//------------------------------// // Volume 4: Now Is the Right Time // Story: The Eternal Blaze: Vicariously for Vengeance // by The Bricklayer //------------------------------// Winter had bitten with a vengeance, biting cold arriving up from the north like a demonic beast. The city was covered in snow, a blanket of white coating the streets none too gently. Traffic had ground to a halt, the streets more clogged than LA in rush hour as everything seemed to come to a stop overnight. It was bumper to bumper, the streets resembling a rainbow as cars of all colors were stuck in one spot for practically hours on end.  What a day to start her first week of work at Hiden, Twilight mused with a laugh as she found herself braving the winter weather. The skies above her were coated in grey, no light peeking through and offering no hope for warmer weather. Bundled tightly, her scarf hiding the bottom half of her face, she felt like Randy from a Christmas Story, barely able to move. It wasn’t exactly like she had a choice, believe me. If she had her way, Twilight would have been home with a mug of cocoa and not even thinking of going inside. But alas, she didn’t always get what she wanted. “Move to Seattle, they said. It’s a hub of new start ups. I was supposed to nail my dream job,” she thought, Rekka disguised as an umbrella. “...yeah, pffft, they didn’t mention this did they?” She’d been living in Washington for just under several years now, and she swore every winter just got that little bit worse. Oh well, she supposed it could be worse. She could be dueling Falchion at this very moment. Gripping Rekka just a little bit tighter, she wondered if that might have been preferable. ...what was Sombra doing right now anyways? Scouring the world for another page of the Codex doubtlessly. “I should be out there, on the front lines trying to stop him. Instead I’ve been benched. ...like I don’t even matter! I know Sombra better than anyone, and yet I’ve been told to stand aside!” Rekka, even under disguise soon began to spark as it matched her agitation. Taking several deep calming breaths, Twilight sighed. “...but Vinyl and Sugarcoat are right. I’m risking this running my life,” she thought. “...I need to take a step back, let them do their job. I’m not the only swordswoman in the world, not the only one trained. But all the same! I know how Sombra thinks, right? How he fights. I… I should at least be around to offer advice.” It stung, honestly, not being even thought of. ...but maybe Sugarcoat had a point. Oh who was she kidding? Twilight knew the Swordswoman of Clear Waters was right. She’d let Sombra run her life for ages. Until… until she didn’t know what it was like to just stop thinking of him. Even now, her thoughts were revolving around fighting the Immortal Swordsman. It was like an addiction, unhealthy to the end. Dark fire was threatening to consume her, like an inferno did a forest. Soon there would be nothing left but ash. “Was this what it was like for OOOs, a few years ago? Spending every waking moment thinking about how to stop the Greeed?” Twilight wondered. “I should visit her, honestly. Try and learn her secret. How not to think of fighting, and try to slide back into civilian life.” So lost in thought was she, that Twilight failed to notice she’d stepped inside Hiden Industries right up until she slammed into someone. Collapsing to the floor, Twilight let out a groan of pain as Rekka clattered at her side.  “...you see, now look at what you’re doing!” the Chinese woman chastised herself. “You’re making a fool of yourself, embarrassing yourself like this on your first day of work!” “Do you require assistance?” A soft feminine voice asked and she looked up to see the woman she had run into offering her a hand.  “Y-Yeah, thanks,” Twilight said, taking the offered hand, and using her other hand to dust herself off. “Again, I’m so sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going. I’m supposed to be starting work here today, fine first impression I made. Everyone must be staring at me like I’m some kind of clutz!” The woman tilted her head a little as if she was thinking before nodding. “Yes, Ms. Twilight Sparkle, you are scheduled to begin work as a technician today.” Honestly, there was something… off about the woman, now that she thought about it. Twilight wasn’t exactly able to place it. Maybe it was the eyes, glassy and seemingly all-knowing. Wait, was she wearing headphones? ...wasn’t exactly very professional, contrasted with her sharp suit. Wait, those weren’t headphones! No, those were earpieces. Oh, she was a humagear! Several years ago, Hiden Industries had wowed the world with the introduction of the type-1 humagear at the CES Trade Show. They designed to do the jobs a human could not. Or rather… would not. Lifelike, they seemed designed to supplant the human workforce and would never tire. One day soon, over half of the world’s jobs would be done by Hiden’s humagears, Twilight had calculated. ...she wasn’t entirely sure how she felt about that.  