[guncannon109]

Episode 39: Stand As One

In the ruins of an old warehouse on that fateful night, Fury stood at the center of it all with Shredder at his side. They were both in their dopant forms looking down at the mangled body of Alice Darwin that lay twisted at cut up.

“You know, you didn't HAVE to mess her up the way that you did. I hardly even recognize her, the way she is now,” Shredder commented, kneeling down to get a better look at the mess of flesh and hair that was once Alice's face. “Shame too, here I was hoping for some fun after we did the dead.” She laughed.

Fury glared at him, “You're twisted.”

“And you're the one who knew that a hired me anyway,” Shredder laughed some more, eyeing the body of Alice, “so you ain't much better, are ya?”

“Just grab the memory so we can get out of here,” Fury huffed, whacking Shredder on his head, “The boss wanted her body in tact, but I guess he'll accept it if we tell him it was beyond saving.”

Shredder laughed as he pulled the Fata memory out from Alice's hand then handed it back to his commander, “Now who's the twisted one?”

Fury was about to speak when his attention was grabbed by a voice that cried out from the other end of the warehouse, “ALICE! Alice! Where are you?!”

Shredder gritted the teeth of his dopant form, “Great, her cop friend.” The eyes on Fury's shoulder armor opened which got a laugh from Shredder, “You actually gonna fight 'em?”

“Of course not,” Fury smirked under the shroud of his hood, “someone must take the fall for this crime.”

Shredder gawked at him, raising a brow, “You're turning yourself in?”

Fury just stared at him before muttering, “It's been an honor, Shredder.”

On the other side of the warhouse, the young Gordon Sampson darted gun in hand through old machinery and boxes before a loud and bright explosion acted as a torch to light his way. He ran down the warhouse in the direction of the loud bang of light.

“Crazy girl, almost had me worried,” Sampson said as he lowered his gun, a smile coming to while he ran.

He turned the corner, his smile dropping once he saw what remained of Alice on the floor. His heart plummeted, shaking as he began to tremble before the horror that was in front of him.

“Damn…” Shredder coughed on the ground a few feet away from Sampson and Alice's remains, now the pale skinned Greg Walker with freshly buzzed hair and baggy paint covered clothes. “What the hell…”

“What the hell is right,” snarled Sampson, marching towards Walker before aiming his gun right in the male's face, “What the hell’s a worthless piece of shit like you doing still alive?!”

“Hey whoa!” Walker pleaded as he held his hand, “You got the wrong guy, I only-” Sampson fired his gun, taking off Walker's ear. The male shook as blood ran down his face. Walker shook, staring into the anger filled eyes of the officer that stood before him.

Sampson gritted his teeth before grabbing his radio, “I need back up, right now,” he barked into it. “Get in here, before I do something I know I'll regret.”

{Insert opening theme: “Alones” by Aqua Timez}

In the present day, Fury sat in the ruins of the building he had demolished on a throne pieced together from pipes, bricks and other scraps of rubble. Leaning back with his hands together, he smirked as he continued to watch the riders charge towards him from his eyes in the sky.

“The main forces should be there to greet them soon,” he spoke, eyeing a trio of X2 troopers of to his side. His grin widened, noting that there was one of each type among the trio. “Let's say we increase the difficulty.”

Fury extended his hand towards the troopers, a huge shroud of swirling black energy shooting off from the dopant and into the soldiers. The troopers shuttered, the trio being brought to their knees as the energy overwhelmed them and transformed them into large muscle bound demons made of flesh and metal with a single yellow eye and a mouth of jagged fangs making up the faces of each of them.

The only distinction between them were the larger muscles of the former Star trooper, the twelve barreled cannons that now protruded from the hands of the former Blast trooper's and large demonic claymore that was gripped tightly in the hand of the former blade trooper.

“Well well… lets see here… Bloodfist,” Fury spoke, eyeing the muscle bound former star trooper, looking towards the former blade trooper next, “Darksaber,” he announced before eyeing the snarling former blast trooper, “Hailfire.”

The former star trooper, Bloodfist gave Darksaber and Hailfire a dirty look. The two fiends snarled back, Darksaber lashing its blade across the ground as Hailfire aimed its guns at Bloodfist. Fury groaned before snapping his fingers, gaining the attention of the altered troopers.

“Come now my children, behave,” he laughed, giving them all a look. “I understand how thirsty for blood you are, but you should save your hunger for when we take up arms against Vainglory.”

The fiends snarled at Fury, lashing their fangs and claws at him in protest.

“I know, I know. You crave for battle now,” he held out his hand, a ball of fire forming in his palm with a projection of the still advancing riders inside it, “Then perhaps, I might interest you three in an appetizer?”

Snarling and licking their teeth with their tongues, the trio of alter X2 Troopers headed off in the direction of the advancing riders.

