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Kamen Rider Zero

CH SPECIAL: S_pecial _Storytime

The screams of terrified furs. The pounding of their feet as they ran inside. The slamming of doors as they were closed tightly shut. All of these sounds echoed throughout the city as a bizarre, multi armed figure casually walked down the street. No one knew its name, but they knew what it was.

A Dopant.

Both pairs of the Dopant's arms were folded across its thin chest as it continued to walk down the street. Its single, glossy red eye glowed in contrast to its dull, bronze armor. The Dopant watched silently as the people fled into the nearest building until the entire street was vacant and silent, with the only sound filling the air being the sound of the loud siren that had been echoing since it had been spotted.

"Hello?" the Dopant called out, "Won't anyone listen to one of my stories?" He flicked all four of his hands out, causing lights to shine out from his palms. Once the lights dimmed, he held a closed book in each hand. "My library is rather extensive..."

"I'd like to take a listen, if you don't mind," a voice called out from behind. The Dopant turned around and gasped. Leaning against the nearest wall was a figure clad in white armor. His bright blue eyes shined from underneath the large, silver crest of his helmet, and his long cape flowed behind him with the wind. The Dopant smiled internally; this was the man he was looking for.

Kamen Rider Zero.

"But I'm a bit picky on where I listen to bedtime stories," Zero went on, "so you'll have to tell it to me from your jail cell!" At that, Zero charged at the Dopant. It side stepped away from him and backed away slowly.

"My apologies," it replied with a slight bow, "but I'd much rather tell you in my...special play pen." Zero quickly turned and swung at it with his left. The Dopant batted his arm away with two of its books before throwing one directly at Zero's face. Upon impact, the book burst into a cloud of pages which disoriented Zero for a moment long enough for it to make its escape. It fled in the other direction at an incredible speed, which Zero only managed to catch a glimpse of once the pages had been cleared from his vision. With a loud growl, Zero ran after him in haste. However, he quickly came to the conclusion that he was just too fast for him to catch up to on his own.

"Dammit, why does everyone else have to be so much quicker than me?" Zero muttered to himself before mentally calling out. Within moments, the sound of a cybernetic engine filled the air. Zero turned around and saw his trusty bike wheeling around the corner to stop just in front of him. With a satisfied nod, Zero mounted his bike and raced towards the fleeing Dopant. Once he had it in his sights, he reached up with a free paw and clicked on a button at the side of his helmet. Periodic ringing was all he heard for a moment before his call was finally answered. "Tech, you there?" he asked.

"Yeah," said a female voice from the other side of the call, "what's up?"

"Do you have a lock on that Dopant's location?"

"Yep. We've already got several other riders tailing him," Tech answered, "and the chopper should be coming up soon." Almost as if on cue, the sound of propellers filled Zero's ears. He looked up and saw the heavily armored aircraft looming overhead.

"Good," Zero replied, "and where's Erika?"

"She's off somewhere else trying to track Lock-on," Tech explained, surprising Zero.

"Odd," he commented, "he's almost always after my life."

"All too true," said Tech, "but it seems that he has his own agenda at the moment. We lost him briefly, but that should change soon. We've still got several troopers tracking him down with Erika."

"A slippery snake, that Lock-on," Zero said more to himself than anything, "Alright then. The other troopers and I will deal with the Dopant for now."

"Any idea on what this one does?" Tech asked.

"Well...he carries a bunch of books around," Zero explained, "That's really all I've been able to see so far."

"Then Storytime it is," said Tech, "The other troopers are just a couple of blocks away from you. Try to catch up to them as soon as you can."

"Roger that," Zero said before revving his engine and shooting down the street even faster.

Meanwhile, the armored troopers trailed Storytime closely on their own motorbikes. But just as it seemed that they were about to reach it, the Dopant jumped away and fled into an empty warehouse. The three troopers screeched to a halt in front of it before dismounting their rides and drawing out the magnums strapped to their belts. As they approached, they went back to back and held up their magnums at the ready. Each of them reached up with a free paw and pressed a button near their necks, turning on video feed for their allies to watch from their base. Once everything was set, they carefully made their way into the empty building. They all looked around, making sure to look at every girder and shaft closely.

Suddenly, a book fell in front of each trooper. As they all hit the floor, they burst into huge clouds of pages, disorienting the troopers as they had with Zero. As the troopers scrambled about in confusion, Storytime jumped down from one of the girders and landed between all of them. His hands shot out like vipers, striking each trooper in the back and sending them flying. They all hit the ground hard, but didn't stay down for long. As soon as they could, they rolled onto their backs and fired at the Dopant with their magnums. The Dopants arms moved incredibly fast as they shielded him from their attack. Once he felt a pause in their bullets, Storytime shot his arms forward, hurling heavy books at the three of them. The books struck their heads hard, knocking them out cold. The Dopant chuckled.

"Ah, it seems they all fell asleep by my infamous story telling techniques..." He folded his arms across his chest and glanced between each trooper. He suddenly perked up, hearing the sound of an engine fast approaching. It came to a stop, and he turned to look. Soon enough, Zero stepped through the entryway and was greeted with the sight of the three knocked out troopers. He clenched his fist and cursed under his breath.

"Ahh, Mr. Zero," said Storytime, "You're just in time for my next story." Zero didn't humor him a response. Instead, he merely charged straight for him, giving Storytime the opportunity he had been waiting for. Just as he was about to reach him, Zero stopped in his tracks before his body went limp. As he collapsed onto the floor, Storytime began to levitate in the air. He crossed his legs and reached one of his hands out, causing Zero's body to levitate as well. He brought him closer to himself and had him lay in front of him in the air. Satisfied with the position, Storytime flicked one of his wrists and conjured up another book. He took hold of it with two hands and opened it up gently. As he leafed through the pages, he glanced over to Zero. "Now Mr. Zero," he began in a gentle tone, "I want you to relax...and listen closely... This is a special book...written with you in mind..." Somehow unable to resist, Zero's vision slowly blackened as he slipped further and further into unconsciousness. Satisfied, Storytime cleared his throat before continuing. "...Once upon a time..."

***

Zero groaned as his vision slowly returned to him. As soon as it was back, he immediately realized that he was no longer in the warehouse. Last time he checked, warehouses had ceilings. With a grunt, he sat up and looked around. Yup, he was somewhere in the woods, evident by the lack of buildings and the numerous trees that now surrounded him. He blinked, well...rather tried to blink, and realized that he was still in his Rider form.

What...the heck happened? he thought to himself. Still feeling a bit groggy, he raised his paw up to the side of his helmet and clicked the button at the side. "Hello? Can anyone here me? Hello?" A low continuous ring was all he got back. He growled to himself. No signal I guess._He put a paw to his chin thoughtfully. _I guess Storytime teleported me somewhere. The question is...where? His thoughts were cut short as a loud, thundering thud echoed through the air. Abruptly, Arata scrambled up to his feet. He immediately tried to mentally call out to his bike. However, for whatever reason, it would not come to his side. Cursing to himself, he ran off towards where he had heard the thundering sound._Great, what the heck can be going on now?_As he neared, he could hear the sounds of panicked screams. This alone made him run even faster as he rushed past tree after tree. Eventually, he could make out the outlines of several buildings, and the screaming became louder in volume. By then, he knew that he had found the place. Soon enough, he ran out of the trees and onto a street. All around him, furs were running around in a panicked state. Again, a loud thud echoed through the air, only this time, the ground beneath Zero's feet tremored. Confused by this, Arata looked around.