Yes, there was always the possibility that everything would go well, but… Twilight honestly worried. Would the human race grow fat on it’s pride, laying on couches instead of working for a living? Or would the two races grow and meet an understanding? That was the question, that, honestly, had been on the whole world’s minds since Korenosuke Hiden debuted his greatest creation. And right now? Nobody was sure of the answer. Of course, until that time there was always a place for the human workforce even within Hiden itself. After all, machines did need regular upkeep and maintenance. Which was where she stepped in. Even if, as they said, the humagears were made of a secret material of such high quality. Didn’t matter if they were swarming the world like locusts, -harsh but true- they still needed to be repaired. “Yes, that’s… that’s right,” Twilight finally answered. “...how did you know?” “I have access to employee records, it is standard and helps me in my duties,” the woman answered. “Please follow me.” Her heels clacked against the floor, as Twilight followed. She wasn’t exactly afraid of humagears, not really. It was just a reasonable concern for them to take over too many jobs. Hell, honestly? Twilight was actually amazed at the sheer advancement in robotics. A few years ago, robots like this were nothing but constrained to the pages of sci-fi novels. Now a dream had been realized. Nerds of the earth, unite!  “Take off towards a dream, right?” Twilight mused, reading the company motto displayed prominently above her. “...yeah, that seems about right! Respect, Korenosuke.”   “What first interested you in working here, Ms. Sparkle?” The humagear asked. “Your resume is impressive.” “W-Well I wouldn’t say it’s that impressive…” Twilight stammered, blushing red and pressing her fingers together nervously. Some things she’d never been able to outgrow unfortunately, and people talking her up always turned her into an embarrassed wreck. Like she was worth something. “You would not be here otherwise,” the humagear replied. “I am sure that you will fit in here just fine, Ms. Sparkle.” ““If… if you say so,” Twilight replied, still nervous. “...I guess I’m honored to be here, really. This is like a dream come true for me.” At this, the humagear seemed to look a bit curious. Well, as curious as a machine could actually look anyways. “Please elaborate.” “What I mean is…” Twilight stammered. “...well, oh how do I explain this one? It’s like, uh… oh god. I grew up around science fiction you know?” “No, I don’t know,” the humagear replied. “I don’t know you personally, only your accomplishments. Your paper on the applications of distributed intelligence and multi-agent systems in the development of advanced computer systems in particular caught our attention. The idea of utilizing such systems to improve on…” The praise sorta faded out to her ears, but it was a reminder. A reminder of the fact that, oh right, she did have a life besides the sword. It could have been a full-time job, if she wanted it to be. Instead, again and again she found the art of the blade pulling her back in. She was going to have to be pulling double duty now. ...something would have to give soon, and honestly? Twilight didn’t know which part of her life she’d have to sacrifice. Honestly, she wasn’t sure she wanted to know which part it’d be. “Are you alright, Ms. Sparkle?” The humagear asked. “Yeah, I’m fine…” Twilight lied, hoping the humagear wasn’t a living lie detector.  “Very well, let us continue,” the humagear said as the two continued walking together. “In any event, this is like a dream come true as I said,” Twilight went on. “What was once a dream is now reality.” For a moment Twilight swore she saw a slight smile on the humagear’s face. Maybe she was imagining it, she didn’t know. “I believe you will do well here then, dreams are important here at Hiden Industries.” “Dreams are important here huh?” Twilight thought. “...so, it makes you wonder what they’d think of mine? Of Falchion lying dead at my feet. God, I’ve got to get myself back on track, try to stop thinking like a madwoman and start thinking like an actual swordswoman. Vinyl, Sugarcoat… they’re quite right. It’s an obsession.” The worst part is, Twilight realized, she didn’t know how to stop obsessing. Hopefully, a few days at Hiden would fix that. Instead of catastrophizing about Sombra, she could put her mind towards more important matters. “By the way, I never caught your name,” Twilight admitted. “Seems awfully rude of me. I’m embarrassing myself again aren’t I? ...a fine start to my week here!” “It is alright, I take no offense, my name is Izu,” Izu said as she bowed slightly. Twilight bowed in turn, before meeting Izu’s eyes. “Izu, as in Is?” Izu blinked a little and tilted her head. “I do not know, it was the name given to me when I was created.” “It’s a good name.” “I believe that Twilight Sparkle is not a normal name for a human either, Ms. Sparkle,” Izu commented. Twilight could only laugh nervously. “...that’s the first time anyone’s ever said that to me!” “I have to ask, why come to Seattle?” Twilight pondered, actually rather curious. “I know it’s popular for tech start ups. Amazon, Nordstorm, Redfin, Getty Images, I could go on. Pretty large competition. ...unless, oh, I see. Hidden’s planning to sell humagears to every one of these companies aren’t they?” “That is correct.” Izu replied with a small nod. “It’s genius, really,” Twilight began to ramble. “I mean, think about it. Every one of these companies could use humagears to minimize the workload. Take over simply menial tasks that humans would tire quickly over, and as humagears never tire… they could slave for hours on end. ...well, I’m not sure slave is the right word, it sounds like you have no choice? Do you have any choice? I presume you do, given nobody’s complained yet. Yeah, you have a choice, and ‘slave’ was a bad choice. Toil, yeah, that’s better right?” Annnnnnnnd she was babbling again. Lovely. “You do have a tendency to do what humans call ‘babbling,” Izu commented. “I would recommend you slow down, take a breather.” “Yeah, yeah, sorry,” Twilight apologized with another bow. “Again, deeply sorry. I don’t know what got into me!” “You worry too much,” Izu also noted. “You are afraid of making a bad impression on Aruto-sama and reflecting badly on the company.” “Straight to the point…” Twilight said. “You remind me