[KRX]

Euderma

An explosion. Followed by pain. Flying, flying, and falling. Darkness. That was all the boy could remember as he slowly regained consciousness. Explosion, pain, gravity, black.

Moths.

The boy got up slowly. He rubbed the back of his head, a bruise having formed. A glint of metal drew his eyes to a spot on the ground. A brass pocket-watch lay their, a falcon adorning a black background. The cover was slightly ajar, and the boy flipped it open all the way when he picked it up, checking the time. Fifteen minutes had passed.

Above the face of the watch, inside of the cover, was a photo of five teenagers. The photo was taken at a hospital. To the right of the photo was the boy, gazing off at another camera offscreen. On the bed, three of the others sat: a boy with curly blonde hair and the kind of pajamas only a patient would wear; an amiable-looking boy smiling broadly; and a girl with shoulder-length hair. On the other side of the photo, leaning against the bed, was a girl, smiling like the others and grasping her arm.

Where are they? the boy wondered. He had been with them before the explosion. The boy checked his surroundings. There was no sign of them.

What happened?

The boy did not expect an answer, yet he still heard a voice, coming from a shiny gold trash can.

They're gone now. The boy turned to the trash can. He could not hear the voice... not through his ears, anyway. He wondered how he could tell from which direction the voice came from, but that wonder was dashed by the mechanical spotted bat he saw in the trash can.

"What do you mean, 'gone'?" the boy asked aloud.

The moth warrior took them.

"Moth warrior?"

Did you not see the Rider atop the moth that attacked you?

The boy thought about it, but he returned his attention to the bat a second or two later. "Why?"

I know not.

"Where did he take them?"

I know not.

"What do you know?"

Here the bat paused to think.

Though I remember little about myself, I know that you and I share a common enemy. Though I know not where he has taken your friends, or why he has taken them, I can provide you the power you need to find them.

"How?"

A light began seeping from the boy's palm. Adjusting himself to look at his hand, the boy felt a mass begin to weigh down in his hand. The light dissipated, revealing a black box with a golden bat symbol adorning it. From the box slid out a card.

Place the card in front of me. I can then enter your world whenever you please. I can provide you a power beyond that needed to find your friends. The boy twitched his hand, but the bat stopped him. But be warned. By making the contract, you will have to take the burden of being a Kamen Rider. There are others like the moth warrior. Some will take your side, but most will hunt you. To leave the contract is difficult, and may kill you. Are you prepared for that kind of a sacrifice?

The boy thought about it for a moment. "What do you mean, you don't know that much about yourself?"

The moth warrior attacked me not very long ago. However, it appears that he took my memories. I do not know who I am.

The boy raised the card up to the trash can. "I know who you'll become." Thunder roared and lightning flashed. A vortex began swirling from the card.

The bat nodded. As I you.

The boy grinned. "And who is that, Benjika Rhondothy?"

Benjika flew towards the card. Though it was not explicit, the boy could sense that the bat was smiling. Benjika entered the card, and a dome of energy encased the boy.

When it burst, a figure rose, clad in black-and-gray, bat-themed armor. A cape billowed behind him as the boy examined himself.

Arise... Kamen Rider Euderma.