Was that Storytime?! he thought to himself frantically as he turned this way and that, What the heck is he capable of that he hasn't sho-- His thoughts were taken elsewhere as a huge shadow loomed over him. He whirled around to see what was going on only to end up staring in absolute shock. For towering over him was gigantic, bulking golem made entirely of ice. As Zero stood there in astonishment and confusion, the people around him continued to run away in fear. The golem shifted and turned towards a fur that had tripped over and raised its mighty foot. Seeing this, Zero immediately snapped out of it and charged forward. Before the foot was able to stomp down on the helpless civilian, Zero dove forward and scooped her out of harm's way. The foot hit the ground, causing the earth to tremble again, but the civilian was safe.

After getting a good distance away, Zero released the civilian from his arms. "Are you alright?" he asked in concern as she stood back up. She turned to face him, her face full of gratitude. But as soon as her eyes laid upon his form, her look of gratitude was replaced with that of absolute horror. She cried out in terror and ran in the opposite direction, screaming wildly. Confused, Zero stood up and looked around at the other civilians nearby. As their gazes fell upon him, they all did similar actions and ran away. ...What the? he thought to himself in confusion, What's wrong with them? He didn't have much time to dwell on this, as another thundering foot stomp reminded him of why he was here.

With seemingly all of the civilians gone from the area, Zero charged at the nearest foot and threw his first punch at it. His fist connected, but the monster didn't even budge an inch. Confused, Zero threw several more punches in succession. Still, the monster remained where it stood, almost as though it didn't even notice him. Growling loudly in frustration, Zero reached for his belt and pried out the Memory inside and slammed it into the slot at his side.

>>< FREEZE: MAXIMUM DRIVE!!! ><<

He flicked his arms out to his sides and dispersed into a cloud of snow, which then swirled around the area to become a raging blizzard. As it raged on, a thin sheet of ice began to form around the golem's body, freezing it in place. Suddenly, the blizzard condensed up in the air, once again forming Zero's body. "Frozen..." He slammed his paw on the slot at his side, triggering a confirming sound from his Memory, "BREAKER!!!" He kicked his foot out and shot through the air, rocketing towards the monster. He slammed into its shoulder, and the ground beneath tremored. However, aside from the cracks that had formed around his point of impact, nothing happened. The monster suddenly lurched, shattering the sheet of ice that had held it in place. Then, it swung its arm around and batted Zero off of its shoulder. He cried out in pain as he was hit. He bounced hard off of a nearby building and landed heavily on the ground below.

"Tch, I guess I shouldn't be surprised," he groaned as he took the time to stand up and recover, "what with it being made of my element and all..." He clenched his fist as he prepped himself for another charge. Clearly brute force wouldn't be the answer, so he had to think critically about this. He looked over the monstrous golem and figured that his best bet would be attacking its joints. He reached for the slot at his side, ready to initiate his Maximum Drive again. However, just before he could, the golem was blown back by a sudden explosion in its face. It bellowed in anger and swung its arms around blindly, staggering back step after giant step. Confused, Zero glanced around the area. And just as he turned around, he caught sight of a strange shape, silhouetted against the sun.

Another explosion went off, and this time, after the smoke had cleared, the golem's head was nowhere to be seen. It went limp and fell to its knees before ultimately collapsing under its own weight, bursting into a huge cloud of snow upon hitting the ground. Zero shielded his eyes as the cloud swept past him. After it had finally passed over him, he lowered his arm just in time for the shape to land on the roof of the building just in front of him. Now granted with a better vantage point, Zero was able to properly see what, or rather who_it was. More specifically, who _they were.

Mounted atop what appeared to be a large, mechanized feral tiger were two furs. One of which, a tigress, donned a segmented, form fitting armor and was seated at the front. Behind her was a folf who was wearing heavy rags and was armed with a crossbow. Looking a bit closer, Zero noticed that the folf seemed quite younger than her feline companion.

As he stared at them in awe, the tigress took notice of his presence. She turned to look, and once their eyes met, she let out a viscous snarl. And as the folf turned his way, she did the same. Zero stepped back a bit in surprise at the growls. Confused, he hesitantly raised his paw in a wave. "U-um...hi there."

"DAMMIT!" the tigress cursed loudly. Without warning, the folf raised her crossbow and fired at him. Acting quickly, he jumped out of the way just in time for the arrow to miss his head. The arrow exploded behind him, making him stumble slightly as he tried to regain his balance.

Zero cursed to himself and looked back up at the two females. "The heck was that about?!" They didn't answer. Instead, the tigress dismounted the mechanical beast and hopped down from the roof, with the folf following close behind her. As soon as her feet hit the ground, something dropped from the mechanical tiger. A staff, which the tigress easily caught midair. Once it was in her paws, she twirled it around before taking on a battle stance.

"MOBIUS!" she growled out, "It's time to pay for the crimes you've committed to the people of this land!"

"Wh...what are you talking about?!" Zero yelled back in anger, "What is going on here?! Who are you people?!"

"DON'T PLAY STUPID WITH US, DAMMIT!!!" With that, the feline charged straight for him. Shouting in surprise, Zero took on a defensive stance as she closed in on him. As soon as he was within reach, the tigress swung her bow staff at him from her right. Zero immediately brought his arm up to block the blow with his gauntlet. But the feline was far from through with him there. Striking with the speed of a viper, she spun her staff the other way around to strike Zero in the chin from underneath. This stunned him long enough to create an opening for her to exploit. Taking the staff in both paws, she thrust it forward and jabbed it into Zero's midsection.

He staggered back from the sudden blow, once again leaving her with plenty of openings. And she didn't hesitate in the slightest to take advantage of all of them. She rushed forward and assaulted the armored panther with a flurry of strikes and swings. If he blocked in one direction, she simply swung from the opposite direction. And if that didn't work, she would just swing from a completely different direction to strike him there. And if that didn't work, she would feign a swing before attacking from a different direction, always making sure that his attention was on the opposite end of her staff.

Suddenly, Zero grabbed hold of her staff and held it tight in his paws. "Just hold on a second!" he shouted as she struggled against her grip, "Just listen for a moment! This has gotta be some sort of misunderstanding! I've got no clue who this 'Mobius' is!"

"I'm NOT falling for any of your stupid tricks!" the tigress growled back. She then pressed down on a panel nearby where she was holding the staff. Very rapidly, the staff itself began to heat up, making Zero cry out in pain before letting it go. The tigress then took the opportunity to rush him once more with her rapid strikes. But this time around, Zero had a much more difficult time enduring the blows. Even as he blocked with his gauntlets, the blows were three times as painful due to the heat being given off by the staff. After taking a blow to the chin, Zero staggered back and stood there stunned and weak. Seeing this, the tigress smirked. "Hmph, seems the legendary Frost Monarch isn't as strong as he's been made out to be?"

"...Wwwwhat are you...talking about?" Zero asked in a dazed state. Unfortunately, he didn't get an answer. Instead, he was met with a sharp, heavy blow to the head that knocked him out cold.

***

"We're coming up to the warehouse," said one of the troopers, "We'll be entering momentarily." The lead trooper signaled to the others behind her and they took on a formation. Once they were all set, they rushed into the building and surveyed the area. And as they did, their eyes fell upon a strange sight. The Dopant, Storytime, was levitating in the air, his legs crossed over each other as he read aloud from a book in his hand. Floating before him was Zero, who seemed to be completely limp and unresponsive. The troopers immediately aimed their guns at the Dopant upon seeing this, with one of them shouting for the monster to freeze. However, he simply continued on with the story unwaveringly, almost as though he hadn't even noticed them enter the building. The trooper shouted again, but he still didn't respond.

