//------------------------------// // The Held Cup // Story: Kamen Rider Justice // by RuinQueenofOblivion //------------------------------// The man in black stood in front of the massive throne that sat at the center of the Order’s main base of operations. The throne was ornately designed, having been carved out of obsidian with jewels of different colors being formed into it. The black throne was currently empty, and the man in black, despite the confidence he had in himself he had to admit he was a little terrified. This throne belonged to the one being in the Order that had power over even him, and he had been summoned here. By the wheel, he hated this part of the job. “Master, you summoned me?” The man in black said as he adjusted his hat a little and leaned on his cane. “What is your bidding?” “You’ve disappointed me,” a cold, raspy voice said from around the man as a shape began to form on the throne. “You’ve done nothing but fail over and over again to these, Riders.” “We’ve done everything we can master, the Riders and their allies have proven difficult to overcome,” the man in black said as she bowed slightly. “But we’ve also gained more energy for the Convergence than anticipated. Our brief deal with the Shinigami Fangire has gotten us closer to our goal than anything else.” “That is the only reason why you are not being punished already,” the voice said as its form appeared on the throne finally. It looked vaguely like a large humanoid form dressed in royal finery, but he had a terrifying aura around him. “This is our last chance to conquer this world, we have to make the Convergence work this time.” “Yes master, I understand,” the man in black said as he pulled his hat down a little. “I also have good news, our web has captured its fly. Soon enough they’ll have something else to worry about that I doubt they expected.” “Excellent,” the master said as he folded his arms. “The fact of the matter is that we have to do everything we can to make sure that we succeed here. It was bad enough when that first Rider fought us, but now the government of this nation is aware of us. “I am aware, but last time we didn’t have our own weapons to use against them,” the man in black said. “And we’ve reclaimed all but three of our missing commanders. Though I am still concerned about the other missing cards.” “Hardly a concern,” the Master said. “They are hardly more than an inconvenience and are not needed for our plans. Once the Convergence is done we will remove them and replace them with new spirits.” “Of course master, you are wise in all things,” the man in black said. “And what shall I do if our Rider fails?” “Then that is on you,” the master said, his voice becoming more and more terrifying. “You will make sure this plan succeeds or defeating them will fall on your shoulders.” “I… understand my master,” the man in black said as he pulled his hat down for a moment. “I will send out another Agent, perhaps there is something that we can use to our advantage. I may have an idea, but it could depend on what is summoned.” “Very well, I am sure the Wheel of Fortune will spin in our favor,” the Master said as he tapped on the arm of his throne. “Have Priellit summon it this time, we cannot afford the energy you would spend.” “Of course,” the man in black said with a bow. “I will make sure that we carry out our mission. These Kamen Riders will not stand a chance against us this time.” “Be sure that they don’t,” the master said as he started to vanish once more. “My time in this world is short. We have to succeed here or there will be no turning back. Do not fail, Kamen Riders or no.” “I will,” the man in black said as the image of the Master vanished from the throne. He adjusted his hat for a moment and turned to walk out of the throne room. The Order was on a deadline if they could not succeed there was no chance at them having a future. Even if it meant taking over this world, they would succeed. Succeed, or die. 00000 “Alright, we’ll keep an eye on things here as well,” Fancy Pants said with a sigh as he hung up the phone. “It seems like every year some new threat or two pops up in Japan, must be a magnet for monsters or something.” “I wouldn’t press our luck, America hasn’t exactly been immune either,” Fleur said as she set down some reports. “The Order, Inves, and whatever we’re calling those things from 4 years ago.” “Fair enough,” Fancy Pants said with a sigh as he took the reports and gave her a nod. “I’ll finish these up and meet you for dinner, sound good?” “Alright, just don’t take too long,” Fleur said with a soft smile as she walked out of the office. Fancy Pants sighed a little as he looked over the reports. He was going to have to compile the recent events and send them to SMILE HQ back in Washington. This was not going to be fun, but it was part of the job. He looked up when there was a sudden knock on the door. After a moment a woman with dark skin and dressed in a coat with a hat pulled over her hair. She gave Fancy Pants a small smirk as she headed over to the desk. “Still working hard I see Director,” she said as she took a seat. “Agent Shadow,” Fancy said as he adjusted his monocle. “I admit that I’m surprised to see you here. You’ve not exactly kept your presence hidden, but actually coming here? What’s going on here?” “I’ve been gone a long time I admit,” Agent Shadow said as she adjusted her hat a little. “I’ve