A Golden Drive Through Equestria

by Psyga315

Golden Drive Arc 6: How Can We Stop Nerve?

Time slowed to a crawl, not by Slowdown, but by my own fear as I saw Fluttershy in the way of an oncoming blast fired from the Trailer Cannon, with Banno’s own laughter to serve as the soundtrack. I closed my eyes and whispered out:

“I’m sorry.”

WHOOOSH!

I opened my eyes as I saw a rainbow line snatch Fluttershy and Judge away, the beam now heading towards the Volt Roidmude who struck the ground with his claws, creating an electrical barrier to block the blast. The blast exploded and as the smoke cleared, both Volt and Scooper were gone.

“What’s wrong with you!?” I heard Rainbow Dash’s voice as Banno looked to her. I saw Fluttershy shaking for a little bit before she too looked at Rainbow Dash.

“R-rainbow Dash?” She blushed. Rainbow Dash simply glanced at Fluttershy before returning her glare to me.

“You nearly killed her! What kind of hero are you!?” Rainbow Dash yelled at me. Banno looked around and saw that the Roidmudes were gone. He just stood there as the Gold Drive armor took off, leaving me to look at Rainbow Dash as she held Fluttershy almost defensively. I glared.

“I wasn’t trying to kill her! I was trying to kill-” I pointed to Judge, but he too was gone. “GODDAMN IT!” I shouted. Soarin’ then approached me.

“It’s okay. We saw what happened.” Soarin’ sighed and talked with Rainbow Dash. “Professor Silverbolt was fighting that monster then that girl over there got in the way.” Soarin’ said.

“M-monster?” Fluttershy pushed Dash away from herself. “He was not a monster! He’s my friend!” Fluttershy said.

“What!?” It was weird. I said it around the same time as Soarin’ and Rainbow Dash… It was so surreal.

“Just because he looks different doesn’t mean he should be put in the same category as those other monsters!” I could see tears try to form in her eyes. Before I could even say anything, Fluttershy ran off. I looked to Rainbow Dash, but she stormed off in a huff.

---

The sounds of ambulance sirens rang out the following evening as I stayed in the library sipping some coffee. I couldn’t help but glare at my reflection, or rather, the Banno in the reflection.

“… You know Fluttershy wouldn’t have survived that blast, right?” I asked Banno.

“Oh yes. I was aware. But the blast would have taken out Judge as well. If not that, then heavily damage him while we worked on the other Roidmudes.” Banno said.

“Okay, Banno, I get you’re a crazy madman-”

“I prefer the term genius.”

“Whatever! You can’t just do that!” I said.

“You are scolding me?” Banno laughed. “I believe you forgot the pecking order. You’re merely my puppet. I just haven’t found the strings yet.” Banno said. As much as I hate to say it, he has a point. Even if I have more say in transforming, the fact of the matter is that he retains as much control of being Gold Drive as I do.

“… Speaking of, Fluttershy said that Judge was a ‘friend’.” I said.

“I’m aware. It’s not uncommon to see Roidmudes befriend humans. I originally intended them to help them, after all.” As Banno said that, all my thought processes went to a screeching halt.

“What?” I asked.

“Do you think of me as some madman out for world domination? Well, I wasn’t like that before. I created the Roidmudes with the intent of befriending humanity. Creating an unbreakable bond between man and machine. However, when I presented my ideas to investors, they all turned me down. They said that they couldn’t feasibly see a world where robots are friends with humans. Those fools…” I remembered how Banno made one of the Roidmudes copy the likeness of one of said investors, if only to use him as a punching bag. “Once the only person who ever understood my plan left me, I abandoned all resolve to create a utopia where man and machine were one. Instead, I began to imagine a world where machines ruled the world. Humanity is flawed and it’s clear that out of the two, the Roidmudes are the superior ones.” Banno said.

“… You know I don’t believe this whole ‘I tried to do good’ crap, right?” I flat out said.

“Do you need to ask for proof? Because I believe you already have that. 072, 009, even that failure of a prototype have enough proof.” And sure enough, he was right.

072 befriended a member of the police over a show they watched together and had worked with them in secret.

009, better known as Medic, healed her human template along with dozens of other Roidmudes, giving her a somewhat angel-like grace.

As for Banno’s prototype, 000… He was better known as Kamen Rider Chaser. Before that, he was Mashin Chaser, the original Grim Reaper in the show.

“Even now, it seems that there are Roidmudes who wish to protect humanity.” Banno said. I shook my head. I wanted to tell him that Judge was not a protector, but that’s when I heard static on a nearby radio. I went over to turn up the volume.

“Greetings, humans…” I recognized the voice. It was Volt. “You may have bared witness to our might on our siege of Canterlot High School and wonder who we are. Well, allow me to confirm your fears. We are Roidmudes. We are the superior beings that will lord over you pathetic humans. As of today, we are preparing to siphon all the power of Canterlot City into a single machine. And by using this machine, we will be able to summon forth our Roidmude brethren to revolutionize this feeble world! Today will be the last day of human freedom! Fear us! For we are the Roidmudes!” Volt ended his speech with a cackle and soon, radio static.

“… Damn it!” I slammed my fist into the table.

“Hmm… Mighty ambitious of them.” Banno said.

“We’re not going to sit here and let them win.” I walked over and looked over the Shift Cars that had sat on the table. As far as I know, the students who entered the library just look at them as toy cars. A collection of Transformers toys. It helped that the Shift Cars were stationary in the day time. As I approached them, the cars all turned to me. I looked to them. This would be my first time commanding the Shift Cars without using Gold Conversion. I took a deep breath and spoke up.

“You heard him. If we don’t stop them, we might end up facing another Global Freeze. I know that the creator of these robots rests on my very waist, but we all have the same goal right now: stopping the Roidmudes. I need you to find any large building that could act as a conduit for an electrical system.” I said. I recalled Volt’s endgame plan involving using an electrical device on top of a mall. To my surprise, the cars all honked in unison and drove off, creating tiny roads for them to drive on as they did.