"Hold on 2," said Tech through their com link, "From the looks of things...he might be in some sort of...trance..." The troopers looked around again, now noticing that their fallen comrades were lying on the ground unconscious. Proceeding with caution, the active team of troopers approached the area, making sure to keep their magnums aimed at Storytime. Soon enough, they closed in and split up, with some troopers going off to aid in recovering the fallen troopers, and rest to make sure the Dopant stayed where he was. Once the knocked out troopers were at a safer area, several members went over to Zero's side and tried to get him to awaken. However, no matter what they did, he wouldn't respond. After letting 2 know about this, they took aim at the Dopant. "Wait, hold fire everyone," Tech spoke up, "Now...this is gonna sound crazy...but I think Storytime took Zero into the story that he's reading." The troopers looked to each other doubtfully. "Just listen!"

"Striking with the speed of a viper," said Storytime, "she spun her staff the other way around to strike Zero in the chin from underneath. This stunned him long enough to create an opening for her to exploit. Taking the staff in both paws, she thrust it forward and jabbed it into Zero's midsection." Zero suddenly jerked, almost as though in response to what Storytime was speaking. The troopers looked amongst one another, unsure of how to react to the situation.

"You see?" said Tech, "So for now, don't harm Storytime. I'm worried of what might happen if we take him out with Arata still under his spell."

Clearing her throat, 2 raised a paw to the side of her helmet and spoke through the com link. "So, what should we do then?" For a moment, Tech didn't say anything.

"The only thing we can do right now," she finally said, "Just wait here...and hope Arata can make it out of there safely..." The troopers fell silent, looking to each other reluctantly. But she was right, there wasn't anything they could do now. So, with a tense air all around them, they stood there in cold silence, listening to Storytime relay the story to them.

***

Arata groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. As his vision returned to him, he could immediately tell that he was face down on the ground on account of the fact that he couldn't see anything, and the feeling of being weighed down by something on top of him. The next thing he took notice of was the fact that he was still in his Rider form, evidenced by the chilly feeling he still had throughout his body, and the lack of his muzzle from his face, which was still firmly pressed into the dirt ground below. With a bit of effort, he turned and slid his head out to look around the area.

And then he exclaimed in surprise and confusion.

His paws and feet were bound together behind his back, and to make matters worse, the tigress and the folfess were seated on top of him. "Well look who decided to finally wake up," said the tigress. Arata tried to struggle out of his hogtie, but whatever was binding him was incredibly sturdy. At least that's what he thought until he very quickly realized that he was getting increasingly weaker with every passing moment. But then, he noticed that he could feel a heat emanating from just in front of him. He craned his neck to look and saw that the source of the heat was the feline's staff which had been planted into the ground before him. It was then that he realized that the heat was the reason he felt so weak. It had been weakening him, probably for the entire time he had been out cold (no pun intended).

"Why...are you doing this?" he asked with a bit of effort, "wh...what the heck did I do? What is going on?! ACK!" He was cut off as he felt a sudden, sharp jab at his side.

"Cut the bull," the feline snapped, "You should know exactly what you did, and what you've been doing, and it's time that you finally payed the price. Once we're through with waiting for that stupid body of yours to soften up, it'll be time for payback for your countless acts of tyranny."

"Tyranny?!" said Arata, "What on earth are you talking about? OW!" He felt another jab. He looked back and saw the folfess glaring at him with bared teeth.

"You heard what Tygriss said!" she growled at him, "We're not gonna buy your pathetic attempt at an innocent act!"

"But I'm NOT. ACTING." Arata said firmly, "I seriously don't know what any of you are OW!" Again, a jab to his side.

"Shut up already with that nonsense!" the folfess growled, "We already told you; we're not buying it!"

"I'm telling the truth!" Arata shouted with a growl of his own, "Why can't either of you see that?!"

"Because you're a damned liar!" growled the folfess, "You and the rest of you Monarchs!"

"Monarchs?" Arata tried to adjust himself so that he could look at the two of them more properly, "What the heck are the--"

"STOP IT," the folfess screamed, "STOP PRETENDING LIKE YOU DON'T KNOW! STOP PRETENDING LIKE YOU WEREN'T RESPONSIBLE FOR THE COUNTLESS DEATHS YOU BROUGHT ABOUT! LIKE YOU WEREN'T THE ONE WHO DESTROYED THE HOPES, DREAMS AND LIVES OF THE PEOPLE WHO FELL VICTIM TO YOUR ARMY OF ICE FREAKS! LIKE YOU WEREN'T RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ERADICATION OF MY ENTIRE VILLAGE!" At that, Arata was left completely speechless. This entire exchange had caught him completely off guard, and he had no idea how to react or respond.

"What's the matter?" spat the one known as Tygriss bitterly, "Can't handle the gravity of what you've done? Can't handle the guilt of murdering hundreds of furs alike?" Arata held his silence for a moment, taking the time to let everything he had been told sink in. Once he was done, he took in a deep breath.

"Listen..." he began, "I'm...not entirely sure what's going on, but I'm telling you, honest to God, you two have the wrong person." Tygriss chuffed and the folfess tossed her paws up in the air.

"Yeah right," Tygriss replied, "Just...enough with the pathetic innocent act. It's not even irritating anymore, it's just plain sad at this point."

"I'm not trying to trick anyone!" said Arata, "I swear! You have my word!" Even as he said this, he knew that neither of them would believe them. They both seemed very convinced that he was this..."Monarch" or whatever. Regardless, he continued to argue with them until a sudden, deep voice cut into their conversation.

"I believe this individual is speaking the truth," it said from behind Arata's field of view. Soon afterwards, he heard a heavy set of footsteps draw closer and closer.

"Wait...what?!" exclaimed Tygriss, "No way. You're telling me that this guy, the one with the body made of ICE, is not Mobius?!"

"Affirmative," answered the voice, "While I'm not sure exactly who this individual is, I have reasons to believe that he is not the Frost Monarch, Mobius." Finally, the owner of the voice stepped into Arata's line of sight.

"WHOA!" he exclaimed, "Wait a minute, what?!" Stepping before him was a huge, mechanical beast, which very closely resembled a feral tiger. Its eyes glowed as they scanned over him, watching him carefully. Seeming to ignore Arata's exclamations, the tiger sat down before the three of them.

"I've been analyzing his body during the time he was asleep," the tiger explained, "and after comparing the data I collected to the data we previously had on the real Mobius, I found far too many conflictions to consider him a match." The two females glanced back and forth between him and the tiger, jaws agape and both of them at a loss for words. "Not only that," the tiger continued, "but it is simply illogical for Mobius to show up here without making sure others knew of his arrival, as we've known him to do on multiple occasions. Additionally, Mobius almost always has additional back up with him whenever he _does_attack, and the only other monster that was here was the ice golem we destroyed earlier."

"What, does that not count as back up?" questioned Tygriss.

"It does," the tiger replied, "but notice how it was the only one. Mobius almost always has the energy to summon hordes of golems. So it wouldn't be logical to assume that he would expose himself without the energy to do so."