of a friend of mine, something tells me you two would get along great.” “Oh?” Izu asked. “Who is that?” “A friend of mine, you wouldn’t know her. Incredibly blunt, believes the truth will set you free. She will tell you exactly what she thinks, no matter how improper it probably is.” “I see, interesting, what is her name?” “Sugarcoat Wright,” Twilight replied. “Again, I doubt you’ve heard of her.” Izu paused a moment and tilted her head, internal machinery whirring as she thought to herself. “Sugarcoat Wright, no I do not know her, though she has a large number of posts on social media.” Okay, good, so Izu wasn’t aware of everything apparently. It seems she wasn’t aware of Sugarcoat’s double life, and for that matter her own. That was… honestly relieving. Here was one place she wouldn’t have to think about the Swords of Logos! But, of course, outside these walls, life went on... Far away, at the very other end of the US was mile after mile of white sandy beaches and clear blue waters. The locals didn’t even think about snow, instead they thought about permanent vacations and tropical drinks.  A candy cane-toned lighthouse rose high over the green plants, miles of calm tranquil water stretching out for as far as the eye could see. A dark-skinned person, wrapped in a sarong dug in the sand as if searching for pirate treasure. ...no, that wasn’t accurate. He knew something a bit more precious lurked just beneath the sands. With a grunt, the man pulled an ancient chest out of the earth. Wiping the sweat off his brow, they chuckled. “...well, it may not be Captain Kidd’s treasure, but still, pretty impressive. Best I get this back to the Northern Base before anyone I don’t want comes snooping around.” Preferably, ancient tyrants in burning orange armor. Picking up a wooden guitar resting nearby against a palm tree, it crackled with golden lightning in his hands. Reshaping itself, it revealed its true identity. Ikazuchi, the Sword of Thunder. While using it to pry open an ancient chest was hardly dignified, it wasn’t like anyone was around to bitch at them for it. Besides, he didn’t bring a crowbar!  Footsteps in the soft sand made him raise his head, and ready their sword.  “I’ll thank you for doing all the hard work for me,” Sombra smiled, his tone one of false reassurance.“Now Swordsman, step aside. If you’re nice about this, we can end this without a fight.” “..and if not?” Grape Vine, the Knight of Thunder asked, their Swordriver flashing into existence. Now, obviously, he didn’t believe a word out of the Immortal Swordsman’s mouth. He wasn’t that dumb.  “If not…” Sombra replied, readying Kyomu as his Haken Bladedriver appeared from out of the void. “Well, you can’t say you were warned. Don’t be a fool, those kinds of people… vex me.” “Right, right,” Grape replied, tossing their jacket aside, exposing a black halter underneath. Adjusting his glasses, he then said: “Classic evil overlord speak. That sorta thing. Whatevs. I bet losing a page of the Codex will ‘vex’ you even worse! Can we just skip the banter and get down to it? Resound, with a thunderclap Ikazuchi! Henshin!” “Ikazuchi, battou! Demonstrate the true power of the lamp genie! Golden Alangina! Three Ikazuchi books! The sword of lightning shines and the thunder grumbles!”  “Very well then,” Sombra sighed. “I tried to bring glad tidings, of a world made free. But it seems you aren’t in the mood to listen.” And with a clap of thunder, the battle began… “Aruto-sama, Ms. Twilight Sparkle is here to speak with you,” Izu announced as she led Twilight into the office. The door opened with a quiet hiss, reminding the Chinese woman of those old doors from Star Trek actually.  Aruto hardly looked the part of a professional CEO really, all hurried and frantic as he took his calls dressed in a hoodie over his suit. It… really hadn’t been what she was expecting, hell he looked really young. Like, younger than her. In the back of her mind, she vaguely remembered the passing of a tech giant, passing his entire company down to his grandson.  “Um, hello?” Twilight asked, not even sure if the man could hear her over the phone. “...Um, Aruto? Sir? Are you there?”  Right, well, should she tap him on the shoulder or something…? “Does he even hear me?” Twilight whispered to Izu, somewhat concerned. “...should we come back later or something? I mean, you can finish the tour right? Maybe by then he’ll be free…” Twilight’s attention briefly cast itself to the floor below, where below glass rushed humagears dressed in sharp suits. They seemed awfully frantic, even as they dressed themselves in clean lab wear, the kind of thing you’d normally wear if you wanted to avoid contamination.  “Aruto-sama!” said Izu, this time louder and more forcefully making the man jump, nearly dropping his phone. “Your five-o-clock is here!” “What? OH!” Aruto said, getting up. “I’m sorry, we’ve just been busy here lately.” “So I see…” Twilight mused, casting another glance down to the floor below. “Well at least business is booming. So, that’s a good sign right…? That this company is still on the up and up?” “Of course it is, I’d be worried if it wasn’t right?” Aruto said. “Honestly, I wanted to be a banker, but then I lost interest really.” It took Twilight several moments of awkward silence before she realized he’d punned. “Yes, because bank accounts will gain interest, much like how a person may gain or lose interest in something,” Izu said. “Izu, what have I said about explaining the jokes?” Aruto nearly whined. “...it always ruins the punchline!” “But is that not a show by Aruto?” Izu asked, striking a little pose. Twilight somehow guessed this was a regular thing for them and wondered what she was getting herself into. ...maybe Apple