had a lot I needed to think about and a lot that I needed to do. I didn’t actually think I’d ever come back here, but times change.” “I understand,” Fancy said as he sighed a little. “I just have to ask though, why are you coming back all of a sudden? Last time we talked you seemed pretty set on doing your lone wolf thing out in Canterlot.” “I was, but the Order situation is getting worse,” Shadow said as she adjusted her hat again for a moment. “A parasite like one of the Minor Arcana draining from a life force feeder like the Fangire is the worst case scenario for us. There’s no telling how much this boosted the Order’s energy stores, and they’re going to be even closer to the Convergence now.” “That is certainly troubling,” Fancy said with a frown as he folded his arms. “So, are you going to be doing more than just providing assistance this time? Or are you going to keep acting in the shadows?” “For now the truth behind me is going to remain secret until I’m needed,” Agent Shadow said as she shook her head a little. “I’m simply here to help as best I can, but I have other obligations that I need to fulfill at the same time. I am however interested in helping train these new Riders of yours.” “Yes, that much we can tell,” Fancy Pants said with a frown. “Our biggest concern, to be honest, is that we might run into an Agent that they can’t handle. Which is why we’re going to need your help as a back-up. The bullets you provided will at least help in that regard, but I don’t like the idea of risking running out.” “Yes, well that I can help with,” Agent Shadow said with a nod. “But I would be careful if I were you. There is still something about this that doesn’t feel right. I believe that the Order is playing a much longer game than just these monsters. I think we need to be careful.” Fancy Pants paused a moment as he thought back to the mention of the strange Scorpion themed Rider. What bugged him about it was that only Apple Bloom actually reported an encounter with the Rider and none of the camera footage around the area showed her. So where did this strange new Rider even come from? Given that she seemed to have a Tarot Driver, that would imply that there was some connection to Fortune Division. However, at the same time, there was no record of such a Rider coming from SMILE. Maybe Agent Shadow was right, and the Order really was up to something that would be a problem. “Understood,” he finally said with a sigh. “We’re going to have to keep an eye on things. Your first job is going to be keeping an eye out for a Scorpion themed Kamen Rider.” “I see… interesting,” Agent Shadow said as she got up. “Very well, I will keep an eye out for them. Is there anything else?” Fancy Pants shook his head and Agent Shadow got up and headed out. He sighed a little and leaned back in his chair. This was going to be hard to explain to the others, especially after what had recently happened. He just had to hope that he’d be able to explain it. 00000 “Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, are either of you home?” Sweetie asked as she opened the door to their apartment and looked around at the dark apartment. “Come on, this isn’t funny.” A scratch was heard before small light was seen as a match was lit and two candles were lit up. Sweetie turned to see Scootaloo standing there and putting out the match. She smiled a little as she saw that a nice spread had been set out and to Sweetie’s surprise her girlfriend was dressed in a long violet dress. “Well, well, well, I didn’t think I’d see you dressed up like that,” Sweetie said with a chuckle as she walked over and gave Scootaloo a soft kiss on the lips. “What’s the occasion?” “Did you forget?” Scootaloo asked with a small smile as she brushed some of Sweetie’s hair out of her eyes. “About 21 years ago, a very special girl came into this world and we’re here to celebrate that together.” “Really? Because I thought your birthday was in October,” Sweetie said with a chuckle as she wrapped her arms gently around Scootaloo’s neck. “Though that doesn’t explain this dress of yours, I haven’t seen you in one of these since Prom.” “Well, I wanted to make tonight special,” Scootaloo said softly as she smiled a little. “Dinner is ready and Apple Bloom decided to spend the night at her cousin Babs’ house so its just you and me tonight. Assuming we don’t get another call about a monster at least, knock on wood.” Sweetie chuckled a little as Scootaloo reached over and rapped on the wooden table. “Well then, how about I go get out of these work clothes and into something nice so we can enjoy dinner together?” Sweetie smiled a little as she walked towards the room they shared together. Scootaloo smiled a little as she watched her girlfriend’s butt sway as she walked and turned away after a moment to look back at the spread. Scootaloo had never been much of a cook, but she had spent most of the day figuring out how to get this just perfect. Right now she just hoped that it was edible so she didn’t ruin the night as she looked down at the small present she had. This hadn’t been easy to get, she had saved up part of her money from her part-time job and the rest had been venmoed to her by her family with the assurance that she’d pay them back. Now it was just a matter of actually giving it to Sweetie. She knew that this was the best time to do it, it just made her nervous. “So, what do you