//------------------------------//
// Aftermath 
// Story: EoH Evolution Special: Rainbow Rocks/Kamen Rider Bahamut: Episode 0 
// by Bahamut0 
//------------------------------//

For Burst Stream, the day started out like any other day, but he was happier than he'd been for the last couple of weeks. Sunset Shimmer and Goldenrise using his closeness to Principal Celestia had left Burst in a defeated state for a good while. But thanks to Twilight Sparkle, he was able to regain his will to stand for what's right and stood against the two of them despite their transformation.

'And then I had a transformation of my own.' Burst Stream thought to himself as he changed into a fresh set of clothes. 'Still, it's hard to believe all that happened. There's a link to another world in my school's statue, and magic exists there. Now I've got a deck of cards that lets me turn into a some kind of superhero. ' He then turned his attention to the advent deck resting on his nightstand, and went to pick it up. Burst Stream was surprised to find that the dragon crest on it was gone!

"What?" Burst Stream was confused as he inspected the advent deck. "But I could've sworn that there was an emblem on this thing." He then decided to inspect the cards within the deck. Inspecting the first one that he drew. "Advent card. . . "

"Burst!" Lumina called from the kitchen. "Your breakfast's ready!"

"Be right there Mom!" Burst Stream called back as he shoved the advent deck into his pocket and made his way towards the kitchen. He then proceeded to scarf down the food his mom had prepared. "Morning!" 

"Look at you." Lumina said with a fond smile as she watched her son eat. "You really are back to your old self. It looks like that girl you brought over really snapped you out of your sulking."

"Well, she made a lot of good points." Burst Stream said as he scarfed down the last of his breakfast, and clenched his fist slightly. "Especially concerning what Sunset and Goldenrise were doing to the school. I could have helped everyone by taking a stand in the open, but like an idiot I did nothing. All because I wanted to keep Cele- I mean, Principal Celestia out of trouble."

"Oh, Burst Stream." Lumina said with a sigh as she walked over to her son and pulled him into a hug. "What happened isn't your fault. You and I both know that. As for wanting to make sure Celestia kept her job? I don't blame you in the slightest. I know how much she means to you. It still seems like only yesterday you were begging her to read you a story."

"I-I gotta get going!" Burst Stream stammered as he shot up from his chair and onto his feet! "ByeMom!" Burst quickly grabbed his backpack, and bolted towards the garage! Slipping on his helmet and starting up his motorcycle after opening the garage door. "Let's ride." One quick bike ride later, and Burst Stream found himself nearing the school's parking lot.

"I've got a feeling things have gotten better since I last set foot through the hallways." Burst Stream thought out loud as he dismounted from his bike. He couldn't help but smile as he saw all the different groups of students mingling and chatting. However, his stroll through the school was interrupted when Inferno Flare jumped on him! "Somehow I knew this was coming."

"Yo Burst!" Inferno greeted with a grin. "Man, it's good to have you back!"

"Good to be back, buddy." Burst said with a chuckle. "But where the others?"

"Right behind you." Tyrannus said as he gave Burst Stream a bone-crushing hug. "Glad to have you back, dude."

"Ty. . . thank you." Burst wheezed out. "But I need air. . . " Thankfully, he was released from the hug within seconds of his plea. "And I suppose Akage's going to pop out of nowhere next. Right?"

"Not likely." Steel Edge said with a shrug as he walked up to the group with Rainbow Dash at his side. "Pinkie's been talking his ear off about what happened during the Fall Formal."

"Really?" Burst Stream asked. Despite his knowledge of what had transpired. "What happened at the dance? The last thing I remember was seeing Sunset and Goldenrise transform. But beyond that, I don't remember anything except seeing a fireball come right at me."

"Count yourself lucky! I don't think any of us want to picture what happened before that Kamen Rider guy showed up and saved you!" Rainbow Dash chimed in. "Since your memory's blank, I'll fill ya in. After Sunset and Gold tried to waste you, some guy wearing cool-looking armor showed up and dragged you out of the fire. Said his name was Kamen Rider Bahamut, and he started kicking Sunset and Goldenrise's butts! Then, me and the girls plus this girl Twilight who's from another world transformed too! We unleashed some magic and delivered a massive butt-whopping to Sunset and Gold! So, that's about it so far."