Not far off down the long city street covered in ruin, Alex and his comrades continued moving towards Fury. The five riders however came to a halt when they reached a line of X2 Blade Troopers who all stood shoulder to shoulder, gripping their swords as they stared down the riders.

“Well, that's a welcoming sight,” Ashley muttered with a sigh, “looks like the rumors of Fury leaving META behind were just that.”

Shiore shot a glare at Ashley, raising a brow under her mask, “And where would you hear a rumor like that?”

“From years of being one of Crave's spineless lackies,” Ashley returned, “something that I am glad is behind me.”

“Yeah, and besides,” Tara chimed in with a shrug as she pulled out her tail feather flail, “we're still gonna whoop Fury's edgelord butt ain't we? Who cares if Vainglory's cannon fodder hooligans are backing him?”

“Tara's right,” Alex chimed in, stepping forward to be at the head of the pack, “If anything, Fury working with Vainglory is only more of a reason for us to take him down.”

As Alex spoke, the air became filled with the cocking and hum of several guns being primed, a force of X2 Blast troopers emerging from the rubble around the riders to close them in.

Alex gritted his teeth, Shiore in turn looking over to him, “Wishing at all you could use your ultimate form?”

Alex's voice trembled as he let out a small bit of laughter, “Just a little bit.”

“You might not but we sure as hell can,” Tara boasted pulling out her Hurricane memory, nudging Cole, “Right?”

Cole smirked, whipping out his own Biter Memory, “Right.”

As the couple swapped out their memories, the Blast troopers opened fire upon the riders. A cloud of dust quickly formed around the rider as the ground beneath their feet was struck by laser fire making it nearly impossible to see anything.

“BITER! HURRICANE!” Roared from inside the dust cloud, the piercing glow of the blue and green visors of Tara and Cole's masks darting from out of the dust cloud and into the eyes of the troopers who were unlucky enough to see.

With a single beat from Tara's wings, she cleared the dust and debris to reveal herself in her Hurricane form bow in hand. Cole meanwhile stood in his Biter form, his gatling gun on his left arm and trail biters on his legs.

“Rocky!,” Tara aimed her bow at one line of Blast troopers who were reloading their guns, the wind rider quickly drawing her bowstring back as a yellow arrow of light began to form, “return fire.”

“As you wish my Hurricane,” Cole returned, spinning the barrel of his gatling gun as he aimed it at the other line of blast troopers before firing along side Tara.

A quarter of the blast troopers went down upon being hit. The remaining troops dolphin dived out of the way before returning fire on Cole and Tara, the X2 Blade troopers that stood between the riders and Fury beginning to advance.

Alex's eyes narrowed upon a single X2 Star Trooper that stood behind the Blade Troopers, Alex in closing his driver and removing his Star and Runner memories in response.

“Shiore, we're gonna need a bit more power here,” he said as he pulled out his Blade and Kicker memories.

A chill ran down Shiore's spine, her right arm beginning to pulse violently as the image of her Shira form entered her mind.

“We're only fighting foot soldiers,” Shiore tightly gripped her arm with a hint of a growl, “I refuse to waste such power on them.”

“Find, have it your way,” Ashley scoffed, looking to Alex who was reopening his driver, “what's the plan boss?”

“BLADE!” KICKER!” roared his driver as the red on the boy's armor changed to green, the short sword Bla-Jalibur forming in his arm and pointed metal blades forming on the tips of his feet.

“Clear the trash, and get to Fury,” Alex restated, gripping his sword with both his hands as the blade troopers drew closer, “we are not letting a single one of these things through.”

---
On the other side of town, Madison stood shoulder to shoulder with a swarm of other people on a train that ran underground. She had her headphones in, tapping her foot in an ever quickening pace all scanning her eyes over the southbound subway map. The train reached a station, Madison getting out of the way to allow other people to shuffle by as the doors opened.

“They'll have to face the weather, Ninja Storm, stand together,” she muttered along with her music before letting out a groan, looking out the subway door to try and see why they hadn't moved yet, “What the hell is going on?!”

A loud chime echoed through the station, Madison pulling out of her earbuds as a voice came over the intercom. “Due to ongoing issues at all further station, all southbound passengers are here by asked to disembark. We apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to your continued patronage.”

Madison huffed, heading over a map on the platform. She placed her finger on her current stop, then moved it down five stations on the map, her hand stopping when she hit a station named Fision at the very bottom.

“Looks like I'm gonna need to hoof it,” Madison, quickly moving to the stations elevator only for her jaw to drop when she saw it was roped off with an out of order sign taped to the doors. “OH COME ON!!” She groaned for a moment then let out a tired sigh. “Looks like I really am hoofing it.”

Madison quickly ran down the platform of the station, hoping up one flight of stairs in the blink of an eye. She was about to do the same with the next flight only for a sudden shout to catch her attention.

“WATCH OUT!” Cried an older man from above as a fully loaded cart barroled down the stairs directly at Madison.