think Scoots?” Sweetie said and Scootaloo looked up and smiled a little. Sweetie was dressed in a low cut white dress with gold sequins that showed off her curves nicely and could be shown in the dim candlelight. “You look… wow…” Scootaloo said with a blush as Sweetie took a seat across from her and gave her a smile. “You look beautiful…” “So do you,” Sweetie said. “I have to say, I really wasn’t expecting to see a tomboy dressed like that. Did you actually cook all of this?” “Yeah, I had some help from YouTube,” Scootaloo said as she rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. “Anything for my girlfriend’s birthday.” “You’re quite the charming romantic, are you sure you’re not really a romanticist at heart?” Sweetie asked with a chuckle as she started eating and Scootaloo did the same. The two of them kept talking and eating. They spent as much time not focused on the fight with the Order as they could. Right now, they just wanted to at least pretend to be a normal couple instead of a superhero and her girlfriend. Scootaloo smiled a little at that, it actually felt nice to be able to pretend to be normal. She placed her hand on Sweetie’s and closed her eyes a little as she enjoyed the pale skinned girl’s soft touch. This felt right somehow like nothing could possibly happen to ruin it. They finally finished eating and Sweetie smiled a little as she set her silverware down and gave her a nod. “So, what should we do now? Retire to the bedroom?” “Well, no, there’s one more thing I want to give you first,” Scootaloo said with a slightly nervous smile as she picked up the present and gave it to Sweetie. “I’ve been wanting to get this for a while, I hope its perfect…” “I’m sure it will be fine whatever it is,” Sweetie said as she tore off the package and raised an eyebrow at the small velvet box. “Well, I see you spent a lot, I don’t know if I should be flattered or worried about your part of the rent for next month.” “Don’t worry, I’ve already taken care of that,” Scootaloo replied. “Just open it.” Sweetie opened the box and let out a gasp of surprise when she saw what was resting inside. It was a golden ring with an Amethyst and a Diamond encrusted into it in the shape of a heart. Sweetie looked up to see Scootaloo on one knee as she smiled at Sweetie. “Sweetie Belle, with everything that is going on we really don’t know what tomorrow might bring,” Scootaloo said as she placed her hands around Sweetie’s. “But I’m sure of one thing, and that’s that I love you more than words can truly describe. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?” “I…” Sweetie said as she looked at the gem and then at her girlfriend. “Do you really mean it? You must’ve saved up for this for months…” “Yeah, I was going to wait a while longer but with everything that’s been happening, I asked Rainbow Dash for her help,” Scootaloo answered. “I’m going to have to pay her back and I don’t know how long that’s going to take on my salary…” “But you wanted to do it because you love me that much?” Sweetie asked and Scootaloo nodded. “As I said, I didn’t want to risk losing this opportunity when we don’t know what tomorrow will bring,” Scootaloo said as she closed her eyes a moment. “I want to spend the rest of my life with you, Sweetie… please, will you have me?” “Scootaloo, of course, I will,” Sweetie answered as she lifted Scootaloo’s chin and leaned in and gave her a long kiss on the lips before she backed off after a moment. “I love you Scootaloo, and I can’t think of anyone I’d rather spend the rest of my life with.” The couple just sat there for a long moment before Sweetie got up and smiled at Scootaloo as they walked towards the bedroom together. 00000 “So, why exactly did Scootaloo want you to come to visit at the last minute?” A woman a little older than the three friends with tanned skin and short pink hair asked. She and Apple Bloom were seated at an ice cream place eating their ice cream at around the same time. “Well today is Sweetie’s birthday and she’s been workin’ hard ta get that right all day,” Apple Bloom said with a shrug as she took a bite of ice cream. “Ah think she’s got somethin’ special cooked up fer that too, but yah didn’t hear that from me, Babs.” “My lips are sealed,” Babs Seed said with a chuckle. “Though with everything that’s going on my parents are getting worried and want me to come back home. I mean, you’ve seen all the stuff about these monsters on the news, right?” “On tha news, yeah,” Apple Bloom replied shiftily for a moment. “It’s kinda hard ta miss, especially with that Riderwatch Blog keepin’ everyone appraised of what’s goin’ on.” “Yeah, it’s weird really, I wonder why they’re showing up all of a sudden,” Babs Seed said with a shake of her head. “Well, I’m going to try and stay here as long as I can keep mom and dad from thinking I should move back to New York.” “Yeah…” Apple Bloom said as she glanced back around the ice cream shop for a moment. “Honestly, Ah don’t plan ta run away from this either. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle have their own reasons, but Ah want ta make sure that everythin’ will be okay here before Ah go runnin’ home.” “Yeah… oh well,” Babs said with a shrug. Apple Bloom looked like she was about to say something when she glanced at another table where there seemed to be some sort of commotion. A young man was struggling to get to his feet as energy seemed to swirl around him as he gripped the table. “Okay, that’s not good,” Apple Bloom said as she groped at her pocket to get out her phone. She had a pretty good idea of what was going on and she wasn’t about to let this go unreported. She quickly snapped a photo of the young man just as he let out a cry and the transformation began. The familiar armor of an Order Agent formed over him but with a new twist this time. His arms stretched out as fleshy wings formed out of them. His head became a helmet with a pair of large ears and his face became almost, bat-like as he let out a screech. On his chest was a symbol of four cups against the familiar wheel-like structure and a bow appeared on his back. “Crap… Ah swear we’re cursed or somethin’...” Apple Bloom muttered. “What was that?” Babs asked. “Nothin’, nothin,” Apple Bloom said quickly as she grabbed Babs’ hand and pulled her away. “Come on, we gotta get goin’!” The two women jumped out of their chairs with Apple Bloom in the front as she quickly typed a text message to Scootaloo. This figured really, she hated to have to interrupt their evening but it was the only option they had right now. She just hoped that they were going to be able to answer quickly. This would be a bad time for them to be busy. “I think that thing is following us…” Babs said as she glanced behind them. “Why is it following us all of a sudden?” “Ah have no idea…” Apple Bloom lied. She knew exactly why the Order monster was after them, or specifically her. She cursed herself for not grabbing a weapon before she left the apartment. Not that she actually thought she was going to need it at the time, but right now she just had to worry about getting out of here. “Come on, let’s get to the car,” Babs said as they ran towards the car. Apple Bloom was still figuring out what to do about her lack of a car after the fight with the Mantis Fangire. “We just need to…” An energy arrow flew past them and they gulped a little when they turned back to see that the monster was holding a bow in his hands and was starting to pull back again. “Run!” Apple Bloom said as they picked up the pace and ran towards the car together. They threw their doors open and took off down the road. 00000 “Mmm… right there… that feels so good…” Scootaloo said as she closed her eyes as shivers ran up and down her spine from Sweetie’s touch as her fingers ran up and down her nerves. “Your fingers feel so good…” “Well, your muscles are all in knots right now, I think the fight with the Order has been stressing you out,” Sweetie said as she rubbed Scootaloo’s bare back. “Are you feeling okay?” “About as okay as you can be when you’re fighting monsters,” Scootaloo said with a sigh as she laid her head back down on the bed. “I feel like I’m slowly going insane, to be honest, I needed a night like this.” “You know you’re pushing your luck, right?” Sweetie asked as she leaned in and kneaded Scootaloo’s shoulders a little as she pressed up against her. “You might want to knock on wood or something.” “Mmm, maybe,” Scootaloo said as she turned her head and smiled at Sweetie. “Well, Apple Bloom isn’t going to be home for a bit. How about we use those wonderful hands of yours to rub some other things.” “That sounds nice,” Sweetie said as she rolled Scootaloo over and leaned in and kissed her passionately on the lips as she played with the sheets covering Scootaloo a little and started to pull it down when all of a sudden her phone went off, and it was the ringtone she had given Apple Bloom. “Oh, you have got to be kidding me…” “We don’t know it’s something bad, it could just be checking in on us,” Scootaloo said with a sigh, but she had to admit she had a bad feeling about it as she picked up the phone and started to open the text messages. “Let’s just see what’s going on and then we can get back on…” She trailed off when she realized that there was a picture of someone that looked like they were on the verge of a transformation. She didn’t recognize them, but she knew all too well what was going on. “We’re on our way home and we’re being followed, be ready.” “And there goes our nice peaceful evening,” Sweetie said with a sigh as she read over Scootaloo’s shoulder. “I guess that means we have to get dressed again.” “Hey, I’ve pretty much figured this out by now, I think we can make this a quick one,” Scootaloo said as she leaned over and kissed Sweetie on the lips. “Come on, I’ll just toss something on and we should be fine.” “If you say so,” Sweetie said as they quickly grabbed some clothes and slid them on as Scootaloo grabbed the Driver and cards out of a drawer. “I’m so sorry Sweetie, I wanted tonight to be perfect, but this got in the way, again,” Scootaloo said with a sigh as she looked at the Driver in her hand. “It feels like this whole thing has taken over my life.” “Scootaloo, it’s okay,” Sweetie said as she planted a kiss on Scootaloo’s cheek. “I know you, I know that if you don’t do what you can to save people when you have the power to do so, you will regret it for the rest of your life. You’re a good person Scootaloo, and I know you need to do this, even if I don’t like it.” “Yeah…” Scootaloo said with a sigh as she raised her Driver and placed it on her waist to form the belt as she took out the cards and slid them into her Driver. “Henshin!” “TIME TO TIP THE SCALES!” The energy flowed around her as the black and green armor formed over