still had openings? She was reminded of her high school days and Dash cracking puns left and right. “...a pun?” She couldn’t help herself. “Yes, a pun, also called paronomasia, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect,” Izu explained. “These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use of homophonic, homographic, metonymic, or figurative language.” “I-I know what a pun is,” Twilight quickly explained. “I… I was just shocked, that’s all. I wasn’t expecting it, surprised y’know?” “You will quickly learn it is normal,” Izu explained. “Aruto-sama did have dreams of being a comedian, however… it soon became evident he was having minimal success as a performer.” “Savage!” Twilight thought with a sweatdrop. “Did you really have to tell her that?” Aruto asked with an exaggerated sigh. “So, uh…” Twilight clapped her hands together hoping to break the awkward silence. “...when do I start?” Back in Fernandina Beach, Grape groaned as he lay in the sand as their armor faded away in yellow light.  “...as I said, fools like you, thinking you can stand in my way vex me,” Sombra said, barely turning back to look at them as he collected the page. “You should have stood aside when you had the chance. You’re lucky I’m letting you live, Swordsman of Thunder.” “Someone…” Grape spat at him. “Someone will stop you.” “Perhaps,” Sombra chuckled. “But not today. I’d actually like you to give a message to the Sword of Logos. Tell them to send Twilight next time to stop me. ...I want an actual challenge.” “Like hell,” Grape returned trying to grasp his sword for one more round. “You’ve tormented that girl long enough.” “She does want to fight me, you know,” Sombra replied. “She can’t escape her destiny… her obsession. It’s self-destructive I know, even a bit foolhardy but I have to admire her determination.” “So you’re going to compliment her, or are you going to kill her?”  “Oh, kill her of course,” Sombra replied. “Then take over the world. You know, classic evil overlord speak. Whatevs.” As Grape slipped into unconsciousness, they could only watch as the Swordsman of the Void vanished through a portal... “You will work around 40 to 50 hours a week, normal hours will be around eight per day from nine to five,” Izu explained as she and Twilight went through the building. “On average and not taking into account overtime.” “Trust me, you won’t have to worry about me turning up late,” Twilight reassured. “I try to keep a stable work ethic, a good schedule.” “Of course,” Izu said with a slight nod. “Is there anything else you wish to know?” “...I, uh, actually yeah,” Twilight admitted, rather curious. “...I saw some humagears dressed in suits, you know the kind you’d use if you didn’t want to get contaminated? What was that? Should I be worried?” “No, of course not, they are simply studying some artifacts that we recently acquired,” Izu answered with a slight shake of her head. “It is nothing for you to be concerned about.” “Which is of course code for me to be completely concerned,” Twilight deadpanned, having had bad experience with artifacts. “...sorry, it’s just… I’m on edge. There’s been a rash of thefts recently of old artifacts. The last thing I want is my new job to get involved in that sort of thing.” “Do not worry, we do not normally deal with old artifacts, it was merely a curiosity,” Izu said dismissively. “And we have exceptional security to deal with any such things.” Twilight took a deep breath, reassured. Izu was probably right, it probably wasn’t even the artifact she was thinking of. She really needed to stop catastrophizing so much, stop thinking about Falchion. He wasn’t here and he’d never be here. “Are you alright, Ms. Sparkle?” Izu asked. “Your biometric readings indicate a high level of stress and anxiety.” “Yeah, yeah, I’m…” Twilight took a deep breath, again counting to ten. “I’m fine. Just nerves, you know?” “Yes, many new employees have these nerves as you call them,” Izu replied as they reached a workspace. “This is where you will be working.” It was nice, clean, and pretty organized. That was something she could always get behind, Twilight mused. Mind, she doubted it would stay that way for long. She remembered days in her own lab… well, really her shed and pretty quickly things usually were a mess of parts and small nuts and bolts. Oh well, the life of an inventor, right? Resting her ‘umbrella’ on a stand, Twilight fussed with it for a bit before nodding thinking it was good. Hopefully though, nobody would work out who she was here. Here, she wasn’t the Swordswoman of Fire. Here, she was Twilight Sparkle, a technician.  Browsing through the drawers, she inspected them to make sure everything was easily accessible. Okay, yeah, she knew everything was in its place but she was also the kind of person to just inspect everything in a paranoid frenzy. There had been several times she’d nearly freaked upon realizing her ride books weren’t where they should have been.  Speaking of… When Twilight was sure nobody was watching, especially not Izu she fished a certain blank book out of her bag. It was… odd, even several days on she still hadn’t worked out what this book was for. It certainly felt weightier than the others, and every so often it crackled with power. But for the most part, it was oddly dormant, she guessed she could describe it as. Even opening it produced little result. She fussed with it several times, maybe hoping the book would reveal its secret but… nothing. “...the wizard who gave this to me, he could have at least been a little less cryptic. Like, seriously, what is up with this book?”  