"Gods dammit all," chuffed Tygriss before dismounting Arata's back. After she did, he began to take in a breath to let out a relieved sigh. However, as he took it in, he suddenly felt Tygriss abruptly sit back down on him, making him exhale unexpectedly. "Wait a sec! That doesn't mean that he can't be some kind of soldier or whatever that works for Mobius." This time, the tiger shook his head. Tygriss clicked her tongue. "Ok then Tygon, what's your argument?"

The tiger now identified as Tygon gestured a paw towards Arata. "There really wasn't anything else indicating my point but his belt. I analyzed it as well, and the technology behind it is unlike anything we've seen before. The materials it is comprised of aren't recorded in any of the databases I searched through." He tilted his head thoughtfully at Arata. "It is almost as though it comes from another world..." The two females looked down at Arata.

"See?" he said to them, "The talking...robo...feral tiger believes me. So do you two? Look, I can even prove it." He struggled against the bonds. "Well, after I have my paws back that is..." He suddenly heard the two females growl.

"Okay," Tygriss growled, "You must think of us as complete morons if you think we would set you free, just like that."

"BOTH OF YOU!" boomed Tygon, "That is enough. It is time the both of you calmed down, and allowed him to prove his innocence."

"Thank you," said Arata.

"Besides," Tygon continued, ignoring him, "He's far too weak to do anything useful at this point, so there is no risk of him doing anything effective to us." Arata wasn't sure how to react to that, so he merely kept his silence. The two females exchanged doubtful glances, both reluctant to let him off so easily. Eventually, Tygriss let out a sigh and turned to Tygon.

"Alright then," she sighed, "I'm trusting your judgement."

"What?!" shouted the folf, "B-but Tygriss!" The feline gently placed a paw on her shoulder.

"Tess," she began, "let's just...give him a chance... Okay?" Tess looked back and forth between her and Arata. It was clear that she was having a much harder time being okay with this than Tygriss was. But after letting out a defeated sigh, she pulled out a knife from underneath her coat and cut the bonds binding Arata, allowing his limbs to stretch freely. Once they stepped off of him, his arms and legs flopped onto the ground and he relaxed his muscles and let out a relieved sigh.

"Thank you," he sighed before rolling over to one side and exposing his belt. He reached in and pried out the Memory inside it. Placing it on the ground in front of him, he reached in again and pried the belt itself off of his body, causing it to snake back into the buckle in his paw. Once it was off of him, a faint blizzard swept around his body before fading away, revealing him to just be a panther. Seeing this, the two females gasped. "Ugh, finally," he sighed again before standing up and stretching happily. But as he stood up, he cringed as the pain from the numerous jabs to his sides spiked up on him. "Ah...jeez though, was it really necessary to jab me so hard?"

"Hey, we were tense," Tygriss remarked, "we couldn't help it." Suddenly, Tess ran off somewhere else, disappearing behind a crumbled building. Arata tilted his head slightly as she ran off.

"What's up with her?" he asked curiously, "Something wrong?" Tygriss merely sighed and pried her staff out of the ground before switching it off.

"Just leave her be for now," she told him, "I don't like it either, but I've learned that she's better off just cooling off on her own. She'll be fine soon enough, she's just very upset that you weren't the Mobius we've been looking for."

"I see," said Arata with a thoughtful nod, "I've been meaning to ask though. Who is this 'Mobius' you two have been referring to this entire time anyways?"

Tygriss closed her eyes and sat down on the ground with her legs crossed. She motioned with her paw and beckoned for him to do the same. Once the both of them were seated, she answered him. "It's...a rather long story." She glanced over to him. "What I wanna know is who you are, and how it was that you came across your powers."

Arata chuffed lightly and smiled. "It's a long story as well." Tygriss chuffed as well before rolling her eyes. She glanced over to Tygon as he seated himself nearby as well.

"Well then," Tygriss began, pulling out two water bottles from her bag and handing him one of them, "how's about we trade stories?"

Arata shrugged. "I guess there's no harm in that." He opened up his bottle and took a swig, drinking gratefully. He then gestured to her with a paw. "Ladies first."

***

"Okay, so lemme make sure I've got it right," said Tygriss, "Your city was under attack by these...Dopants?" Arata nodded. "And...your friend made you those devices?" The panther nodded again. "And you used those devices to become...Kamen...Rider..."

"Kamen Rider Zero, yes," Arata confirmed with another nod. "And you gals are fighting Mobius, a big...elemental...Monarch?" Tygriss nodded. "Who's been ruling over the land with his giant ice monsters. And you two are part of a rebellion to take him down. Right?" Again, Tygriss nodded. Arata whistled. "Wow, sounds like you've got a lot to deal with."

"Yes we do," Tygriss sighed before taking another swig from her bottle, "What sucks though is that it's just getting in the way of what I really need to do." Arata tilted his head in confusion, looking over to her thoughtfully. Tygriss sat back in her seat and looked up at the sky. "I know all about this Mobius, and yet I don't know a single thing about who I am, or anything about my past." Arata caught his breath in shock, unsure of how to respond. Thankfully he didn't have to, as she merely continued on. "I don't remember anything about my past, other than my name, and the fact that Tygon over there is my supposed 'guardian.'" She took another swig from her bottle and glanced that the mechanical tiger. "I just remember waking up one day in a strange room... That's it." She sighed and let out a raspberry. "I would've been spending the rest of my days trying to find out what happened, but now I have to put that on hold cuz of that stupid Monarch's take over." She clenched her fist tightly. "That's why I'm gonna take him out. That way I can get back on track."

Arata whistled again. "Well, seems pretty clear to me that you've got the determination, so I'm sure that you're bound to accomplish your goal." Arata took a swig from his own bottle. "So then...what about Tess? What happened to her?" Tygriss fell silent for a moment, keeping her gaze away from Arata's.

"She...has it...a lot worse than I do," she began grimly, "She lost her entire village to Mobius... Because of that, she became an orphaned child..." She glanced over to where Tess had gone. "If it weren't for our chance meeting, I doubt that she would have survived for much longer..." Arata remained silent, merely taking the time to take this all in.

"Wow..." said the panther, "That is a pretty heavy story..." Tygriss glanced back at him.

"It was why she hated you so much," she explained, "and why she was so devastated that you weren't the real Mobius. She really thought that today was the chance for her to finally avenge her village." Her eyebrows suddenly raised. "Oh, that reminds me, we never apologized for tying you up and such. So...sorry for the mix up."

Arata waved a paw dismissively. "It's fine. It's not like I can blame you for thinking that." He glanced back and forth between her and where Tess had disappeared to. He bit his lip slightly, his tail waving behind him anxiously. After letting out a small growl, he stood up and began to walk away. "I'll be back," he explained, "I'm just gonna go and see how Tess is doing..."

Tygriss sighed but left him be. "Alright... Just don't feel bad if she rejects you. She can't help herself..." Arata nodded and waved to her as he disappeared behind the wall. She shook her head and sat back slightly.

"You know," Tygon spoke up, "he's starting to remind me a little bit about you." This made Tygriss smirk. She chuffed at him.

"In what regard exactly?"

"Well," the mechanical tiger began, "the both of you are rather sympathetic towards others around you."

Tygriss chuffed again and took another swig from her bottle. She turned towards where the two of them had gone. "Hmph...I suppose so..."