her body. The Arcana Rapier appeared in her hand and she took a deep breath as she looked back at Sweetie and gave her a nod. “Stay here and wait for Bloom and Babs and call SMILE,” she said as she headed for the front door. “I’ll handle the monster.” “Got it,” Sweetie said as Scootaloo headed out of the apartment. For a moment Sweetie looked back at the dresser drawer on the opposite side of the room as something called to her. She shook her head, no, this wasn’t the time for that, she needed to get in contact with the agents and quickly. Scootaloo walked out of the building just as the car with Babs and Apple Bloom came around the corner and came to a stop in front of the apartment building. “Do you think we lost it?” Babs asked as she looked over at Apple Bloom as they climbed out of the car together. “Ah don’t think so, he looked like he was right behind us,” Apple Bloom said, her heart was beating a mile a minute as she gave Scootaloo a nod. “Hey, you’re Kamen Rider Justice right?” Babs asked. “What are you doing here?” “It’s, a long story, just get inside,” Scootaloo said as she gripped the hilt of her rapier and walked forward with it. “I’ll handle this.” “Be careful,” Apple Bloom said as she gave her friend a nod before the two of them headed into the building together. The strange bat-like monster flew into view and came in for a landing as he let out a screech. Scootaloo narrowed her eyes a little and drew her sword and pointed it at him. “Who are you and why are you chasing after my friends?” “Kamen Rider…” the bat creature said as he bore his fangs and ran his tongue along them slowly. “I am Ceipai, and I’m looking for you, you and your friends have crossed my master!” “I’m going to defeat you just like the ones that came before you,” Scootaloo said as she pointed her sword at him. “You’re not going to hurt my friends or anyone else. Not after what you and the rest of the Order have pulled, I’m never going to forgive you for this!” “Then I’ll make sure you’re defeated!” Ceipai said with a snarl as he drew his bow again and drew the string back. “You may be powerful now, but let’s see how you can handle losing that power!” He didn’t aim the bow at Scootaloo, instead, he aimed it upwards. Scootaloo realized that he was up to something and tried to ran forward just as he let loose the arrow and it flew into the sky and suddenly exploded as waves of energy flew out across the city. Just as Scootaloo was thrusting her sword at Ceipai her armor and sword shattered. He swung a winged fist around and punched Scootaloo hard as she went sprawling back. “What the… how’d you do that?” Scootaloo demanded as she groaned and tried to get to her feet as she rubbed where the monster had hit her. “What did you do?” The monster laughed loudly and raised his bow and started to pull back on it when gunshots rang out and hit him in the back. He snapped and turned around to see Sweetie Drops and Fleur standing there with guns pointed at the bat monster. “You’re not going anywhere,” Sweetie Drops said. “I don’t know what you pulled, but we’re not letting you…” The bat monster let out a screech and took off and flew right at them. The women tried to fire at it but it kept flying before taking off to the skies and vanishing from sight. “Are you okay?” Fleur asked as she offered Scootaloo a hand. “You look shaken.” “Yeah… I think I’m fine,” Scootaloo said as she shook her head a little. “I powered down in the middle of the fight, is that supposed to happen?” Fleur and Sweetie Drops exchanged a look before they shook their heads. “We need to get inside, I’ll call the Director and we’ll figure out where to go from here,” Fleur said. Scootaloo sighed a little as they walked back towards the apartment building. Something about all of this was weird, she had suddenly had her ability to transform taken away and that felt, weird somehow. What was going on? And was it going to get worse from here? 00000 Babs Seed had gone home after being given a quick cover story to avoid suspicion. They weren’t sure she bought it, but it was better than nothing. So now they were in the apartment trying to figure out what to do next. “Henshin!” Sweetie Drops said as she slid the card into here Driver’s card slot and waited for the familiar energy surge. It didn’t come as the Driver just sat there unmovingly as they looked at it confused. “Okay… that’s weird.” “Did this ever happen before?” Sweetie Belle asked as she looked over at Fleur who looked just as concerned as the others. “You’re the only expert we have on this kind of thing right now, has this ever happened before?” “No, at least not to me or like this,” Fleur said with a shake of her head. “There was an incident back in the late 80s where Kamen Rider Black encountered a creature called the Slug Moth Mutant. It was able to dampen energy including Rider transformation energy using Cocoons. However, that was likely in response to the heat put out by Black’s transformation process.” “So, what are we dealing with here?” Sweetie Drops asked. “When reversed, tha four of cups means retreat, withdrawal, and checkin’ in fer alignment,” Apple Bloom said as she read from her phone. “At least that’s what Biddytarot says. Ah’ve also got a picture of tha fella that transformed into that Kirk Langstrom wannabe.” “Why bats anyway?” Sweetie Belle asked. “We’ve mostly seen humanoid monsters, other than that bird creature