Running her finger down its spine, she felt a jolt. Another hint at what lay hidden inside. Oh well, presumably in time this book would show its secret. No matter, here she was not to think about magic but mechanics. Oh, the irony here. From a fairytale-themed knight to someone working with robots!  “But then… Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic as Clarke stated. And really, if this was a few hundred years ago, they’d call me a witch!” As she grabbed a lab coat and threw it on, her co-workers filed in seemingly abuzz with wonder. Twilight gave a gentle wave. “Oh hey, you must be the new employee,” one of them said as he waved back. “I’m guessing Izu gave you the nickel tour.” “Yeah, she did,” Twilight said. “Met Aruto, had to endure one of his puns. ...I’ve heard worse.” “You’ve heard worse than the boss’ puns? I find that hard to believe,” one of the other workers said with a slight chuckle. “I half expect someone to hit him with a green slipper or something for all his puns.” “Yeah, that would go real well,” the first one said. “I swear he and Izu are dating…” “Him and the robot girl?” the second scoffed in disbelief. “No way!” “I dunno, they seem awfully close…” the first begged to differ. “...I mean, it’s not like I’m judging and neither should you!” “Whatever,” the second said with a shake of their head. “...what I’m more interested in is that thing they dug up under Tel Megiddo. You’ve heard the rumors right?” “Oh yeah, I heard that’s real hush-hush,” the first one said. “Weird rumors around it though, I swear one guy who was on the recovery team said it was some old piece of paper. I don’t know what the big deal about that is.” Twilight’s breath caught in her throat. No, it couldn’t be. Not here!  “Anyways, apparently the boss has some translate-type humagears on it, not sure why,” said the second. “...it’s just an old piece of paper, who cares right?” She cared! Especially if it was what she thought it was. What she hoped it was not. “Have you no respect for history?” the first asked. “This could be the find of the century!” Okay, yeah, that was it. She had to get out of here. Like a hurricane, Twilight rushed out of the room in a blur. She was breathing hard, not really paying attention to wherever she wound up and what her co-workers must have thought of her. Her heart raced, and she felt a bit dizzy honestly. Sliding back up against a wall, she was barely aware of a voice calling out to her. “Twilight, can you hear me?” She barely recognized the owner, Izu. Her chest felt constricted, twisted almost as if an impossibly massive snake was squeezing the life out of her. Chills ran down her spine. She had… she had to get out here, before he showed up. She was trembling, she knew it. Adrenaline was rushing through her, like an inferno as she debated running or standing her ground and saving what was left of her dignity. “Are you there?” Izu requested. “Tell me what you can see? List five things.” “White walls, black hair… Your earpieces. Tile floors. A… a toilet. God, it smells so rank in here, is this the men’s?” “Focus on me, okay?” Izu requested. “Focus on my voice.” “Y-Yeah, I hear you,” Twilight replied, struggling to pull herself up and eventually sliding back down against the wall. “I hear you.” “Do not move, stay right there,” Izu told her. “...how did you even find me?” Twilight asked. “When you had the anxiety attack, the other workers called for assistance and I was nearby,” Izu answered. “How are you feeling?” “Embarrassed mostly…” Twilight admitted. “...terrified as well, I… I don’t even know what set it off. One minute everything was fine and the next…” Izu tilted her head a little as she examined her. “I asked your co-workers what happened, they did not know either. Apparently, they were talking about the artifact you asked about earlier. I am sorry if it caused you any distress.” “...that page, it’s from the Codex Gigas isn’t it?” Twilight asked, shakily. “I have to get out of here, before… before I put you all in danger. He’s coming, he always knows where the pages are. I don’t know how but…” “Kamen Rider Falchion?” Twilight’s throat was dry. “How… how do you know that name?” “I have heard of your story, Kamen Rider Saber,” Izu explained. “Aruto-sama always keeps tabs on his fellow Riders. OOOs in Denver, Colorado, for example.” “So you did know,” Twilight responded, helped up by Izu. “From the very beginning. Both of you, the moment I stepped into this building. Both of you knew who I am.” “Yes, we did,” Izu replied. “We had hoped that it would not be a problem, and given the discovery of the page around the same time you applied, Aruto-sama believed that it would be better safe than sorry.” “...you don’t know what’s coming for you, either of you,” Twilight replied. “You may think you know, but he’s not known as the Immortal Swordsman for anything.” “Immortality is not likely,” Izu replied. “In nature, there is nothing natural that points to such things. It is a human desire, a human wish to achieve immortality but in the end, it is futile. All things die. Only machines are truly immortal.” “That’s both surprisingly creepy and speciesist of you, Izu,” Twilight pointed out. “..and completely wrong. How… how do you explain Sombra showing up through the ages then? Time travel?” “Perhaps!” Izu replied. “I shall have to consult Satellite Zea on this matter. In any event, I do not believe you are faced with an immortal foe.” “...yeah, tell that to the Swords of Logos,” Twilight replied. “They believe it!” “Then perhaps they believe wrong,” Izu replied in turn. “In any event, you really should not worry about Sombra. Even if he does get in here, he will find himself in for quite a surprise. His reign of terror shall not last.” “You’re not the first to say that,” Twilight said, even as she felt a book placed into her hands. “Nor will I