“Hey, Banno, does Gold Conversion brainwash the Shift Cars?” I asked him.

“… I never tested out that possibility.” Banno said. I could only look as the Shift Cars all drove out of the library in different directions. Some went out the window, others went through the empty halls.

---

“I’m so glad you’re alright!” Fluttershy’s mom held Fluttershy in the living room. “When I saw your school was attacked by those… monsters, I felt so afraid… It was a kind of fear I never felt before.” She said.

“Mom, don’t worry. Everything was fine. Mr. Tachibana was there to save me.” She said.

“Tachibana? Wasn’t he one of the monsters that-”

“No! He isn’t like them! I tried telling the others that, but they didn’t believe me! You met Mr. Tachibana before, so you know he’s nice!” Fluttershy said.

“I know, but…” Fluttershy’s mom said before there was a loud knock at the door. Fluttershy’s mom walked over to get the door. As she opened, she saw a man in a white tuxedo with a matching fedora and a soft-shaven beard.

“Hello.” He cocked a smile as two low-class Roidmudes stood behind him. Fluttershy’s mom tried to shut the door, but before she could even shriek, 006 struck her in the chest, causing her to convulse and go down on the floor.

“Mom!” Fluttershy rushed over to her, though 006 flicked his wrist, slowing down the flow of time in a flash of light. Nerve walked over to Fluttershy, grabbed her by the throat, and slammed her into a wall, fingernails digging into her skin.

“Where is Tachibana?” He asked.

“Hrrkkk…” Fluttershy grunted. Nerve released some pressure. “I… don’t… know… arrrg…”

“He would have known we’d be coming for him.” One of the low-class Roidmudes said. Nerve simply nodded.

“You’re right.” He then proceeded to jab Fluttershy in the side of the neck. He turned around as Fluttershy slowly fell to the floor, her body going limp. “She’ll do as bait.” Nerve picked her up. “Besides, we need someone to act as a conduit for the device.”

“Won’t this piss off that Kamen Rider?” The other Roidmude asked.

“Heh… Leave that to me.” Nerve said. With that, the trio ran off with Fluttershy. Time resumed to normal as Mad Doctor, the ambulance Shift Car, drove over and saw Mrs. Breesby. The Shift Car blared its sirens and went to work.

---

I sat in the library. The school was closed due to the attack. I was able to check the news of the aftermath. Despite what I have seen, there were fewer deaths than I had imagined. Only half a dozen died in the attacks, though all of them had names that I didn’t recognize. I wondered if Krim had to do this when dealing with the aftermath of Global Freeze. Seeing how many people he failed to save or even how many lives he indirectly destroyed by giving Banno the technology needed to create the Roidmudes’ ability to slow time down.

Several Shift Cars came back, each reporting a different location where the supposed device that Volt boasted about would be. They did this by driving to a certain part of a fold out map the library had in the archives and I marked each of them down with a thumbtack on the old corkboard.

“Damn it. There’s a dozen places that Volt could be at!” I said. That’s when I remembered…

The mall!

Volt, in his previous life, set up his device at a large mall. All I had to do was find a mall…

Bingo! I found the mall almost instantly. The Canterlot Shopping Centre. As I was about to leave, I saw Applejack bust into the library.

“Applejack?” I asked.

“It’s Fluttershy!” Applejack said. I saw Mad Doctor roll into the library as well.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“Fluttershy’s been kidnapped by those Roastporks!” Applejack said.

“What!?” I said. It took me a while to think about what the Roidmudes wanted with Fluttershy. When I found out the answer, I gave Applejack a stern look. “Wait here.” I said. I ran off, open the window, jumped out, and took out my LockVehicle, the SunDriver. I popped the lock open, tossed it, and it transformed into an ATV for me to ride on. I drove off.

---

“Fluttershy’s what?” Applejack turned around to see Rainbow Dash.

“… What are you doing here?” Applejack asked.

“I don’t know if you noticed, but Professor Silverbolt said that we were on the same team. As soon as I saw you and that car, I knew something was up.” Rainbow Dash said.

“… Well, there’s nothing we can do.” Applejack muttered.

“What are you talking about?!” Rainbow Dash said.

“You heard me! Those monsters destroyed part of our school and even hurt some of our friends! We’re powerless to stop them! I’ve seen their power with my own eyes. The best we can do is wait for Kelly to stop them for us.” Applejack said.

“… No. I’m not going to stand for it. I’m going with her!” Rainbow Dash said.

“You’re not going to survive. I encountered those… Those Roidmudes, and I was lucky to even be alive.” Applejack said.

“I was in that same situation too. But I pulled through…” Rainbow Dash looked away. “If you like, you can come with me.” She said.

“Why should I go with you?” Applejack glared at Rainbow Dash.

“Because I can show you how to fight the Roidmudes.” She walked over to Applejack. “Close your eyes. I’m going to touch your face for a bit.” She said.

“What!? No!” Applejack said.

“Do you wanna save Fluttershy or not!?” Rainbow Dash shouted. A brief pause followed. Applejack soon shut her eyes. Rainbow Dash closed her eyes and tried to think back to what Ross said to her. When she finally got the words, she spoke up while gracefully stroking Applejack’s face:

“For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee.” Rainbow Dash put another hand on Applejack’s shoulder. Her body glowed cyan while Applejack’s glowed orange. The glows faded as Rainbow Dash’s legs began to wobble.

“Woah! What happened?!” Applejack asked. Rainbow Dash straightened up.

“I think I just gave you superpowers.” Rainbow Dash said. She picked up Applejack. “Trust me on this.” She said before running off at supersonic speeds.

---

I drove down a private street down by Canterlot City. Despite the ride being an all-terrain vehicle, the city barely had any terrain for the SunDriver to tear through other than roads. I figured to draw less attention to myself by sticking to the less-used roads. At first, it may seem like I shot myself in the foot by going a long way around as opposed to taking the highway like every other person, but the speed of the SunDriver, followed closely by plugging Shift Speed into one of the slots on my dash, was more than enough to make up for that.

BANG!