that attacked right before the Mantis Fangire attacked.” “Well, and the Skinwalker one, but I don’t even know what to classify that as,” Scootaloo said with a shake of her head. “Wouldn’t be the first one,” Sweetie Drops said with a shrug. “I’ve looked over the records of past monster factions, you’d be amazed at how often bat monsters show up. I guess it was only a matter of time.” “So, then how are we going to fight it without being able to transform?” Scootaloo asked. “That thing is running loose in the city and we don’t know exactly what it’s going to do if we let it run loose.” “That is a good question,” Fleur said with a sigh. “I guess we don’t have much of a choice. All of you get together some clothes for a few days at least, you’re staying at headquarters until we can figure out what’s going on.” “Uh, okay,” Scootaloo said as she blinked a little in surprise. “Any particular reason why?” “Because it’s clear at this point that the Order knows who you are and where you live,” Fleur said with a sigh. “If you can’t protect yourselves from the attack since the weapons can’t seem to finish the job you’re going to have to stay somewhere safe until we know how to deal with this.” “And what about…” Sweetie Belle started to say. “Yes, your jobs will be given the normal cover story, don’t worry about that,” Fleur said with a sigh as she shook her head a little. “I know this isn’t going to be easy, but the fact of the matter is that we need to do this if we want to keep you safe. I’ll inform the Director while you get ready, understood?” “Understood,” Scootaloo said with a sigh as she and Sweetie Belle headed into their room together and Apple Bloom went to her own room. Sweetie sighed a little as Scootaloo opened the closet and pulled out their suitcases as she set them out on the bed and shook her head a little. “I, honestly don’t know what to think right now,” she said as she opened the drawers and started taking out clothes. “You weren’t sure about doing this in the first place weren’t you?” Sweetie asked as she set her clothes in her suitcase. “I mean, isn’t this kind of what you wanted?” “Kind of,” Scootaloo said with a sigh. “But at the same time, you were right earlier and helping people of this city is important. The Order killed my family, and I’m not about to let them get away with putting anyone else in danger. Especially after what they pulled before with the Fangire… I just feel so, useless right now.” “Scootaloo, you are not useless,” Sweetie said as she placed her hand on her fiance’s shoulder gently. “You’ve been doing everything you can to stop the Order and keep people safe ever since. You’re doing fine, you’re probably doing better than I would have. Just do what you can and we’ll figure out exactly what’s going on.” “I love you, Sweetie,” Scootaloo said with a gentle smile as she placed her hands on Sweetie’s shoulders and leaned in and gave her a kiss. “I knew there was a reason why I wanted to marry you.” “Oh, it's not because you love me?” Sweetie asked with a slight smirk. “Oh no, I do love you, but you’re also smart, talented, and you know how to get me out of a bad mood,” Scootaloo said as she smiled softly and held Sweetie close to her. “I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and I promise you I’m going to make sure that this isn’t the end of it. So, what do you say we go see what SMILE has cooked up?” “Yeah, okay,” Sweetie said as they grabbed their bags and walked out hand in hand. “Well, glad ta see ya’ll are finally done makin’ out,” Apple Bloom said with a chuckle as the couple walked in. “Are ya’ll ready ta go?” “As ready as we’ll ever be,” Scootaloo said as she squeezed Sweetie’s hand gently. “Let’s do this.” Sweetie Drops nodded a little before she noticed the ring on Sweetie’s hand and smiled a little before they headed out. They climbed into a car with Fleur driving and Scootaloo rests her head gently on Sweetie’s shoulder as she smiled a little and closed her eyes. “Are you going to be okay back there?” Fleur asked as she started up the car and looked in the rearview mirror. “This can’t be easy on either of you.” “Yeah, I think we’re going to be just fine,” Scootaloo said softly as she squeezed Sweetie’s hand gently. “As long as I’ve got my friends by my side, there’s nothing we can’t do together.” “And this monster’s going to learn that the hard way,” Sweetie said. “You don’t mess with Scootaloo Dash.” Fleur nodded a little and started the car up as they started down the road towards the SMILE HQ. Sweetie was about to close her eyes and enjoy the moment when her phone went off. She looked at it and noticed that it was Babs Seed calling as she answered it. “Hey Babs, this isn’t really a good time,” Sweetie said into the phone. “Sweetie, we gotta talk,” Babs said on the other end. “I saw what happened back at the apartment. Why didn’t you tell me that Scootaloo was Kamen Rider Justice?” Sweetie’s eyes went wide at that as Scootaloo looked up at her confused. Sweetie paused a moment and shook her head. “I need to put you on hold, Babs, give me a minute,” she said and pressed a button on her phone. “We have a problem, Babs knows about Scootaloo.” “What?” Fleur asked. “She must’ve hung back and saw her being powered down,” Sweetie said with a sigh. “What do you want me to do?” “Tell her to meet us where the base is, I’ll talk to the Director,” Fleur said and Sweetie nodded as she picked the phone back up and told Babs where to go. Scootaloo sighed a little and closed her eyes again. This was going to be a very long night. 