as if waiting to strike. The beast had a gold bracelet on its right wrist, and a gold band around its right bicep. Adoring its neck, under its black mane, was gold jewelry that came down the middle of his chest, around his back, and covered part of the left shoulder and had a jade pearl embedded into it. The monster’s head was shaped like a goat’s head, and had spiraling ram horns. The monster snorted and gave a mighty roar, the force generated by it caused several parked cars to fly into the air, and shattered windows. “HOLD ON!” Hiiro shouted. The renowned surgeon slammed the breaks, and put the car into reverse, backing up as far as he could to avoid the falling cars. The monster’s eyes then shined blue as it dashed towards them at incredible speeds. In the monster’s right hand, it wielded a large sword, the blade itself came to halfway up his chest, with a hilt that went a few inches over his head. The monster held this weapon with one hand, and was swiping it with ease. “DUCK!” Rainbow shouted. Everyone lowered their heads as much as they could, just as the monster slashed at the ambulance, taking off half of the vehicle in one swing. The girls and Hiiro looked up, shocked that the monster had now turned the emergency vehicle into a convertible. The monster raised its sword for another swing, but Starlight grasped her amulet and used her magic to perform a quick teleportation just in time. The sword struck the now empty ambulance and caused it to explode. The group reappeared some ways down the road where the Bugster had originally stood. Starlight began to pant from the effort of teleporting so many such a distance. “I don’t get it, I usually don’t have trouble teleporting long distances.” “When you’re Equestria, you’re on Earth and in a human body, Starlight. You have to be careful,” said Fluttershy. “That Bugster is after us, Tirek must fear we’re onto a vaccine if he sent this creature to kill us,” said Hiiro. “Then let’s take it down, no one hurts my friends!” Rainbow declared. Both Riders summoned their Drivers and placed them at their waists. Rainbow took out her Nasca Memory and Hiiro took out his Gashat, which was neon blue colored. < NASCA! > “Commencing Bugster removal operation.” [+] TADDLE QUEST! [+] A field of neon blue energy pulsed through the ground, the field generated treasure chests at random locations and pixelated the area and the Bugster for a few seconds before returning to normal. The Bugster turned around and smiled wickedly, revealing its fangs. “HENSHIN!” “HENSHIN.” > NASCA! < Rainbow Dash inserted her Nasca Memory into the N-Driver, creating a cerulean electrical field that transformed her into the winged hero, Kamen Rider Nasca. | CLICK AND LOAD! LET’S GAME! SUPER GAME! ULTRA GAME! WHATCHA NAME?! I’M A KAMEN RIDER! | The “character select” circle appeared, and Hiiro struck one with a blue outline. The brilliant surgeon was then donned in white bulky armor. “Proceeding to Level 2.” | LEVEL UP! BATTLE FOR YOUR FUTURE! FIGHT FOR THE ADVENTURE! WELCOME TO TADDLE QUEST~! | A blue panel passed over Hiiro, shedding his bulky armor and now in his slimmer level 2 form. His body was covered in the black armor mesh, with neon blue lines laced into certain patterns. From the middle of his biceps down until his wrists, were covered in white mesh, while both hands were covered in neon blue glove armor. His left forearm had a small shield attached to it, and on his left forearm was as silver bracer. The controller chest plate was there as well, showing the four buttons and life gauge. His shoulder pauldrons were neon blue and had a curve to them. The helmet resembled that of a knight’s, with a neon blue crest, and visor space that allowed two yellow eyes to peer through. This was Kamen Rider Brave. | GASCHON SWORD! | Brave’s sword weapon was strange, it was a blue and silver hilt, with a guard appeared as a controller with an orange button with the letter A, and a powder blue button with the letter B. The sword blade had a silver metal center, but with orange, solidified flames that made up the blade itself. Nasca summoned her Nasca Blade, taking a ready stance along with Brave. The Bugster smirked, gripping his sword with both hands as he charged straight for them. Nasca unfurled her fiery electric wings and flew to intercept, both her and the monster met in the middle and struck. Their swords crashed into each other, sending a pressure wave moving out in all directions. Brave had opened one of the chests that generated when he activated his Gashat, and acquired a speed boost and dashed off towards Nasca and the Bugster. The gleaming eyed Bugster and Nasca pushed off each other, with the Bugster preparing to swing again, but Brave intervened and blocked the attack with his sword, creating a fiery discharge upon contact. Nasca took advantage of this and flew in, slashing the monster across his chest, creating a “Hit” icon. The Bugster stumbled back, a large, red glowing gash now present on his chest. The beast snarled and charged again, a flurry of sword swipes was thrown at both Riders, but thankfully, they were able to block or parry some of them. The ringing of metal against metal, and roar of fire, could be heard echoing through the streets as the sword wielding Kamen Riders dueled it out with this monster. The ram horned Bugster jumped up and came down with an overhead slash. Brave and Nasca jumped out of the way, letting the blow strike the asphalt, sending a plume of dust and debris into the air that obscured the Bugster. Nasca hovered in the air, sword at the ready. But what emerged was not the sword, but the cobra tail, the creature’s jaws opened and snagged Nasca by her foot. The cobra lashed its head back and forth, slamming Nasca into the sides of the buildings and into the ground a few times. Brave quickly pushed the orange A button on his sword. | FREEZE! | Brave’s sword did a