Or so I thought. Before I knew it, one of the tires blew out, causing the SunDriver to tumble out of control. Shift Speed and I managed to get out of it before the ATV began to flip over, right into a wall where it blew up, parts of it scattering on the side of the road. I turned around to see who shot the tire.

And then I saw him. Standing on the roof before he leaped down.

“Ross?” I asked him. He looked… different. The muscles in his left arm spasmed uncontrollably, though he seemed to hold the scythe pretty steadily with his right. He had a smile that just stretched from ear to ear, teeth gritted as the eyelids twitched. I could almost see veins bulge from his neck. He walked closer to me, only stifled laughs came out of him.

“… Nerve…” Banno muttered. I backed away from Ross. Banno and I both remembered the Nerve Roidmude’s power of attacking the nervous system. Super Evolution simply enhances what a Roidmude has, along with giving them more abilities. It wasn’t any stretch of the imagination that 006 had something to do with Ross.

“Snap out of it, Ross!” I shouted to him.

“It’s no use! A Super Evolved Roidmude’s effects on the human body are irreversible! The only way we could save Ross is if we digitize him and edit out the effects!” Banno said. I remembered how he saved the life of a person using that exact method when a Super Evolved Roidmude poisoned her.

Unfortunately, he was able to do that only when he was in a tablet. Seeing as he was confined to a belt, that left one other option.

“Or we kill Nerve.” I said. I tried to run, but Ross fired at me. I rolled out of the way and looked at him. “But first…” I turned the ignition. “Go easy on him, okay?” I asked.

“I don’t make promises I don’t intend to keep." Banno said.

"But those are the best kinds!" I chuckled slightly. Banno sighed.

"Henshin.” Banno said as I stood up. I transformed into Gold Drive as Banno took over. Ross ran at Banno with blinding speed. Banno was only able to match it with a flash of golden light, clutching the topside of the scythe with his hand.

“Hey, boy! Best calm down before you tick me off.” Banno said before Ross fired at him, knocking him right into the pile of broken LockVehicle parts. “… You asked for it.” Banno turned the ignition as I received a purple monster truck Shift Car with green tires.

I put the car into the Shift Brace as Ross spun around, swinging his scythe as well. I clutched the scythe as two golden colored jaws materialized and clamped down onto Ross’ hands. Despite the jaws digging into Ross’ arms, I could feel Ross still pushing forward with his weapon. I backed away as the jaws began to disappear.

“We need to hold him off. I have an idea.” I said as I turned the ignition. The red circuit on my chest flared as Banno switched in. Two Shift Cars drove in, one a tow truck and the other a large, punkish truck called a dekotora. The two expelled a wench and chains respectively as they held down Ross. However, what Banno got in his hands was the Trailer Cannon and Shift Speed. Shift Speed already plugged itself into the top of the cannon.

“SPEED CANNON!”

“You want me to kill him?” Banno asked as he aimed the gun.

“No. We just need to cripple him temporarily. He can take the damage.” I said. Banno looked into the empty compartment where the Shift Cars could be loaded and chuckled.

“I like your moxie.” Banno said before he turned the ignition. A red Shift Car drove right into my hands. A person could be forgiven for mistaking the Shift Car to be a limousine for how long it was. In truth, it’s actually a Shift Car modeled after the main rider’s own ride of choice: a custom car called the Tridoron. I pressed a large red button on the side.

“FIRE ALL ENGINES!” And I slid the large Shift Car right into the loading compartment.

“THE FINISHER! FULL THROTTLE! FULL SPEED BIG CANNON!” I pulled the trigger as a large, red blast fired from the cannon. As Ross broke away from his confinements, the blast hit him with the force of an oncoming car. It knocked Ross so far away that he was about ten feet up when he hit a wall and fell down right onto the pavement with a sickening thud. For good measure, I turned the ignition to get Shift Technic as Banno loaded it into the Shift Brace.

“Amazing.” Banno muttered.

“I know.” I saw Ross’ vitals were unaffected by the attack, though the Aura around him had greatly diminished compared to when I last fought him.

“No, not that… That.” Banno turned around and pointed to what he saw. Soon, I saw it with my own eyes. It was a large, red custom sports car. While part of the hood was missing, exposing the front tire, I squeed hard as I saw its twin white stripes sweeping down the car.

I had just summoned Kamen Rider Drive’s ride: the Tridoron.

---

The trail of a bright rainbow streaked over towards the Canterlot Shopping Center before it stopped, showing the two girls standing outside in the middle of the street.

“Where the hell’s Fluttershy?” Rainbow Dash took the time to pant. “We searched all town for her!” That’s when the two heard a choir of screaming.

“Well, there’s someplace we haven’t looked.” Applejack pointed to where the sound came from: a crowd of people running from two low-class Roidmudes as they fired bullets from their fingertips. Applejack and Rainbow Dash got ready to rush in, only for a sinkhole to form right beneath their feet.

“Look out!” Applejack grabbed Rainbow Dash before her legs kicked up, knocking them a few feet into the air before landing a few spaces behind the newly made crater.

“Woah! Applejack! That was amazing! How did you do that?!” Rainbow Dash asked.

“I dunno! I just acted on instinct and suddenly I’m a jumpin’ bug!” She said. The two heard footsteps behind them and they turned, seeing the Scooper Roidemude in front of them as he adjusted his lens and held a photo in his other hand. Applejack backed away as Rainbow Dash took a fighting pose.

“I don’t know about you, but I ain’t running away!” Rainbow Dash ran towards the Scooper Roidemude. Just as she was about to throw a fist, she created a large sonic boom. Its ripples were colored just like the rainbow as she was able to run at Mach 1, punching the Scooper Roidmude almost a thousand times before throwing him towards Applejack with the same velocity.

Applejack tried to get away, but as soon as her foot dangled over the hole, she stopped. Seeing her opponent fly towards her, Applejack simply side kicked him. Her legs glowed in an orange color as the kick landed square into the lens, shattering them and knocking the Roidmude back. Rainbow Dash ran back towards Applejack before stopping. The two looked to the Roidmude as he struggled to get up.