00000 “You know, when someone tells you to run its usually for a good reason,” Scootaloo said with a sigh as she looked at Babs. “What were you thinking staying behind?” “I’m sorry, I just really wanted to see what was going down,” Babs Seed said. “I thought I was far enough away to be safe so I set up my phone’s camera to record. I’m sorry, you’re right I should have left.” “Well, there’s nothing we can do about it now,” Sweetie Drops said as she held her hand out and frowned a little. “I want your phone, you didn’t post the video did you?” “No, I wanted to hear the story first,” Babs said with a shake of her head and gave Sweetie Drops the phone. “I’m not about to expose the truth without a good reason. I just want to know what’s going on, I promise I won’t send it to anyone.” “We’re still going to have to delete this,” Sweetie Drops said as she got into the phone and deleted the video. “I’m sorry Babs, but we need to make sure that this doesn’t get out, at least not yet. This isn’t the first American Kamen Rider, but this is the first one that has been this much in the public eye.” “Wait, there have been others?” Scootaloo asked. “I thought Fleur was the only other one?” “There was one other, but that was a few years ago,” Fleur said with a shake of her head. “She doesn’t want to have her identity become public. But needless to say, there has been at least one other one, we were lucky to keep it quiet, to be honest.” “Probably helped that everyone was more focused on the Inves threat,” Fleur said with a shake of her head. “But yeah, she’s going to be fine, I would recommend not bothering her unless needed.” “So, what am I supposed to do now?” Babs asked. “That thing isn’t going to come after me too is it?” “Honestly, it’s kind of hard to tell,” Fleur said. “You were with Apple Bloom when she saw the monster. Honestly, I don’t think you should risk it right now. Especially given that there is now an obvious connection between the four of you, I’m afraid that you might be in danger.” “Great,” Babs said with a sigh. “So what do I do now?” “You’ll stay with us, at least until the current situation is dealt with,” Fleur said with a slight nod. “We’re concerned about the fact that both of our Riders can’t seem to transform and are attempting to make sure that everything is worked out.” “Don’t worry, we’ll make sure you’re safe,” Sweetie Belle said. “This place is usually safe, it’s nothing to be worried about. I think we should just get downstairs and see if we can figure out what to do next… some birthday this turned out to be huh?” “Alright, let’s go downstairs then,” Fleur said as she leads them to the disguised elevator and looked back at Babs. “You understand that you cannot speak a word of this to anyone, right? This is top secret.” “Understood,” Babs said with a nod as they opened the elevator and headed inside. “So, we’re not going to a secret base with aliens that drink coffee, are we?” Scootaloo laughed a little at that as the elevator doors closed. Then again, they were fighting against extradimensional monsters. Maybe it wasn’t that much of a stretch, after all, it would certainly not be the weirdest thing ever. “Don’t worry, no aliens, in this division at least,” Fleur said as she hit a button and the elevator started down towards the SMILE base of operations. “Well okay, wait, this division?” Babs asked. “Trust me, there are a lot of strange things in this world,” Fleur said as they went on in silence down towards the base again. 00000 “Curiouser and curiouser,” Priellit said as she shuffled through the deck while Caesar watched the screen which showed Ceipai. “This is not an ability we have ever manifested before.” “But not unwelcome,” Caesar said as he crossed his arms. “However this does complicate matters. Given the suppression powers of Ceipai, we cannot even set foot in that city until he defeats the Riders.” “Or vice-versa,” Priellit said as she set her prediction deck down on the table in front of her as she drew the top card. “The Five of Swords is upright, that is unsettling. A card of conflict and disagreement. We may have bigger problems than we are aware of with this one.” “You’re saying that we may not be able to control it?” Caesar asked as he looked at her concerned for a moment. “That is a good possibility,” Priellit said as she placed the card into her deck and shuffled it before placing it back in her robes. “The fact of the matter is that we can’t completely predict what the monsters will do. We’ve mostly been lucky that they’ve followed our plans to the letter.” “Who ordered this one to be summoned for that matter?” Caesar said as he stroked his chin thoughtfully. “I didn’t approve of this, who called for this summoning?” “The Master did,” the man in black said as he walked in, leaning on his cane a little as he did. He looked more frazzled than usual with his hat slightly askew. “He ordered me to pass it on to Priellit. Or are you questioning the will of our Master?” “No, of course not,” Caesar said. “I was simply not aware that he was the one who gave the order. I would never question the will of the Master of the Order.” “As you should,” the man in black said with a nod as he adjusted his hat again and looked at Priellit. “The fact of the