doubt you will be the last.” “Now that… Is where I beg to differ,” Izu replied, and for the first time, Twilight inspected the book. On it was a picture of a lime green Kamen Rider. It’s title? Hiden no Hiden Monogatari. For a time, Twilight was at peace. The cycle was simple, be handed a damaged humagear and repair them. All sorts of requests came through her lab, all sorts of repairs to be made. She barely had time to think beyond this, never mind thinking about Sombra! And on rare occasions, she did find time for herself. “Oh wow, like daaaaaaaamn girl!” Lemon lauded her as she walked her home, the moon high in the night sky and casting a glow upon the snow. “Like, uh, you’re one of the head technicians at Hiden’s Seattle branch! You’re movin’ up in the world! Talk about you not hiding your talent!” The Arabian girl just laughed long and hard to herself at her frankly poor pun. “...ugh, please don’t,” Twilight groaned. “...your puns are about as bad as my boss’s.” “A man after my own heart then!” Lemon seemed encouraged. Going to a newsstand, she looked on the cover of WIRED. “...dang, he’s young isn’t he? Like, I knew he’d been left the company by his grandfather but wow. He’s just barely out of High School! I swear, the CEOs get younger every year right?” She let out a low whistle, her breath visible in the cold air. “So Kamen Rider 01 and CEO of Hiden Industries and Manufacturing. Man can do it all!” “Yeah, he is pretty admirable isn’t he?” Twilight admitted. “...though something tells me he’d be a nervous wreck without his secretary. She seems more on top of the company than anyone else.” “Who, the robot girl?” Lemon asked, vaguely remembering her standing off to the side of Aruto in a news report. She’d never seemed to be seen without him. “...oh yeah, her. She’s cute isn’t she?” “Down girl!” Twilight chided. “What, I’m just saying. You can’t deny that Izu is as cute as a button,” Lemon said before laughing at her own pun. “Ooooh, two in several minutes. I’m on a roll!” “Remind me never to put you and my boss in the same room together…” a certain Swordswoman groaned. “Relax, cool your jets girl. I don’t even like him that way!” Lemon laughed. “Pretty sure Izu would ‘kindly escort’ me out of the building before I even thought about it.” “I would have her ‘kindly escort’ you out of the building anyways,” Twilight replied. “...you’d be embarrassing me in front of my coworkers if you even came in the building! Like, I wouldn’t be able to show my face for days!” “Ooooh, spicy,” Lemon replied, the two now having gone for a drink at a pub fittingly named Unicorn. “But let’s get real here, there’s something going on between robot girl and your boss right? Like, seriously, give me the deets!” “Ugh, you think that too huh?” Twilight rolled her eyes. “...like, between you and half of the guys in my lab… Like, I don’t get it. I haven’t seen any evidence of-” “Yeah, you just need to open your eyes,” Lemon shook her head. “Man, for a girl so smart you can be amazingly dumb at times. Like, please tell me you ship it. Like, those two are so cute together.” “I simply don’t care,” Twilight sniffed. “It’s not really my business.” A humagear, conveniently or perhaps not was refilling their drinks. He was dressed like a carnie, to go with the whole theme of the bar. “Suit yourself,” Lemon shrugged. “I mean, it’s not like I’m judging Aruto who he dates. Not like she’s a sex bot or something.” “I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that,” Twilight muttered, her face an interesting shade of red. “...great, now I gotta get that image out of my head.” “You’re welcome!” Lemon laughed. “But seriously, I’m so glad you’re living the dream. You actually seem… happier. Like, before this there was always this storm in your eyes. You never seemed truly happy with yourself, like there was always something on your mind. Now the fog seems to have cleared away a,little. I’m glad for you.” “Thanks,” Twilight nodded, genuinely appreciative. “Like, seriously, thank you.” “...damn, this means I can’t start cracking my unemployment jokes anymore around you. Oh well, it’s not like any of them ever worked anyways!” That set off an actual round of laughter from Twilight.  “...so, does this mean we’ll be seeing you in Starbucks with overpriced coffee air instead of the usual cafes?” Lemon asked. “I mean… uh, hashtag Crazy Rich Asians lifegoals?” “Ewww, no, like you said. Overpriced coffee air,” Twilight laughed. “Overpriced. Coffee. Air.” “Yeah, you right,” Lemon agreed. “Never forget where you came from girl, when you’re successful and all.” “...I can agree to that. Next round on me?” “I can drink to that!” And for a time, all concerns were forgotten. Not once in a week did the name Sombra ever cross Twilight’s mind. Perhaps it was a mistake to let her guard down. Or maybe she was finally not letting him rule her life anymore. Who was to say? But all things came to an end eventually. Izu would soon find her earlier statement put to the test a few days later as an explosion rocked the building. The fire alarms blared and even as Twilight’s co-workers scrambled out of the building Twilight didn’t run. At least, not out of the building. No, she ran towards the danger, grabbing her umbrella and found Sombra in full armor carving a path through the hallways. “Sombra!” Twilight shouted, and the swordsman turned only to see Twilight rushing up to greet him. She tapped her umbrella on the floor, and with a shower of sparks it changed into it’s true guise.  “Ah, I was wondering when you’d show,” the Immortal Swordsman spoke, raising his blade to meet Rekka even as Twilight raced up the side of a wall. He was unable to dodge the slash, it cutting through his armor like a hot knife would through butter. “I see you have been unable to give up your quest, this dangerous obsession of yours and still you fight alone. Have all your fellow swordsmen given up on saving you?” “She does not fight alone, so your statement is incorrect,” said Izu’s voice, a lime green Driver wrapping itself around her waist. “I would advise you to leave, and never return. It would spare you what the humans call a ton of humiliation I believe.” Pulling out what looked like a cassette tape, she opened it at the push of a button revealing it to be a key of some sort. This action alse made it proclaim: “ZERO-TWO JUMP!” As the belt began to proclaim how it would give her power, Izu slotted the key into it. Twin mechanical grasshoppers leaped through a window. One green, and one dark red, each shattering apart to form armor shards. “Zero-Two Rise! Road to glory has to lead to growin' path to change one to two! Kamen Rider Zero-Two!” the belt continued to say even as Izu punched Falchion, armor shards still beginning to cover her. Twilight could only watch in awe, realizing just how awesome the secretary really was. As Izu punched Sombra again, her transformation finished as the belt stated: “It's never over!” The end result looked like a modernized, streamlined version of Kamen Rider Nigou himself. Maybe the colors were a bit brighter, but the homage was obvious enough. Right down to a ‘scarf’ of sorts. Twilight suddenly remembered she too was a Kamen Rider: “Rekka battou! The miraculous Saiyuu Dragon! Extra Book! Needle Hedgehog! Rekka: Two Books! The Buddha's monkey meets and dances with the sword of flames!” And the sword was of flames, slashing into Sombra’s armor only to break away for Izu to deliver a series of rapid punches. It was one thing for Sombra to be dealing with one Rider, Twilight realized. But it was another for him to be dealing with two! Never mind one who was so completely different from what he was used to!  Throwing her arm forwards, Sun Wukong’s staff erupted from it slamming into Sombra’s chest. He crashed into a wall, spider-web style cracks erupting out from behind him. He saw Twilight rushing towards him, her sword still alight with flames. He rolled to the left even as she slashed the wall, only to leap upwards and kick her across the face. Twilight staggered back, falling into Izu’s arms. “We must continue working together,” the humagear advised. “It is the only possible way to defeat him.” “Yeeeessss, work together,” Sombra taunted, sounding like he knew something that they didn’t. “Try and defeat me.” Twilight’s breath caught in her throat. Despite the many wisecracks she could probably make against the dark knight, she… she was actually pretty worried. Just what was he hiding from them? “Be careful Izu,” Saber warned her partner. “...he’s hiding something!” Not that Izu had really any time to process this information, as Sombra’s sword grew to impossible size. With one single slash, it swept the room. Twilight slid under the slash, but Izu? She was nowhere to be found. “Did he…” Twilight thought fearfully. “...did he really scrap her? Just like that?” Then she saw the red streamer trail of energy coming from behind Sombra. Izu whirled around, slamming her armored fist into Sombra’s gut. He nearly doubled over, recovering just enough to slash at her again with Kyomu. Izu flipped above the swing, before landing and shoving her knee into Sombra’s chin. The armored knight staggered, Izu never letting up as she continued to deliver a series of lightning fast punches and jabs at inhuman speed. “Geez, you’re brutal!” Twilight uttered. “I was programmed, created to assist Aruto-sama in all matters,” Izu/Kamen Rider 02 replied. “Including defending his company and it’s assists from all attackers.” But through all of this, Sombra never seemed to be really taking any damage. Twilight would have sworn that anyone else’s armor would have outright shattered under the onslaught.  “So what the hell is going on here?” Sombra was chuckling darkly. “...I see you’re starting to work it out. I cannot be damaged. I have erased the very concept of pain and hurt itself!” “He’s… he’s got to be joking. ...that’s impossible right?” With one kick, he sent Twilight reeling nailing her in the throat.  “You don’t believe me, do you?” Sombra said, seemingly reading her mind. “What you speak of, it has to be a jest of some sort right? Ask yourselves, if it was really a jest, wouldn’t you have defeated me by now? Doesn’t it vex you?” “No, it does not,” Izu replied. “What you speak of, it is simply an impossibility. Erasing a basic concept is beyond the power of anyone. You are a mortal man, your armor simply just takes more damage than I would have anticipated. But in the end, you will fall.” “We’ll see! Have at thee!” Sombra challenged slashing at her several times. But each time Izu dodged, simply leaving behind a trail of green hard light in her wake. And each time she came around for another attack, hitting Falchion with a kick or a punch. “Twilight, you need to change up your strategy,” Izu advised. “Never let yourself grow complacent, keep Sombra guessing!” Twilight, unable to speak but with a weak wheeze said: “I… I understand.” Her belt cried out: “Wonder Rider~!” as her armor became tricolored. Latching onto Sombra, they tumbled into a portal into a parking garage somewhere below.  “Brave Dragon, Needle Hedgehog, and Peter Fantasista! Sansatsu Geki! F-F-F-Fire!” A massive, and pretty buff fairy was swung around on a chain, coated in a fiery aura as it smashed through support pillars. Finally, Twilight let it fly, and it latched onto Sombra. Shoving the dark rider into the ground, the fairy exploded covering him in sparking electric quills. Sombra was staggering, before he was barely able to stand as a green blur rushed by him nailing him with a powerful right cross. Izu tilted her head at Twilight, rather quizzically, before speaking. “An unconventional attack, to be sure, but it seems to have worked.” “Trust me, there’s more where that came from,” Twilight said, still barely audible but advancing as she slashed through a thrown car. “Unconventional is the name of the game here, right? You said keep him guessing.” “That I did.” “Thou, take thine neighbor's hand!” Twilight still continued to wheeze out in that weak tone. “And embrace it as you would a friend’s.” Izu kept up the onslaught of kicks and punches, only to break away leaving behind trails of light in her wake. She did this several times, each time Sombra just only managing to keep track of her. Of course, he was keeping track of her, not track of Twilight. And each time he focused his attention on Izu, each time he opened himself up for a sword slash from Twilight. “Like they say,” she said, her voice beginning to return. “Two is better than one!” “Is it?” Sombra chuckled darkly, raising Kyomu high as a black hole began to swallow up everything in the garage. Cars soon turned to spaghetti as pure gravity crushed them in a lifeless void. “...that also means there are more bodies to be left behind.” Izu swung a sword, bright green. Metal erupted from it, becoming like locusts as it swarmed Sombra. As they bit and snapped at him, trying to rip into his armor Twilight knew she had to act fast, and scanned a book. A whip-like fire erupted from her blade, wrapping itself around Sombra. Only for the knight to snap his fingers, and everything the black hole had swallowed up? It spat right back out.  Twilight leaped over one car tossed her way, before ducking under another. Izu was a blur of light, leaving green in her wake as she slashed apart one car before kicking a second back towards Sombra. Twilight and Izu shared a nod, before Izu sped off. Spin-kicking Sombra, she sent him flying into the air. Even as this happened, Twilight was leaping on platforms of metal scanning another book on her blade.  “Frozen Princess Castle, mm-hm!” Shards of ice rained down upon Sombra, turning into hailstones. They battered his armor growing larger and larger with each passing moment. Until, finally, one smashed into him with enough force that a wall gave way.  “Be like Elsa,” Twilight remarked. “...let it go. Like, seriously, let it go. You’re outmatched!” The battle continued in another section of the garage, Sombra holding back both Izu and Twilight’s blades with his own sword. The two riders broke away, Twilight slashing wide. Sombra ducked under the slash only to catch Izu’s fist in his hand. He nearly threw up from the knee she planted in his stomach. Izu then broke away as Twilight scanned another book. He could barely hear the title called, even as the Swordswoman of Fire leveled her blade at him. An army of ghosts came charging out of the shadows and on instinct he ran. But that same whip of fire pulled him back and into their awaiting arms. They dogpiled him, pulling at his armor. And try as he might, the supposedly immortal swordsman couldn’t escape. Just like Izu wanted. Activating a finisher, she pulled on her sword’s hilt.  “Progrising Strash!” Electricity ran through his body, shards of metal striking him like needles. He, with a roar charged through the attack with dark energy surrounding his boot as he thrust his leg forwards. Izu held back the finisher with her blade, only for Sombra to leap backwards in a flip. He grabbed his sword, and with another roar charged forwards. “Artificial intelligence empowers the sword! Wonder Rider~!”  The call cut through the darkened garage and Twilight bore new armor. Blue had been replaced by a familiar shade of lime green, a grasshopper’s head as her shoulder armor. And in Twilight’s hands? A second blade, namely 01’s Attache Calibur.  Like an armored Musashi, she charged forwards keeping Sombra on the ropes with her twin sword style. He was barely able to hold it back, and then a third sword joined in. All three blades ground up against his single one, forcing it downwards.  “Like the company motto says…” Twilight grinned, leaping forwards and throwing her second sword like a spear. It impaled Sombra, implanting itself in his chest plate. “Take off towards a dream. And my dream is this. Nobody will ever have to see your madness and fear your tyranny ever again!” “Brave Dragon, Needle Hedgehog, and Hiden no Hiden Monogatari! Sansatsu Geki! F-F-F-Fire!” Both Riders were now leaping forwards, their feet glowing with energy. And then they impacted, the room erupting in an explosion and a cloud of smoke. A spiraling galaxy was visible, and a voice rang out. “02 Big Bang!” Sombra crashed to the floor, rolling along but looking undamaged. “...like I said, I have removed the very concept of pain. You cannot defeat me. ...not that I was planning on it. You were just a distraction. So, until the next time… Adieu.” And with that, he vanished into shadow. Later, Izu and Twilight would discover what he meant. The security cameras told the whole story, two of the duck megid coming in and stealing the page right out under their noses.  “...we played right into his hands…” Aruto muttered. “What a knightmare! Annnnnnd that’s how you know it’s Aruto!” “Ah, a pun, based on the similar sounds of knight and night,” Izu explained striking a pose similar to Aruto’s. “Additionally, a nightmare is a bad dream, and this could be considered such due to the actions of a dark knight.” “Izuuuuuuuuuu, what have I said?” Aruto whined. “Don’t explain the joke!” And Twilight gripped her sword, it looks like her fight was far from over.