“Trust me on this.” Rainbow Dash muttered. She ran towards the Roidmude, grabbing Applejack as she did so. As she ran, she threw Applejack into the air. In a moment’s notice, Applejack realized what she needed to do and preformed a flying side kick towards the Roidmude. The kick, while not enough to destroy the Roidmude, knocked him flying towards one of the nearby buildings and knocking him out. As Applejack landed, she and Rainbow Dash looked to the two Roidmudes guarding the front of the mall. Applejack took Rainbow Dash’s arm.

“…” She simply gave her a glare.

“What are you looking at?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“This doesn’t make us friends, y’know.” Applejack said before she jumped up, towards one of the upper floors of the mall.

As the Scooper Roidmude got up, he tried to get the picture of the mall he took prior and destroy the part they jumped to.

Snaaaaaaarl…

However, he heard a strange sound coming from the alleyway where he was from. He turned around to see inky blackness. The snarling seemed to get louder. Before he knew it, he saw two red dots that could easily pass for eyes. While he readied himself, he wasn’t prepared for what happened next.

ROOOOAAR!

A loud scream echoed through the city, though it fell on the deaf ears of his Roidmude brethren standing watch at the mall.

---

The Tridoron roared through the streets as I drove it from point A to point B. Thankfully, the Tridoron came equipped with a GPS. While it spoke in Japanese, for some reason, I was able to understand it as if it was my mother tongue. I never paid much heed to it before. It made me wonder though how Banno was able to speak fluently in English. Then again, given the fact that he was a scientist, I could easily just assume that Banno simply learned English at some point. Made sense considering how much English Krim peppered into his speeches…

Heh, pepper, like Chris Peppler, his actor…

I suddenly heard the sirens of a police car and I pulled over on the side of the street. The police car pulled over as well. I unfurled my window, only to find that the cop who pulled me over was…

“Judge…” I muttered.

“Please, a moment of your time.” He asked.

“Why? You pretty much shot down all chances of talking nice to me when you had your men fire at me.” I said. Tachibana simply looked at me.

“If I had the police shoot only you, they’d be suspicious. If I had them shoot only the Roidmudes, then that’d confirm their suspicions of my betrayal. Though considering what had happened before, they didn’t need that much evidence.” Tachibana said.

“... Yeah, I’ve been meaning to ask that. You’re a traitor to your kind?” I asked.

“No. I’m not. I have not betrayed the Roidmudes.” Judge said.

“You murdering that one Roidmude said otherwise.” Banno said.

“I haven’t betrayed Heart.” Tachibana said.

“… Of course. Now it makes sense.” I muttered. I looked to him. “006 told me what happened.” I said.

“When the Roidmudes came back, our memories were intact. Heart…” Judge chuckled a bit. “had a change of heart. He recalled his time with the human known as Tomari Shinnosuke and realizing the war with humanity was in vain and will always be in vain, he proposed to instead focus efforts to befriend the human race.” He said.

“I assume not all the Roidmudes bought it.” I said.

“Only a quarter of our kind agreed with him. The others… They turned on him. It… It was hurtful to see many of our kind dying to that civil war. Heart fell along with his army. I was one of the few on his side who survived… But only because I chose to feign betrayal. I know the feeling of vengeance all too well. I figured if I bided my time… I could have wiped out those traitors. Those who fight for the Roidmudes, yet murder their own kind. From there, I’d create a new Roidmude world in honor of Heart. One where humans and Roidmudes can coexist.” Tachibana said.

Just as Banno originally intended…

I stayed silent for a moment as Tachibana continued to speak.

“But it seems that’s all in vain. I ask you now, as an ally, to help me save Fluttershy.” Tachibana said.

“Wait, how do you know Fluttershy?” I asked him.

“… After the battle, I was critically injured. I was able to get away with the help of our recreator.” Tachibana said.

“Recreator?” I asked.

“The genius who brought the Roidmudes and I back. Hence, Recreator.” Banno said.

“Thank you… He managed to get me away on an assignment to scout out a world he had selected. … That world is this very place we are standing on right now. This world would serve as a project of his. I don’t know what it was, but given how he gave a huge talk of recreation, I would assume he will use the Roidmudes to destroy this world and recreate it anew.” Tachibana looked away.

“Focus! Fluttershy! What does she have to do with this!?” I asked.

“As I said, I was injured, and I fell unconscious. When I came too, I was recovering in an animal shelter. A kind girl took me in…” Tachibana said.

“Fluttershy…” I muttered.

“Exactly. I visit her from time to time. Eventually I came across the Canterlot Police Department. When I arrived, they just had their chief of police retire. I was able to go in and use my template’s identity to convince the others to have me replace them. Surprisingly, it was easy. I was in a good place to know when Roidmudes would randomly attack people and secretly capture them and reprogram them through this.” Tachibana showed me an iPad.

“So you were able to reset Roidmudes without my help?” Banno asked.

“No. What I do is insert a command into the Roidmude: Protect Humanity. Unfortunately, I was only able to convert a few or so before all this happened.” Tachibana said. I looked ahead of the road and thought back to what I said when I was with Wind Rider.

“They’re killer, time-stopping robots who disguise themselves as humans and plan secret revolutions and genocides… but there are Roidmudes who don’t want to kill every human. You just have to find them. They’re… diamonds in the rough.”

That’s when I looked at Tachibana.

“Aright. Let’s go… partner.” I said. He nodded and got into his car. We drove off, side by side, towards Canterlot Shopping Centre.

---

As Rainbow Dash and Applejack crash through the sheet of glass, they landed and saw Fluttershy tied to a large pillar of metal in the middle of the mall, just on a floor above them as Volt was by a computer attached to the pillar. Large screws were embedded into the sides of the pillar as an antenna pointed upwards, towards the glass ceiling of the mall.

“Fluttershy! Hang on!” Rainbow Dash ran to her.

“Wait! It could be a-” Before Applejack could warn her, there was a flash of light as time slowed down. A blur passed Applejack as she was knocked back in slow motion. Rainbow Dash turned around to see the Nerve Roidmude approach her. He chuckled.