matter is that there are things at play here that are beyond our control. The will of the Wheel and the Master are absolute, we may not be able to enter the city yet, but we will make do. We must re-commit ourselves to our cause and continue our mission here on Earth, as this is our last chance.” “By your command,” Caesar said and frowned a little as he crossed his arms. “And what about those who have been lost? We have made no progress towards reclaiming them through the usual methods.” “Then we are going to up our game,” the man in black said with a nod. “Hopefully this will buy enough time. Keep an eye on things and let me know if there are any updates.” The two commanders nodded as the man in black walked back out of the room. Caesar shook his head and sighed a little. “I need to go and meet with someone right now. Let me know if there is anything else.” He headed towards a panel on the wall and placed his hand on it. It glowed briefly and then he vanished into thin air. 00000 “We’re still trying to figure out exactly what’s going on here,” Fancy Pants said as they settled into the conference room. The screen showed an overhead view of Canterlot city proper with a circle that encompassed most of it. “Based on our scans of the area this is the is affected by the monster’s attack.” “That’s, most of Canterlot,” Sweetie Belle said with a frown. “Except for our base here interestingly enough, but that’s not going to help us much,” Fancy Pants said as he pointed at a spot outside of the city. “This monster is using their powers to make sure that we can’t fight with our Riders.” “I’m guessing we can’t call Kenzaki back or for any help,” Scootaloo said with a shake of her head. “Unfortunately because of how the Order Agents and Riders work, it’s not that simple,” Fleur said with a shake of her head. “It’s why Fluttershy wasn’t able to break the spirit that was possessing the Shinigami Fangire wasn’t able to break through it. They’re getting smarter, and more dangerous.” “Which means, we have to either lure them out of the city or figure out how to negate the field,” Scootaloo said. “So, what are we going to do now? How long are we going to have to stay here?” “Basically until we have a plan,” Fancy Pants said. “We have Flim and Flam working on it with one of our specialists when it comes to the Order. She will be joining us shortly, I should just warn you that there is something you should know about her before she arrives.” “Do Ah want ta know what that is?” Apple Bloom asked as she looked at Fancy Pants confused for a moment. “That it’s me,” a voice said as a dark-skinned woman with dark pink hair said. Scootaloo and her friends blinked a little as they saw her, though Babs Seed just looked confused. “You must be Scootaloo Dash and her friends, I’ve read your files. Well, most of your files.” “Tempest, what are you doing back?” Scootaloo asked as she tilted her head a little. “This isn’t the same Tempest Shadow you met before, this is the one from our world,” Fancy Pants explained quickly. “She’s been with SMILE on and off for awhile providing any advice on the Order. She’s basically our top expert on them.” “Yes, and I’m already aware of the situation,” Tempest said with a concerned frown. “The fact is that there’s not any precedent for this, at least not among the Order Agents. Likely we’re looking at some form of energy dispersal which is keeping it negated.” “Great,” Sweetie said with a sigh as she closed her eyes. “So, in other words, we might be here for a while.” “Unfortunately, yes, but it’s better than the alternative,” Fancy Pants said with a sigh. “For now, I want you all to get comfortable. We’ll let you know when we have something, understood?” “Understood,” Scootaloo sighed as they got up and headed out of the room. Tempest held up a tablet and went through some of the footage for a moment and narrowed her eyes at some of the footage of something from outside. “It looks like we have company outside.” “Do you think it’s the order?” Fleur asked as they looked at Tempest. “No, more like a mysterious prophet,” Tempest said as she placed her hand on her sidearm. “I’m going to investigate, don’t tell the others, it’ll only worry them.” “Understood, we’ll have back-up ready if you need it,” Fancy Pants said but Tempest just grunted a little as she headed out and towards the elevator again. 00000 Outside the base, a young man was standing there as he held open a book with a slight frown on his face. He spoke quietly to himself in Japanese as he turned the page. “” “” a cold voice said as he snapped up to see Tempest Shadow walking out of the building. “” “,” Woz said as he rolled his eyes a little. “” “” Tempest said as she narrowed her eyes a little. “” “” Woz said with a slight smirk. “” “?” Tempest asked as she narrowed her eyes a little. “” “” Woz said with a shake of his head. “” “” Tempest said as she narrowed her eyes a little at that. “” “” Woz said as he shut his book. “” “” Tempest said as she narrowed her eyes at him a little. “” Woz just laughed a little as he walked off, leaving Tempest standing there in silence. She shook her head, it had been a long time since she had last met Woz, and she didn’t like him any more back then than she did now. But that was hardly the biggest concern on her mind right now. She just had to hope that he and his master would be stopped in time as she headed back into the building.