"Sounds like one heck of a night. But now that I think about it, the words Kamen Rider sound kind of familiar to me." Burst Stream said with a small smile before turning to face Inferno Flare. "So, are there any other key events that I'm behind on?"

"Not really." Inferno said with a shrug. "The school's going to have a music showcase pretty soon! No pun intended, but it's gonna rock! In fact, you could say the timing's perfect with your return! Your vocals are just what we need to round out our band! Steel's on bass, Ty's on drums, and I'm lead guitar."

"Funny. I thought you'd take the vocals. Especially after you serenaded Rarity for one of your dates." Burst Stream said with a smirk. "So. You got any ideas of the songs you want to perform? Are we going original, or are we sticking with a cover?"

"Actually, Akage managed to come up with some songs based on the continuation from that book series you like." Inferno said with a grin. "You know, that superhero series you loved so much?"

"Wait, now I know why those words sounded so familiar." Burst Stream snapped his fingers in realization! "Mirror World: The Adventures of the Kamen Riders! I read that book so many times when I was a kid!" But now this new information brings a lot of new questions too. . .

"Huh. And I thought things couldn't get any more epic!" Rainbow Dash said with a smirk. "Now we've got a real-life superhero roaming around the city!"

But before the conversation could carry on any longer, the school's intercom system went off.

"Would Burst Stream please report to Principal Celestia's office? Thank you."

"Sorry guys! Talk to you all at lunch!" Burst Stream called out as he made his way to Principal Celestia's office. Upon reaching the door, Burst took a deep breath before knocking.

"Come in." Celestia called out from the other side of the door. When she saw the door open, she couldn't help but smile. "Good to see that you're not one to keep a lady waiting."

"So why'd you call me Princi-" Burst Stream when he saw Celestia give him a knowing look. "Sorry. Why'd you ask to see me Celestia?"

"Because I wanted to see whether or not you were back to your old self." Celestia said with a warm smile as she pulled Burst Stream into a hug. "I'm happy to say you haven't lost that same, wonderful smile you had when you were younger. I still remember when your face lit up whenever I'd babysit you."

"Well, you were kind of like a second mom to me. Especially when my mom was out working." Burst Stream said with a slight blush. "It also didn't help I had a bit of a crush on you. As for I was acting weird, well, Sunset and Goldenrise decided to use the time we spent together as blackmail with pictures that could've easily be taken out of context. They told me that if I continued to get in their way, they'd leak the pictures and make it look like you were doing something scandalous. And I couldn't bear to see something like that happen to you. It wouldn't have hurt just me. Everyone here loves you as our principal. Without you, I don't think this place would be nearly as happy."

"Oh, Burst." Celestia said with a sigh as she loosened her hold on Burst Stream. She then noticed tears starting to form in Burst Stream's eyes. "You don't need to feel guilty about staying quiet. I knew Sunset Shimmer and Goldenrise had been bullying, but they were playing things smart enough to fool me too. They'd always hide their actions whenever I'd near them troubling other students."

"But that doesn't give me an excuse!" Burst Stream cried out! "I did nothing, and those two got to do as they pleased! So many people got hurt because I decided not to do anything!"

"But it didn't stay that way for long, did it?" Celestia asked with a comforting smile. "I saw you riding up to the Fall Formal on your motorcycle. And it was clear then that you had no problem confronting those two and getting more, hands-on as it were."

"Yeah." Burst Stream said with a sniffle as a small smile crept across his mouth. "That new girl, Twilight? She helped me remember what my dad said."

"You know, he'd be very proud of you." Celestia said with as she removed her hands from Burst Stream.

"Yeah." Burst Stream said with a slight frown. One that soon vanished as he shifted his mind to a happier topic. "The point is, I'm just happy things are back to normal! And I hope there's more excitement in store for the future! I better get going! Class is gonna start soon!"

"It's good to have you back, my dragon knight." Celestia said with a fond smile as she watched him leave. Little did either of them know, they'd be seeing more excitement very soon.