“So, you can move during Slowdown? Perhaps you can provide a good challenge before Banno and his slave get here.” He got into a karate stance as Rainbow Dash ran to him, throwing him a few punches. Nerve simply slapped the first few away, but was unable to get the third in time. He stumbled back. “No… You’re even faster… At last, a worthy opponent. Our battle will be legendary!” He simply flexed the upper portion on his hand towards himself.

Rainbow Dash leaped and gave Nerve a few kicks. Nerve was able to block them in time. As Rainbow Dash landed, she leaped in the air and did a spin kick. Nerve ducked down as she landed. Rainbow Dash hopped a little before giving Nerve a roundhouse kick. However Nerve sidestepped from that, jumped and did a tornado kick. However, Rainbow Dash blocked it with her arm.

Nerve stayed in mid-air as the two flung punches at each other. While Rainbow Dash only had one arm active for the punches, she managed to land more hits than Nerve could.

Eventually, Rainbow Dash punched Nerve square in the chest. There was a small, rainbow colored shockwave that exploded from her fist and expanded outwards. Nerve was knocked down as Rainbow Dash chuckled.

“That’s what you get, you son of a-” Suddenly, Rainbow Dash’s arms went limp. “H-huh!?” Rainbow Dash muttered. Nerve chuckled and got up.

“Allow me to introduce myself. I am Nerve. And as that name implies, the nerves in your arms have been rendered useless.” He said. He turned around as Rainbow Dash ran to him, leaped in the air, and did a side kick. Nerve smirked and ducked underneath, only to uppercut her in the spine.

CRACK!

The fist also created a small shockwave, though this time, it was golden colored. Rainbow Dash’s body also had a similar shockwave emitted across her body in the form of cyan colored ripples all across her body. Rainbow Dash screamed out in pain as she flew in the air a few feet, then fell onto the ground where her impact cracked the floor tiles.

“Your spine’s like bubble wrap. One well-placed blow and now I made you a cripple.” Nerve laughed. Time resumed to normal as Rainbow Dash screamed out in pain. “But, I grow tired of you now… It was fun.” He walked to her and flexed his fingers until he straightened his hand out to land a final blow.

BLAM!

However, before he can land it, his face was kicked in. He fell down almost instantly as Applejack stood, her leg high in the air before putting it down. Nerve got up and noticed something. Red glass on the ground in the shape of his ‘sunglasses’. He felt his face, and sure enough, Applejack had just kicked one of his eyes off.

“YOU BITCH!” He roared as he stomped forward and punched her in the chest. Applejack, however, took the blow and kicked him again. Nerve staggered. “H-how are you not affected?!” He asked. He turned to see Rainbow Dash get up, though she could barely stand on two legs without falling slightly. “And you! That blow should have paralyzed you for life!”

“Call it our determination!” Rainbow Dash said. She and Applejack charged in as Nerve slowed down the flow of time again, if only to get out of the way. Rainbow Dash got out of Applejack’s way, but was unable to keep up with Nerve due to the injury she was given.

As Nerve got upstairs to where Fluttershy was, he saw Volt overlooking a large silver computer.

“How much longer until it’s active?” Nerve asked.

“Not long. Now we just need to use the human for the conductor and we’ll be able to create the portal.” Volt said.

“Hmph…” Nerve pressed his hand onto the pillar. Soon, some of the electrical currents began to transfer into his hand.

“What are you doing!?” Volt asked.

“I’d rather use this power for my own benefit…” He said. Volt pointed his appendage towards Nerve.

“No. You had your fun. Now that you got your Super Evolution, it’s time for you to stop acting as the leader and let the Roidmude King take over now!” Volt said.

“He’ll be the next to be overthrown.” Nerve chuckled as he let go of the pillar, then slowly walked over to Volt. Before Volt could even attack, Nerve grabbed him and tossed him over to the pillar. It shocked Volt so hard that his body overloaded and exploded. His core floating upwards as Nerve grabbed the pillar to amass the energy created from the shock. He laughed before turning around and firing a lightning bolt at the core, destroying it. As he pressed a few keys on the computer, he turned to Rainbow Dash and readied for round two as the machine hummed to life.

---

We drove down the streets as the street lights began to flicker on and off. Damn, they already started. I put my pedal to the metal and sped up while Tachibana did the same. That’s when we noticed the sinkhole.

“Tachibana! Hop on!” I shouted to him. Tachibana nodded. He opened the door of his car and leaped out onto the Tridoron. Pulling onto the lever, I closed my eyes and prayed. As soon as I heard metallic clunking, I opened my eyes and noticed two giant go-karts attached to the side of the Tridoron, one red and the other blue. Tachibana was on the blue kart. “Oh thank God.” I muttered.

These two were part of the Tridoron. The Ride Booster Set. They were basically add-ons to the Tridoron to make it a four-man ride. Two in the Tridoron, and one in each go-kart. It was also able to fly, which is what I intended for them to do. Hover blades built into them began to whir as the Tridoron lifted itself off and flew towards the shattered window.

I could feel the slowdown particles weighing me down. Something wasn’t right. As I got in I saw-

No!

I saw Applejack in mid-flight, being knocked back to a window next to it, though thankfully, with the slowdown and heavy pressure, Applejack could bounce off the window and not get hurt. But I soon saw Rainbow Dash trying to fight Nerve, only for her to get jabbed in the neck and fall to the ground. He looked up to me and Tachibana.

“I’ve been waiting for you, Banno!” Nerve said. I froze as I saw the golden coloring on him. He’s already achieved it… Super Evolution. “I took the pleasure of beating up your students… And in the process of executing another one.” He pointed to Fluttershy as she was slowly electrocuted by the pillar. Her screams sent chills to not just my spine, but I presume Tachibana’s.

I immediately fired upon Nerve. Yeah, the go-karts can also fire. However, Nerve simply blocked the shots with his bare hands as I saw electricity bounce from his palm and break apart the blasts.