Meanwhile, Tess leaned against the wall, her knees drawn up to her chest, and her head buried in her paws. Her shoulders jerked as she silently wept to herself. As Arata carefully approached, he accidentally stepped on a twig, causing it to snap. Hearing this, Tess froze up, with her ears perking up straight. Arata let out a sigh, very quickly realizing that there was no longer any need to conceal his presence to her.

"Hey there..." he said in a gentle tone. Tess kept her silence. Arata sighed and leaned against the wall, choosing to allow her to keep her space. A moment passed with neither of them saying anything. It was Arata who eventually broke the silence. "So...uh...I'm sorry I wasn't...you know, the guy you were looking for..."

"It's fine," Tess grumbled in reply. Silence fell between them again, causing Arata to shift around uncomfortably.

"You must...really hate Mobius for what he did, huh?" he blurted out, fishing around for words. Tess didn't reply, instead continuing to keep to herself. Realizing this, Arata let out another sigh and turned to her. "Okay, listen. I admit that I can't know exactly how you feel, but I can say that I can relate to some hard times." Tess still didn't reply, not even so much as moving. Regardless, Arata continued. "One day, my city fell under siege by some really bad people. I'm talking terrorist level bad." Tess' ears perked slightly, but other than that, she showed no signs of wishing to move. But still, Arata went on. "A lot of people got hurt before they were taken out, and a few people...well...they didn't make it through to see that happen... Some of which...I knew..." He cringed slightly as painful memories were brought back to him. "I could've let that get to me. It could've ruined me for the rest of my natural life... But it didn't." He looked to her again. "Instead, I used that pain to help shape me into the person I am now. I kept pushing through the hard times, and now I'm capable of helping and protecting others from similar situations." He knelt down to the ground, his gaze locked on her at this point. "With that in mind, I want you to ask yourself something. Are you going to let the pain of loss overwhelm you? Or are you going to use that pain to better yourself?"

He didn't get a reply. Tess was intent on keeping her silence, and Arata was getting to learn that now. He let out a sigh, realizing that he was waiting for a response that would never come. So he stood up and began to walk in the other direction. "I'll just let you...think about it..." He stopped for a moment and looked back. "Just...take care, alright?" He then turned back and walked away. As he did, Tess' head slowly rose. She caught a glimpse of him before he disappeared behind the wall. She rested her chin against her knees; the panther had given her a lot to think about...

"Back," Arata declared as he walked back over to where Tygriss and Tygon were. He stopped in his tracks, seeing that the two of them were back up on their feet. He looked over to Tygriss, who was noticeable tenser. "Hey...something wrong?"

"Tygon's getting another distress signal," she informed him through gritted teeth, slinging a pack over her shoulder, "Another town is under attack. TESS!" A rush of wind passed Arata, and it took him a few seconds to realize that Tess had slipped by him wordlessly. She sat behind Tygriss as she mounted Tygon's large back.

"Is there any way I can help?" asked Arata. Tygriss hesitated for a moment.

"Sorry kid, but those ice golems are out of your league," she pointed a finger at him, "Besides, those ice powers of yours won't exactly be doing you any favors."

"Additionally, your body is still fairly weak due to you being under the heat of her heat rod for so long," added Tygon.

"I...guess I see your point," Arata replied with a scratch to the back of his head, "b-but I'd still like to help."

"Just get to some place safe," commanded Tygriss, "We've got things covered from here. Good luck on getting back to Narnia, or wherever the heck you said you were from." With that, Tygon shot off like a bullet train, rushing off into the distance. Arata growled and frantically looked around for his bike, only to remember that his bike was nowhere to be found.

Dammit, they're right, he thought to himself, but I don't like the idea of sitting here and doing nothing either... He reached into his jacket and slipped out his Driver, slapping the device onto his waist and allowing the belt to snake around his form. He then reached into his pocket and slipped out his Memory. He slotted it into the Driver and crossed his right arm over his chest. "HENSHIN!" he shouted out before shooting his left paw forward, slanting the Driver and drawing out a confirming sound from the device.

>>< FREEZE!!! ><<

A sudden blizzard swept around his body, swirling closer and closer to him until it was practically blowing through him. He closed his eyes as a familiar chill overcame his body. Slowly, his eyes opened on their own and his vision took on a greenish hue. Armor encased his chest, lower legs and arms. Once he felt his cloak cover him, he thrust his right arm out and it flew away from him, flowing behind him with the wind. With the transformation complete, he began to bounce on his toes as he tried to figure out what to do.

"Wait, that's it!" He reached back down to his belt and pried the Memory out from it. He then plugged it into the slot at the side of his belt.

>>< FREEZE: MAXIMUM DRIVE!!! ><<

His body once again burst into a raging blizzard. This time though, it focused in a single direction, specifically in the direction Tygriss and Tess had rode off to. While it took a good amount of time, the blizzard eventually caught up to the three of them. Once it did, it solidified back into Arata's body. "Hey guys I'm--ACK!!!" he exclaimed as he tripped over and face planted hard into the dirt ground, leaving a sizable indent in the shape of his helmet.

Tygriss glanced back and shook her head. She leaned in slightly. "Speed things up alright?" Tygon acknowledged her command and immediately sped up. Arata pried his head out of the ground and looked up, groaning as he watched them grow farther and farther away. Thankfully, he noticed that the alleged town Tygriss had spoken of wasn't too far off. With that in mind, he quickly climbed to his feet and ran off to catch up with the trio.

It wasn't long before he reached the town as well, and his exhaustion was only the first reason he caught his breath. Rampaging through the streets were several of the ice golems, identical to the one he had run into when first waking up in this strange world. All around, people were running around in fear, trying to get as far away as possible from the raging monstrosities. Several buildings were smashed to bits, and some were still in the process of being smashed. In the center of it all, Tygon landed and the two females dismounted him. As they did, Tygriss drew out her staff and activated it, causing it to heat up rapidly. And Tess un-holstered her crossbow, loading in her arrows.

"Break!" Tygriss shouted out before the three of them charged off in a different direction. In awe, Arata watched as they got to work. Nearby, one of the golems swung its gigantic arm at Tygriss. With ease, the feline hopped over its fist and slammed her staff down on it. The golem's fist cracked at the point of impact, and it bellowed a loud roar of pain. With its arm still lowered down to the ground, Tygriss took the chance to hop on and run up it. She quickly closed in on its head and swung hard at it. With a loud crack, the golem's head broke into two pieces before bursting into a cloud of snow. The rest of its body toppled forward, crashing into the ground with a tremoring thud. Tygriss hopped off of it without missing a beat and rushed off towards the next golem.

Off to the side, Arata caught some movement. He turned to look and saw Tess narrowly avoiding a swing from one of the golems. It swung again, this swing very nearly smashing her flat. However, Tess shot an arrow at its hand, and the arrow exploded against it, shattering the golem's hand to bits. As it recoiled in pain, Tess loaded in another bomb arrow and immediately shot it at the monster's chest. Again, it roared out in pain, but this time it tried to swing at her with its good fist. But Tess was far too quick and agile for it. In one smooth motion, she rolled out of the way and loaded another arrow into her crossbow. She ended her roll in a crouch and aimed at the monster's head. She let the arrow loose, and the golem's head burst into a cloud of snow. As it collapsed forward, Tess loaded in another arrow and ran off towards the nearest golem.