one-eighty turn, the flames turning blue as frost vapor wafted off the blade. Brave hit the B button twice, twirled the Gaschon Sword around, and struck the ground before him. A surging ice wave flowed through the street and struck at the ram monster’s feet, the ice crept up its legs and soon covered his whole lower body. The ice kept creeping up the Busgster, continuing towards its tail. The cobra began to thrash less and less, until it was frozen in place. “NASCA, GET OUT NOW!” The winged Rider grunted as raised her sword and struck the cobra head with her blade. Cracks began to form on the frozen cobra tail, spider webbing across the head and body until Nasca was freed from the cobra, shattering half of the tail in the process. Nasca managed to fly away to a safe distance, rejoining Brave as the Bugster struggled to free himself from his frozen prison. The whole time the Bugster roared and thrashed as it glared at both Riders. “I think we ticked him off,” said Nasca. “It’s time to end this now, we can’t risk your friends’ safety by being out in the open like this,” said Brave. Nasca took out her Accel Memory, and at the same time, Brave took out another Gashat, one that was a bit bigger and bulkier than his others. It had a wheel on the front of it, and had two different titles on both halves of the circle. < ACCEL! > [+] TADDLE FANTASY! LET’S GET GOING! KING OF FANTASY! [+] “Time to shake things up!” “Proceeding to Level 50.” | DUAL CLICK AND LOAD! | | CLICK AND OPEN! DUAL UP! | From the Dual Gashat a little armor creature appeared, it was colored red and blue, with a short black cape hanging off its back. This armor creature then descended upon Brave, molding over his upper body until it had become one with his armor. Brave now sported a chest plate that was red in color, with a face like appearance that had white eyes with red outlines, a blue mask, and a black face plate. The chest plate also sported black horns that protruded from the back that supported the long black cape on his back. Brave’s helmet was now fitted with red and blue armor, the face plate was blue, and now he had black horns. | EXPLORE! DISCOVER! RPG! TAD~DLE FAN~TASY! | Nasca’s body was engulfed in roaring red flames, transforming her into her powered up form, Nasca Full Throttle. The winged Rider then held out her right hand, and suddenly the roar of Nasca’s bike could be heard echoing in the distance. The girls heard it getting louder and louder until the girls finally saw the vehicle and parted to allow it to pass through. The motorbike began to glow, and then jumped into the air, arching its way right to Nasca. As it flew through the air, the bike folded, metamorphing and changing into its Engine Blade form by the time Nasca gripped it with her hands. The ram horned Bugster saw this and broke free from its icy prison, the behemoth twirled its sword around, gathering energy to its sword for one final attack. Nasca and Brave glanced at each other and knew what to do. Nasca moved her Accel Memory over to the right hip port, and at the same time, Brave pushed on the Gamer Driver’s lever. >} ACCEL! MAXIMUM DRIVE! {< | CLICK TO CLOSE! | | FINISHING MOVE! | | CLICK TO OPEN! | }!!!{ TADDLE CRITICAL FINISH! }!!!{ Nasca threw the Engine Blade into the air, and at the same time, her body began to morph until it had changed into a motorcycle. The Engine Blade descended and attached itself to Nasca’s transformed body, acting as a spearhead tip for her. Brave’s eyes began to glow, his right foot charged with different shades of dark neon colors. The ram horned Bugster rushed for the two Riders, and at the same time, so did the Riders. Brave jumped up, and spun around, twirling his cape around himself to form a large spiraling drill bit. Nasca’s engines roared as flames and red colored light engulfed her body; the Engine Blade became red at the center of the blazing comet. “OVERDRIVE EXTREME!” A blinding flash of light ignited as all three met at the center, making the girls shut their eyes from the intensity of it. After a few seconds, the light died out and the girls opened their eyes to see the victor. The ram horned Bugster was still standing, in a stance that showed that it had indeed taken a swing. Nasca and Brave were on the opposite side, both kneeling on the ground, motionless. The Bugster rose up, smirked and raised its sword to attack them. But then exploded in a large fiery display that showed the word “Perfect!”. Nasca and Brave rose to their feet, their power up forms disappearing and returning them to default form. Brave looked about the area, and even though Nasca couldn’t see his face, she could tell the doctor was thinking hard on something. “What’s wrong Dr. Kagami?” Rainbow asked. “This isn’t a coincidence. The attack at Knightmare Studios, and now this attack. This, Tirek, he’s trying to eliminate all those who pose a threat to him. The fact that you and your friends are not infected is a testament to that,” said Brave. It has to be because of our magic, Tirek’s attack is part magic, and ours comes from those Elements of Harmony things that Sunset told us about. Jeez, I wish Sunset were here! She’s the magic expert! Well… Nasca turned her gaze to Starlight. Technically she isn’t, but I don’t think we can explain why Starlight can use magic and – “HOLY CRAP!” Brave summoned his Gaschon Sword and entered a ready stance. “What, is there another Bugster?!” Nasca face palmed herself. “Uh, sorry, no! I just remembered something. I need to talk to the girls, bye!” Brave watched as Nasca sped away towards her friends and started to engage in conversation with them. He made no hurry to join them, thinking it best to leave them to their private conversation, besides, there were bigger things to ponder. Especially, when two of their own were still trapped in Tirek’s game world. Brave could only fathom the trials they were facing at this moment.