“Foolish…” He chuckled. Tachibana could only look at Fluttershy for so much before he jumped off the Ride Booster and ran off. However, Tachibana was punched in the gut. I had enough to.

“Henshin!” I shouted as I leaped down and transformed into Gold Drive. Banno began a fist fight with Nerve. While he managed to get a few blows in, Nerve didn’t manage to make my body seize up like he did before. Banno continued to punch Nerve… Though then Nerve charged up his punch with a lot of electrical energy. Much like the battle with Judge and the battle with Volt, Banno began to freeze up as I saw the HUD in my helmet screw up. Not being able to move, the armor disappeared as I soon felt the seizure-inducing punches of Nerve.

Nerve turned around, only to see that Tachibana was at the pillar already.

“Fluttershy! Hang on!” Tachibana said as he went to work on the computer.

“Don’t you dare!” Nerve ran to attack Tachibana. Tachibana transformed into his Roidmude form and fired his taser at Nerve. Nerve merely used the tasers as a rope to pull in Tachibana and punch him in the face. He was knocked down as I ran to pull Nerve away, though my legs soon cramped.

“GO!” I shouted. Tachibana ran off, though before he could even reach the computers, Nerve fired a lightning bolt at the computer, destroying it in the process. Tachibana shielded his eyes from the sparks that emitted from the computer. When he looked, he slammed his hand on the now inactive computer. He turned to see the electricity coursing through Fluttershy glow hot white. There wasn’t much time now.

He ran over and stabbed the pillar with his kendo stick, right to where Fluttershy was chained. He then pulled Fluttershy out. Before he could get out, the pillar exploded with electricity and knocked him back, turning him back to his human form. Nerve shielded his eyes from the explosion, though it was enough to knock him back, cancelling his slow down. Fluttershy slowly got up and saw Tachibana on the ground.

“Tachibana!” She shouted as she ran over to him. I knew she was simply a sitting duck, so I began to attack Nerve, forcing him to focus his fighting on me.

“Fluttershy…” Tachibana said. “You’re okay…”

“Of course I am…” She said.

“Good… I’m glad… Please…” He tried to lift his hand to touch Fluttershy’s cheek. “Don’t let this day cloud your mind… Your heart may want revenge, but… Vengeance…” He chuckled. “Vengeance doesn’t fit you…” He said.

“Tachibana… You’re going to be okay, right?” She asked him. Tachibana seemed to ignore her, however.

“… Heart… Was this what you felt when you befriended the Kamen Rider? If so… It feels… nice…” His voice reduced to a mere whisper before his body gave out. His entire body turned into a rusty color before crumbling into dust, his core doing the same just after.

“Tachibana? T-tachibana?” Fluttershy began to tear up. I was able to hold off Nerve enough for that to happen, however, after I was knocked back by another punch, Nerve turned to Fluttershy. He took out his radio.

“071, 093, get up here!” Nerve said. All he could hear is snarling and metal being torn apart. “Hello? Anyone there?” He said before he heard a loud roar and soon feedback. “Gah! Fine! I’ll kill you all myself! The pillar’s charged up enough to give me the power I need… I will love to read the headlines for this… Tragedy strikes Canterlot as freak electrical accident kills thousands!” Nerve laughed. I gripped my fists.Enough was enough.

“This won't be a tragedy.” I spoke up. “This won't be an accident. This will be what happens when you become so full of yourself that you claim yourself to be a god, when you are, in fact, nothing more than a robot.” Nerve turned around.

“What did you say?!” Nerve asked. I smirked.

“You monsters wield more power than most armies, and you're audacious enough to have more. You monsters cling to this power in the name of revolution, to ensure that we become your eternal slaves, and yet, what did we just see? One of your kind sacrificing himself to save the life of one of our kind. Roidmudes are supposed to be the salvation of humanity, yet I have witnessed none of that from you.” I suddenly remembered another memory of mine… Though I was quick to deduce that it wasn’t mine as I remembered walking with a boy across an underground hallway overfilled with vines. No doubt I was remembering Ryoma’s chat with Kouta, A.K.A. Kamen Rider Gaim.

In particular, I remembered one line from this chat, from Ryoma himself:

“If you could find the will to be ruthless, then you'd be freed from all your stress in an instant.”

Ruthless. My breathing stilled to a point where it could even be considered creepy. I could only help but stare coldly at Nerve. Even Banno seemed to notice as he chuckled.

“And thus… I shall become your Grim Reaper. Let’s go, Banno.”

“There’s some fire in your eyes! Alright, start my engine!”

I turned the ignition and shouted out:

“HENSHIN”

Instantly, I transformed into Gold Drive. Banno began to throw punches at Nerve again. However, as Nerve gave me an electrical punch, Banno switched to me while I grabbed a Shift Car. Oddly enough, it was a formula-one car with a gas nozzle on it. Knowing what it was, I plugged it into the Shift Brace.

Two small, orange, wrist-sized tires with silver circles on them flew towards me and clicked onto my wrists. As Nerve moved to attack me, I punched with both fists, the wheels spinning around and creating a flame around the wrists as they connected. However, I began to feel my muscles seize up again, so I turned the ignition again.

Banno took over as he swapped out the Shift Cars. Keeping with the theme, I gave him a green formula-one Shift Car. One of the orange tires flew off and in its place was a green one with a silver metal plate on it. Nerve fired a shot of electricity as Banno blocked it with the tire. The square then lifted itself like a floor lift and pushed Nerve off. Banno’s arm began to freeze up from the electricity coursing through the arm, so with his other arm, he switched.

I took over as I got a yellow F1 Shift Car this time around. Plugging it in, the other orange tire was replaced with a yellow one, this time having two long metal prongs. As Nerve tried to punch, I put his arm in between the prongs and the wheel twisted itself. With one spin, it tore Nerve’s arm off. He backed away and screamed out. He created a new arm that was made of pure electricity and punched me. I backed away as both my HUD and my body began to freeze. My hand was on the ignition and I ended up turning it multiple times.