Wow..._Arata thought to himself, _these two...really know what they're doing. Suddenly, he noticed a large shadow loom over where he was. Just as he began to turn around, an explosion went off. By the time he realized that it was a golem's head that had just exploded, the body had already dropped to the ground. Arata turned back around just in time to see Tess lower her bow and run off. "H-hey, wait up!" he shouted out as he ran after her. He followed her all the way to a clearing in the middle of the town, where several golems were stomping around, trying to swing at the two evasive females. And as soon as the said females met back up with each other, they worked together in perfect synch. As one attacked from one side, the other covered from the back, and vice versa. As Tygriss attacked up close and personal, Tess sniped from afar.

But one of the golems swung out at Tygriss' blind spot, unnoticed by Tess who was still dealing with another golem. Arata shouted out in warning, but before he could finish, a black blur shot by. It struck the golem's arm, shattering it upon impact. The golem reeled back as the blur landed behind Tygriss. It was Tygon, with his claws drawn out, and his teeth bared. "Thanks," said Tygriss before she got back to work, with Tygon acting as back up. With all three of them together, they had little to no trouble in taking down each and every golem in the area. One by one, the golems fell to their teamwork. They were so easily dealt with that the golems might as well have been standing in place. It was a matter of moments before all of them were reduced to nothing but clouds of snow. The three of them scanned the area, ensuring they had indeed rid the area of them all. Once they did, the two females lowered their weapons and let out sighs of relief.

"See Arata?" said Tygriss, making the armored panther jerk suddenly in surprise, "We've got things handled here. No need to worry about us."

Arata shrugged. "Well, I guess I can't argue with ya there..." He reached down to his belt, ready to remove it and revert back to normal. But as soon as his finger touched the device, a loud bang sounded out and a huge dust cloud overtook the entire area. Everyone's arms immediately went up to shield their eyes, with the two females coughing sounding out through the air.

"What the hell?!" Tygriss cursed between coughs, "Arata, I swear to God, if you're behind this--"

"It wasn't me!" he shouted back, looking around and trying to find his bearings, "I'm just as confused as you!" As the words left his mouth, everyone's feet were suddenly frozen to the ground in large blocks of ice.

"I knew it!" Tess growled, "You damn snake!"

"It's not me! I swear!" Arata exclaimed, trying to struggle out of the ice block.

"There you are," he heard Tygriss say, "Come on, help us out of this thing already--GAAH!!" A spark shined out from amongst the dust cloud. Seeing this, Arata's heart skipped. "DAMN DECEITFUL BASTARD!!!"

"Tygriss!" Arata shouted, "what happened?!"

"I can't believe I fell for your tricks!" Tygriss roared, "Now show yourself and face us COWARD!"

"Tygriss, what's going on?!" Arata shouted, struggling against the ice block. Suddenly, the entire thing disappeared, and he stumbled forward. Confused but otherwise not questioning it, he rushed towards where he had seen the spark. He eventually managed to make out the group's silhouette and walked a bit faster. "Hey!" he shouted out, only to be met with a sharp strike to his side. He cried out in pain and rolled to the ground. He laid there for a moment, clutching his side. He looked up to see Tygriss free of her ice block, clutching her staff tightly in paw.

"Get up, damn you!" she growled harshly, "Show us what little honor you have!" As Arata staggered back to his feet, Tess came into view armed with her crossbow, aiming straight at his head.

"G-gals," said Arata in confusion, holding up his paws, "what's up with you two? What the heck happened there?"

"SHUT UP!" Tess barked, her paws trembling around her bow, "We TRUSTED you! And you stabbed us behind the back! Now stand straight and FIGHT!" At that, she let loose an arrow, which Arata barely managed to avoid. As it burst into flames behind him, Tygriss charged and swung at him with her heated bow staff. Arata hastily backed up and avoided the swing, keeping his paws up in the air.

"What the hell's gotten into you two?!" he exclaimed as he dodged another swing, "I never even moved from my spot until our feet were unfrozen!"

"Cut the crap!" Tygriss growled, "We saw you ourselves! You can't trick us anymore!"

"What? AAHH!" Arata cried out in pain as something struck his chest. As he recovered, he noticed two glowing eyes from amidst the dust. It didn't take him long to realize that it was Tygon, his claws drawn and his teeth bared. "No, not you too..." Arata panted, taking a defensive stance as the three of them stared him down, each of their weapons drawn and ready to be used against him.I guess...there's no convincing them..._he thought to himself, _but...why did they turn on me so suddenly? What the heck did they see? Tygriss made the first move, lunging at him with the end of her staff. Arata parried it away and made sure to back away before she could follow up her attack.

"STOP BACKING UP AND FIGHT!" roared Tygriss. Suddenly, Tygon shot towards Arata and struck him in the chest, staggering him back once more. Tess immediately took advantage of the opening this created and fired an arrow which bursted into flames upon impact. Arata cried out in pain and fell over rolling. He hastily scrambled to his feet and narrowly avoided a swing at his head from Tygriss. But she was quick on her feet, allowing her to close the space between them almost immediately. Cringing, Arata focused energy into his lower arms and dropped their temperatures immensely, preparing them for the strikes he would have to block. Tygriss attacked swiftly, almost faster than when she attacked him when they first met. Due to his fatigue and aching body, Arata had a hard time defending himself against her onslaught. Despite even his best efforts, he could do little to counter such a masterful fighter. Even his ice shielded arms did little in buffering the blows, as the heat easily overpowered him.

"GAAHA!" Arata gasped out as he felt Tygon's claws slash at his back. Before he could react, he was met with several sharp strikes to his head, leaving him dazed. Tygriss suddenly jumped out of his view, moving out of the way to give Tess a clear shot. Before he knew it, Arata was met with another arrow that bursted into flames. He toppled backwards, only to be struck forwards by another swipe from Tygon's claws. As he staggered forwards, Tygriss came up from the side and swung hard at the back of his head. His vision blurred for a few seconds as he fell face first into the ground. He didn't even get a chance to rest before he was met with a blow to his side that forced him to roll onto his back. As he tried to get back up, the end of Tygriss' staff struck him back down and held him there.

"It's over," the feline growled, "Even if you're not Mobius, it's clear that you're working for him in some way. So it's time to tell us what you know. Make it easier on yourself Arata, if that's even your real name..."

"I...told you the truth," he huffed weakly, gasping between words, "Every...last word I spoke...was completely true..." He heard heavy footsteps near the two of them, soon followed by a lighter set. Tess' bow soon came into view.

"Tygon," he heard Tygriss say, "Can you tell if he's speaking the truth this time?"

"I cannot," he replied, "the dust around the area is messing with my scanning capabilities." Tygriss clicked her tongue.

"Alright, listen up you rotten snake," she spat, "You're gonna tell us everything you know on Mobius. The way he works, the way he fights, what weaknesses he has. EVERYTHING." Arata growled slightly.

"Well then, my job's already done," he said lowly, "because I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING...ABOUT HIM!!! I don't know...WHAT happened...but I never TOUCHED you three. Whatever attacked you...was SOMEONE ELSE! GYAH!" He grunted as Tygriss jabbed his chest with her staff hard.

"STOP TESTING OUR PATIENCE!" Tygriss growled, "It's one thing to betray us, but to continue to INSIST on your innocence when you've already been proven guilty is SICK! It's DISGUSTING! And it INFURIATES ME!" She banged her staff against his chest again. "So just SPILL it alre--" A loud clash suddenly rang out from just behind the two females. The both turned to look and saw Tygon standing in front of them, his maw covered in ice, and ice shards littered all across the ground. Tygon crunched the ice block in his mouth and spoke.