“Kelly! This might be dangerous!” Banno said. My visor flashed from red to white, red to white, red to white, until it finally settled on a color. A series of rings bordering out from the center like a bullseye, alternating between red and black. Normally, this visor would be what happened when Krim took over for Shinnosuke in their Type Tridoron form. However, this was different.

A flurry of Shift Cars drove out and began attacking Nerve. I saw fire, spikes, shurikens, bars, and coins all fire out towards Nerve. I ran in… Or rather, Banno ran in. I was confused as to who was fighting, as both of us could feel our movement. Banno would throw a punch, I would throw a kick, he would jump, and I would dodge. It was as if we shared the same body, though trying to control it proved to be difficult. Nerve couldn’t predict our movement, so that was a plus.

However, after a few moments of fighting, Banno and I were able to control my body. I controlled one half and Banno controlled the other. We stood as I used my hand to point to Nerve.

“Now, count up your crimes!” We said as Banno pressed on the red button on the Shift Brace.

“THE FINISHER! MANTARN... JACKY... SPARNER! FULL... THROTTLE!” The orange, green, and yellow tires all flew to me, attaching themselves to the wrists and ankles. I punched the ground as it created a vortex of fire and heat, surrounding the Roidmude. We jumped up and used the floor lift to push ourselves across from one wall of fire to the other side, all while using the wrench on our foot to act as a blade and slashing the Nerve Roidmude. We bounced across the walls several times, all while slashing away at the Roidmude.

With the twenty fifth slash, Nerve stumbled back.

“You… You will die!” He held up his hands and created a large electrical sphere. On that time, the floor lift pressed against the floor and lifted us up into the air. The tires rearranged themselves so that all four of them fitted onto my right leg. I extended the leg out as we dove down onto Nerve. The wheels spun around and created a large, golden aura of the tires around the leg, complete with a huge burst of fire that destroyed the electricity. Eventually, it turned into a giant golden drill that impaled itself into Nerve’s chest and broke through his body.

As we landed, Nerve simply stumbled over to the pillar despite having a large hole in his chest.

“No… I’m… I’m supposed to be powerful! Watch… Watch as I amass a great power! More powerful than Super Evolu-” Just then, a tentacle came out from Banno’s belt and stabbed the Roidmude right through, grasping onto his core.

“Shut up.” We both said as the coreless body dropped onto the pillar and exploded into a column of fire that busted through the ceiling. We created a golden shield to block any heat from roasting the girls, though letting go of the core in the process. Though, considering how much damage it took, we were pretty sure that Nerve would die soon.

I looked over to the girls as the Driver gave out and cancelled the transformation. My entire body felt numb and tired. I fell onto the floor, with the last thing I heard being sirens.

---

006 floated out of the mall as the flame erupted from its roof. The core sparked a bit and seemed like it would blow up, however, it soon came into a field of white sparkling lights. The core looked and saw that it was coming from a hand. A hand of someone he recognized all too much. Before he could react, the person took out what looked to be a bulky iPhone and the core was sucked into the screen.

The person looked at the screen as the numbers 006 lit up in a display of a grid arranged to be like a phone, though with only four of the numbers lit.

“You did good, 006, but now your time’s up.” The person looked as the pillar faded away. “… Gold Drive. This world will become your grave.” He walked away from the rooftop he was on soon afterwards.

---

Beep… Beep… Beep…

My eyes opened up as I saw a familiar face in front of me.

“So, how was your adventure, m’dear?” I tried to get up and have my hands wring Niko’s neck, but I couldn’t even budge my body. “Quite an experience, don’t you think?” He asked.

“You…” I growled. “You had something to do with the Roidmudes coming back, didn’t you?” I asked him. He shook his head.

“No. The Roidmudes were here before I sent you or Ross there.” He said.

“H-huh?” I asked. Niko smirked and walked towards the window. I could see that he wasn’t wearing his business suit or his fedora. Rather, he wore a brown leather jacket with a black waistcoat and a white shirt underneath and black pants. On his head was his fedora, but instead of it being white, it was now black with a white felt ring around it. Leather straps wrapped around his legs, while the bulge on the sleeves of the jacket imply that there were straps on his arms as well. What I noticed was on his jacket, there was a shield stitched onto the sleeve, and on that shield was a side view of the head of a unicorn.

“You think it was by chance that you ended up in the same place as the Roidmudes or that I had a hand in it? No. I was assigned to take care of this world by a higher power. This higher power insisted I give the belts to people who were willing to put them on. Guess what category you fell in.” He smirked and looked at me, placing his hand on my shoulder.

“See, you, Ross, and I all fall in that category. The category of people who are willing to abandon their old lives, even their old identities, in order to be a part of something bigger. To make a change. To be a hero. To be Displaced. You took the bait I had set and ate it gloriously. And I couldn’t have been prouder of the decision I have made. You murdered more Roidmudes than I can count. It was good that I gave you your little buddy over there. Pretty sure if you went with that dopey fruit cutting belt thing, you’d be dead on your first week.”

Wait, he falls in the category? Guess that explains his weird cowboy unicorn brigade geddup.

“I can’t wait to see how you and Ross will protect this world from the Roidmudes to come. Until then, I’ll take my leave.” He said. I raised my hand.

“Wait! That… That higher power… Who is he?” I asked.

“She… And truth be told, I don’t even know. Creepy bitch. I told her about you and she just went to see what you were up to. Chances are you met her before.” He smirked as he left the room. I met her before? Who? My mind began to spin itself into circles trying to figure out the answer. That’s when Soarin went into the room.

“Silverbolt! Thank God you’re alright!” Soarin said.

“What happened?” I asked.

“Part of the centre blew up and we found you and some girls injured. Don’t worry. They’re surprisingly stable. It’s a miracle to say the least. However, at least two of them are injured to an extent where they won’t be walking any time soon… And…” Soarin hesitated to finish his sentence.

“Tachibana died.” I said. Soarin nodded.

“Or at least, that’s what one of the girls said. We didn’t find his body, however.” He said. I looked away and frowned. “B-but good news! I’m now the chief of police! Isn’t that cool!?” Soarin said. I sighed.