"Take formation," he commanded, "An attack came from the rear." Not needing to hear anything else, the two females went back to back, with Tygriss carefully keeping her foot on Arata's chest. For a moment, nothing happened. But then, off in the distance, something disturbed the dirt cloud that had settled on the area. Arata craned his neck to see, and the sight he was met with made his heart drop.

Stepping out into the open was a figure that looked frighteningly like Arata did now. A large, silver crest adorning his helmet, snow white armor covering his form, and a long flowing cape hanging off of his back. Even through the dusty clouds, he could see the bright green eyes glowing from behind the crest, strikingly like his own. The two females stared in shock and disbelief.

"Is that...Arata?" breathed Tess. Tygon shook his head.

"I'm afraid not," he answered grimly, "Not even an echo, or any sort of projection of himself... No... There is only one person that can be..."

Tygriss bared her teeth as she hissed out a single word, "...Mobius..."

A sudden, icy wind swept over the area, blowing away the clouds of dust. Before they knew it, the group's feet were trapped in a block of ice, with Arata's entire body being covered. It was then that the figure began to walk casually towards them, his hands placed neatly behind his back.

"Good afternoon, everyone," Mobius said in a smooth, chilly voice, "So how is_everyone doing today? Did you all have _fun...destroying my pawns?" An explosion suddenly went off against Mobius. A quick glance to the side revealed that Tess had let loose an arrow. Her trembling paws made it difficult for her to keep a grip on it, but somehow she managed. Now the group watched with baited breath, waiting for the smoke to clear. And as it did, Tess' heart sank. Mobius still stood before them, with not even so much as a scratch on him. In fact, the only evidence of Tess' arrow was a small black spot on Mobius' chest plate. The monarch waved his arm to blow off the rest of the smoke and cleared his throat before continuing, "I'll take it that...as a no." He continued to walk forward, seeming to be perfectly fine with taking his time. "So then...mister Zero, how are you doing today?" Arata's heart thudded.

"I knew it!" Tess growled, glaring at him, "You ARE working with Mobius!"

"I-I swear, I've never even MET him!"

"Oh, but dear Mr. Zero," Mobius cut in, raising a finger, "I do believe we've met before. Quite recently in fact!" Arata growled in frustration.

"I've never even BEEN in this part of the world before!" he growled out, "I don't even know how I GOT here! The last thing I remember was fighting...that...Dopant..." Arata trailed off. Lines were beginning to connect. Waking up in the middle of nowhere, events going on that he'd never even heard about, Mobius knowing who he was, despite the lack of recognition of his masked persona with everyone else, Storytime's books, the Dopant's insistence on reading a story, him blacking out in the middle of the fight. It was all making sense now, and as crazy as it was, he was finding it very hard to find any other explanation.

Storytime had shoved him into a story.

As he ruminated about this thought, Mobius, or rather Storytime, moved in a bit closer, carefully eying Tygriss who was struggling to free her bow staff from the frozen ground. She clenched down on the handle, trying to get the staff to heat up once more. She drew in a sharp gasp as a cold hand wrapped itself around the underside of her muzzle. Struggle as she might, the strength of the hand's owner won out, and she was forced to look into the eyes of Mobius.

"My, my," he said in a smooth voice, "What an honor it is to finally meet the lovely Tygriss..." She growled bitterly.

"What the hell are you going on about, monarch?!" She struggled again, and this time Mobius allowed her to slip away from his grasp. He backed up several steps before standing before them with his hands carefully placed behind his back.

"It truly is a pleasure to meet the both of you," he continued, "which is why it is such a shame...that I have to kill you both." Hearing this alone was enough to get everyone to start struggling against the ice again. Seeing this made Mobius laugh, and he began to slowly circle the group. "Really though, as much as I'd like to leave you all be, I'm afraid that you would just get in the way of my plans at this point." He raised his hand, and a cloud of snow began to swirl around it. "A pity, but thankfully, it doesn't matter to either of you at this point."

>>< FREEZE: MAXIMUM DRIVE!!! ><<

A blizzard suddenly burst into existence in the middle of everyone, blowing Mobius back several steps as it raged. It came to an abrupt end as it condensed and reformed Arata's body just above Mobius, who was greeted with a drop kick to the face. As Mobius staggered back in shock, Arata landed hard on his back with a grunt.

"G-get out while you can!" shouted Arata with effort, "I'll hold him off for as long as I can!" With a pained grunt, he climbed back onto his feet and charged at Mobius, who regained his senses just in time to avoid a right hook from Arata.

"Well al_right_ then," chuckled Mobius, avoiding another swing from Arata, "I don't know why you'd want to risk yourself for the ones that literally don't matter outside of this world, but props to you for making my job easier!"

"Maybe I just...don't like the idea of sitting around...and watching someone get hurt," Arata snapped back, huffing heavy breaths between words. This made Mobius laugh more.

"You're funeral then!" His arm suddenly shot out, and Arata's foot was suddenly frozen in place. As he struggled, Mobius struck at him again and again, prompting a pained cry from Arata with each blow. Acting quickly, he reached down and re-slotted his Memory yet again.

>>< FREEZE: MAXIMUM DRIVE!!! ><<

His body burst into a blizzard again, though noticeably weaker than before. Mobius chuckled and shook his head. "Good effort," he began before raising his hand up, "but let's not forget who else has control over ice here." He clenched his hand into a fist, and the blizzard was suddenly forced to condense, forming Arata's body. He cried out again as he hit the ground, his torso feeling as though it had been squeezed and stretched in one brutal instant. With him lying there, there was nothing to stop Mobius from stomping on his chest repeatedly. Sparks flew with every stomp, each of which forced out pained gasps from the armored panther. On one of the stomps, Arata grabbed hold of Mobius' foot and hugged it to his chest, preventing him from raising his foot again. "I'm honestly more surprised than anything," he said to Arata as he ground his foot into his chest place, "I can tell you've already came to the realization that this world isn't real, so this could've been the one time where no one would have blamed you for saving yourself."

"Don't...rub it in," growled Arata. Mobius chuckled again.

"Don't worry. That's not what I want to rub in." He ground his heel a bit harder, eliciting more cries from Arata. "_That_is."

***

Back in the warehouse, the unconscious Arata was thrashing around and crying out in pain, and the troopers around him had no idea on what to do. "His actual body must be registering the pain he's feeling in the story," reasoned Tech through the com link. Everyone shouted out in shock as sparks suddenly flew off from Arata's body. The troopers scrambled towards him, trying to figure out what they could do to help. "Dammit!" cursed Tech, "It's not just mental apparently! I don't know how, but he's taking real damage!" She cursed again under her breath, looking away from the monitor she was watching them from to try and come up with a plan. However, her focus was taken away as she heard one of the troopers cry out in pain. Whirling back to face the monitor, she gasped as a blue armored figure came into view and shot down each of the troopers one by one. Tech growled, "...Lockon..."

Lockon let out a chuckle as he stalked towards Arata's body. "All too easy," he muttered under his breath before reaching him. He twirled one of his twin pistols around his finger before kicking Arata's hovering body down to the ground and holding it there.

***

"AAAAH!" Arata cried out as he was blown through the wall of a nearby building. After falling to the ground, he struggled up to his knee and panted heavily. He glared at Mobius as he casually walked through the hole that had been created by Arata's body.