“How many people died yesterday?” I asked.

“Huh?” Soarin asked.

“How many people died in the attack at the school?” I asked.

“… Roughly eighteen students.” He pulled up a chair and sat down next to me. “I know how hard it must be. To feel like you could have saved more people. It’s… It’s the reason I became a cop.” He took a few moments to muster himself. “I know you might be busy with your teaching, but if you have some spare time, maybe you can use that Golden Drive identity to help us with some cases. … I’ll let you think about it.” He said. Just as he was about to walk off, I spoke up.

“Sign me up. I’m going to help you and everyone else. For that’s what a Kamen Rider is.” I said.

“… What’s a Kamen Rider?” Soarin’ asked.

“I mean Golden Drive… heh.” I chuckled. I forgot that Kamen Rider is a seldom used term in this place.

“Glad to hear it. I have your number if I need anything, alright?” He asked. I nodded. He smiled and left. After a moment of silence, I spoke up.

“So, what happened?” I asked Banno. “With that whole fused body thing.”

“It’s been too long since I read over Krim’s works, but it appears to be a secret feature in Type Tridoron. Much like how a Roidmude needs to tap into a certain emotion to evolve, Drive must tap into an emotion to change forms.” I nodded and knew exactly what he spoke about. “In our case, you had to tap into my emotions. You had to feel and sync with my cruelty in order to activate that power. That’s the only way we can activate Type Overdrive.”

I sat and pondered, remembering all the moments Banno’s cruelty shined.

“Starting today, there will be a return! The return of Tenjuro Banno! Humanity will cower before my feet! Oppressors will fall before my might!”

“So, how shall we demonstrate the difference between alternating currents and direct currents? I was considering purchasing a cattle prod and teaching the students first hand.”

“I’m afraid to say that they, along with you, are my toys to do what I want.”

“GWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You idiot! It’s your funeral!”

But perhaps the most scary thing I remembered was when we fought Judge and we had to free Rainbow Dash… And our solution was to hit her bracelet even though there was a good chance we’d chop off her arm.

“Great minds think alike! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

I muttered out: “I’ll never be like you.” I said.

“No. You will be like me. When we bonded, I could feel your emotions. That potential for cruelty… Your ruthlessness. There was only one other person in my life who had that same drive. A scientist by the name of Ryoma Sengoku.” My blood chilled. “Of course, you looking like him and creating a LockVehicle were indicators of that as well, but up until that point, I didn’t realize that you could be so much like him…” I couldn’t even say anything.

“Eventually, all it would take is one little push to make you exactly like him… And perhaps you can see my ambitions eye to eye.” Banno said.

“No… I won’t be like him. I won’t be like you. And I won’t ever have the ambition to take over the world and subject humanity to my rule.” I said as I gripped the sheets on my hospital bed.

“Hmph… Just you wait… I’ll find a way out of this cage, take over your small, feeble mind, and make you suffer…” Banno said.

A small, feeble mind? It’s true that I’m not the brightest bulb in the world. I only have scant memories of Ryoma’s works to rely on whereas Banno could just use his brilliant light to defeat me… Which is why I’ll focus all of my power to snuff it out. His egotism is not misplaced. When he fights, he is a huge threat that no one can hope to overcome… but sideswipe him with a development that he cannot comprehend, and any semblance of power that he has will simply wash away.

Of course, he won’t realize it at first. He’ll cling onto the fleeting hope that he’ll take over this world with an iron fist. But I won’t let him… I’ll work on a Driver that he has never seen before… And when the Roidmudes fall and it comes down to me and Banno, he will know that he’ll be walking into his own demise before I can even transform.

This is the beginning of the end, Banno. And I can’t wait to watch you burn.

---

“I apologize, Headmaster…” Celestia hung her head as she stood at the office of the Public School Board.

“There’s nothing for you to apologize for.” The headmaster’s voice was dulled and dry. His hand hovered over the handle of a coffee mug. “No one could have prepared for a sudden attack like that.”

“No… It’s not just that. Over the past month, my students have been hurt by these monsters, even killed. I should take full responsibility for not being able to stop it.” She said.

“If that is what you wish, then you may bare that mistake on your shoulders for the rest of your life. However, that shall be your punishment.” He took out an iPad and looked over the two fights between Kelly and the Roidmudes at the school. “Instead of seeking to punish yourself, instead seek to find a way to stop this from happening. If I may make such a suggestion.” He began to play another video and turned the iPad towards Celestia for her to see.

“I suggest you enroll this kid into your school.” He said as Celestia saw the footage of Ross fighting the Roidmudes at the shop on the night he first entered this world.

“Huh? Why?” Celestia stared wide-eyed as she saw the boy fighting the robotic monsters.

“… Let’s just say I…” He took his time to lift the coffee mug and sipped from it. “I have a hunch.”

---

Rain stormed down hard as Ross sat underneath a bridge. He trembled and held to his stomach. His Aura was able to block the full force of the Tridoron, but it took all of it just to soften the blow. What would have been a fatal hit was now a punch to the gut. A really painful punch to the gut.

He groaned and tried to keep the pain from overwhelming him, he felt like he could succumb to the pain and scream out any moment.

“Is someone there?” Ross heard the voice of a girl and he turned to see who it was. He was stunned to see a beautiful girl holding an umbrella while standing underneath a street light, as if a light from heaven was shining down and presenting him an angel.

He eyed the girl in the white dress. Her skin was a soft orange and her hair a mixture of red and yellow. Overall, her body looked like...

That of a setting sun.

GOLDEN DRIVE ARC: END

Comments

[SilentMech]

A fusion driver? One that could tap into the lock fruits or the shift cars? After all, the lock vehicles work, so it's reasonable that the others exist.

[blazikenking]

Kelly and Banno became W? Nobody told me about this!

[VikingOtaku6]

The only question is: which Sunset is Ross with?

[Psyga315]

8785460
You'll find out later on.

If you want an answer now?: The Sunset from Equestria