"You know," he began, "of all the people to realize how futile it is to fight with ice against ice, I would've thought you'd be one of them." Arata growled and rose to his feet. "But then again, considering the fact that I made myself into the most powerful character in this story, I guess it doesn't matter what kind of a fight you put up. Because either way, you're still gonna lose."

Arata growled out and charged, only to come to a sudden stop as an invisible force struck him in the gut. He coughed out as he fell back, shock and confusion running through his mind. He then cried out as a sudden blast of burning heat slammed into his face, knocking him onto his back. He struggled to get back up, but an invisible force held him down by his torso. More blasts of heat washed over his face, and he tried to shield himself with his arms. But for whatever reason, this heat continued to hit his face and passed through his arms somehow. He continued to struggle back up, but whatever force was holding him down was stronger.

For a moment, Mobius watched Arata struggle in confusion. He didn't for long though, as he came to a realization as to what was going on. About time, Lockon, he thought to himself, I was wondering when you'd decide to show up. He stalked over to Arata and grabbed him by the neck. With his grip tight around it, he held his body up and struck him in the gut several times. On the last hit, he let go of his neck, allowing him to knock him far back and fly right into the wall behind him. Arata cried out in pain upon impact and collapsed to the floor. He growled as he tried to stand, but was once again blasted in the face by a sudden rush of heat.

What the hell is going on?! he asked himself in desperate confusion as he tried to fight his way back up.

***

Lockon couldn't contain his laughter as he blasted Arata's vulnerable face again and again with his pistols, both loaded with Heat Memories. You've gotten in my way for far too many times, he went on in his head, and now I finally have the chance to get rid of you. For GOOD. Just as he finished the thought, he caught on to the sounds of approaching footsteps. He turned slightly, and frantically ducked, avoiding a swing directed at his head. As soon as he was back up, he jumped away and turned to face his attacker, his twin pistols aimed in front of him. He growled out as he recognized the one standing before him.

She donned pearl white armor, with a bright yellow under suit wrapping around her form. A large crest adorned the front of her helmet, hanging just above her bright green eyes. In her paws, she held a sturdy longsword, which was aimed right at Lockon's neck.

The Valkyrie. Kamen Rider Valkyrie.

"I get it now," she said aloud, "This entire thing was a set up. It was all a trap meant for Zero, wasn't it?" Lockon scoffed, making sure to keep his pistols aimed at her.

"Oh how ever did you manage to figure it out?" he asked in a sarcastic tone. He didn't wait for her answer. Instead, he fired off several shots at her. She reacted quickly, slashing out with her blade. With the preciseness of her swings, she managed to knock every single shot fired at her away from her. Once they were all out of her way, she rushed forward with vigor and slashed at Lockon's head.

As he dodged and leaned away from the swings, he fired at her whenever he had the chance to. But unfortunately for him, Valkyrie hadn't only honed her sword skills. With a combination of precise swings and side steps, she was able to keep up her offense without being impeded by Lockon's assault whatsoever. And with a well-timed swing, she managed to stagger Lockon momentarily. And as he staggered, Valkyrie slashed at his torso several times. Sparks flew as he was knocked back towards the entrance to the warehouse.

>>< HEAT: MAXIMUM DRIVE!!! ><<

As he rolled up to his knees, Lockon whirled around to launch a pair of large fireballs at Valkyrie. She reacted quickly and flicked a dial at the side of her belt.

>>< ASCENDING DRIVE!!! ><<

She slashed out with her blade, sending a shockwave at the fireballs. The attacks collided, producing a huge cloud of smoke. Valkyrie kept her guard up, watching the dust around her carefully. By the time it cleared, she saw that the armored gunner was nowhere to be seen. She sighed and lowered her blade. Damn, she cursed to herself, got away from us again... With a shake of her head, she hurried over to Arata's hovering body. As she knelt down beside him, the downed troopers began to stir. She reached out and took hold of Arata's shoulder, shaking it firmly. "Arata," she began in a gentle voice, "...Arata." She received no response. She clicked her tongue, realizing that her voice alone wouldn't be able to wake him. As the troopers approached the two of them, she planted her sword into the ground behind her and took hold of one of Arata's paws. Come on Arata, she thought to herself, make it out of there...alive...

***

"GYAAAAH!!!" Arata cried out as he was knocked into the air, landing on the ground hard. He let out a mix of a groan and a growl, struggling to get back up to his feet. All the while, Mobius' form loomed in front of him, stalking closer and closer to him. For whatever reason, the blasts of heat had ceased, but Arata wasn't exactly recovering with time, evident by the fact that he was blinking in and out of unconsciousness.

"Well, I've had my fun," said Mobius, "and I've enjoyed my time here. But I'm afraid that it's time to bring this story to a close..." Arata felt his heart sink at that. There was no looking past it; he wasn't strong enough to take down what was apparently the strongest character in this world. Not only was he out of energy, but Mobius could control ice, and by extension, prevent him from using his most powerful attack. He was completely outmatched here...

But then, he felt warmth in his paw.

He was confused by this for only a moment. He clenched his paw into a fist. No, now wasn't the time to give up. Not when there were people back home he needed to get back to.

"Now DIE!!!" Mobius roared out as he charged. But Arata didn't back down. He stood up and parried Mobius' arm away before ramming his fist straight into the monarch's face. Sparks flew as he was struck back, with Mobius exclaiming in surprise. But he wasn't given any time to question as Arata attacked again and again, his fist slamming into Mobius' head over and over again.

"No!" Arata roared back, adrenaline coursing through his veins, "No Mobius! I'm NOT letting it end! Not until we've reached a damn good happy ending!" Another swing, and Mobius was struck far back. He growled in rage as he stood back up. He roared as he charged again, only to be stopped suddenly by a metal bow staff. Tygriss suddenly came into view, and immediately after, Tygon and Tess came in as well. As Tygon lashed at and mauled Mobius, Tygriss' staff clashed with the monarch's body repeatedly, with Tess' arrows exploding off of his body whenever he was left open for her. Arata watched in astonishment; he was sure they would have run off by now. Clearly, he had been wrong.

"Arata!" Tygriss' voice sounded out. He shook his head as he realized she was now standing before him. Before he could say anything, she moved to his side and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Are you alright?" Funny, it was only now that he remembered just how tired he had been mere minutes ago. His body was in the process of reminding him though, as he felt himself lean against her noticeably.

"I...I'm alright," he replied, his voice suddenly wavering on him. An explosion went off further away from them. He looked up to see Tess loading in another arrow into her crossbow as a small cloud of smoke vanished from the air. A blur shot out and stopped just in front of them, with it turning out to be Tygon standing guard.

"I highly suggest retreating now," he informed them, "We need to think of a new battle plan. We are not in the condition to fight him as we are now."

"As much as I hate fleeing," Tygriss replied, "I can't deny that you're right. Tess! Let's go!"

"What?!" Tess barked back, firing off another arrow at Mobius, "Are you kidding me?! We can finally bring him down HERE!"

"Not in the condition we're in!" Tygriss roared back, "Come ON! We need to GO!" Tess growled out in anger. After letting loose several more bomb arrows, she rushed towards the group under the cover of the large explosion created by her bombs. Mobius' roars of anger sounded out as they fled. He swiped at the smoke wildly, trying to clear it from his vision. But by the time he could see again, he saw that the group was nowhere to be found. He roared again before raising his arms, summoning forth large clouds of snow. The snow condensed and condensed, eventually forming several towering ice golems around him.

"Find them!" he commanded them, "Find them and bring them to me!"

***