Madison gasped for a moment as the cart drew closer to hitting her, however it didn't run her over. The seemingly frail girl instead caught it by the front, holding it up with only a mere wince as if it was a mild burden on her frame.

“Oh my gosh Miss! Are you alright!” Cried the older male from above. He was of a darker complexion, in his mid forties by the looks of things. “I am so sorry!”

“Don't worry about, was heading that way anyway,” Madison laughed, her biceps flexing under the weight of the cart revealing she was surprisingly lean for a girl who hours ago was stuffing her face while watching tv. “Here, I'll come to you!”

The male watched in awe as Madison climbed up the stairs with little effort, a heavy sigh of relief escaping her lips as placed the cart down upon reaching the top.

“Oh my,” the male clapped as he smiled at her. “You’re a lot stronger than I gave you credit for. Say, would you happen to be looking for a boyfriend?”

Madison's face turned bright red, shaking her head, “Sir… I think I'm a little young for you.”

The male stared at her, then he started to laugh, “Oh my, heavens no. I was asking for my son actually. He likes pretty girls who are a bit on the lean side.”

Madison let out a sigh of relief, her face returning to its normal pigment as she managed a grin. “Sir, I'm flattered that you think your son would be interested in me, but my current relationship status is, well to put it simply… complicated. I'm sure he's a charming fella, but I'm going to have to decline the offer, sorry.”

“Complicated?” The male raised a brow at her, “You telling me you have someone in your life, and they aren't trying to sweep you off your feet at every possible moment?”

Madison's smile faded a bit, the girl feeling her heart swell, “Well… sort of, I think…” she gulped, “Like I said, it's complicated.”

“Well, if it's ever not complicated and you're looking for a someone,” the male pulled out a scrap of paper and a pen, jotting down a few numbers before handing it over to Madison , “Give my boy a call, I'm sure he'd love to hear from you.”

Madison took the paper, read it over once then looked to the man with another sharp gulp. “Thank you sir…I'll keep this in mind,” she bowed as she shoved the paper safely into her pocket. “I have to go.”

Madison took off in a hurry down the road, gripping the silver ring that she still wore on her finger. The older male watched with a grin.

“Such a pure soul,” the male said softly as his eyes flickered a pierce shade of yellow for a moment before returning to their original hazel color. “An enigma like her shall certainly alter the hands of fate.”

---
Back in the battle, Shiore drove her blade hard through the driver of the final Blade Trooper, Alex and Ashley doing the same to the Star Trooper that lead the pack. The troopers that once opposed them now laid on the ground as men and women in suits. A sickly black aura rose from them all, merging together in the ar darting down the street past the riders.

Alex gripped his sword, narrowing his gaze down the road, “Guess that's our path.”

He took one step forward, but did not move further as the altered muscle bound trooper Bloodfist dropped down from the sky and set its sights upon Alex, snarling while licking its teeth.

“What! In Stan Lee's bonet! Is that!” Tara barked, her jaw dropping as a result of witnessing the fiend that stood before her.

A loud hum roared through the air as several large laser blasts roared down towards Tara, the wind rider quickly dodging them and aiming her bow in the air where they came from.

“Not on my watch! You freak!” She gritted her teeth as she took in the sight of Hailfire, clinging to the side of a building with its feet while unloading a barrage of explosive blasts where Tara had been standing below.

Hailfire, after its expulsion of ammo, halted its barrage. Its hand mounted gun were smoking hot, the fiend snarling as it glared at Tara. Leaping from one building to another, it began making its way down the left most side street off the path the riders had been proceeding down.

“Oh you aren't getting away that easy!” Tara roared, gunning down the road after it, taking to the air after a moment of sprinting.

“Tara!” Alex barked, “Where are you-”

“Not a single one get through! Tara barked back as she continued to chase after Hailfire, “That's what you said right?”

“Yeah but!” Alex persisted but by the time he did, Tara was already out of ear shot.

“I'll watch her back, we'll meet up later!” Cole told Alex before speeding off after Tara on his trail biters.

“You better!” Alex called to Cole as loud as he could, hoping his friend heard him. His gaze then fixed itself once again on Bloodfist who was flexing its muscles and cracking its neck.

“Its three on one,” Ashley stated, her and Shiore stepping into a line formation with Alex to stare down Bloodfist.

Suddenly, a loud scraping noise barreled its way through the air. Shiore quickly turning, sword raised, to block an oncoming dark blur that drove her into a nearby building.

“SHIORE!” Alex cried out, taking his gaze off Bloodfist for a moment only for the fiend to dart forward and deliver a heavy uppercut into his gut.

“Come now, she's a strong girl she can handle herself,” Bloodfist cackled as its face turned into that Fury's violent form, “you on the other hand, that's still up for debate.” He sneered, tossing the winded Alex into Ashley, “And to correct you, I do believe it's now two on one.”

---
From his bed in the hospital, Carter watched as more explosions roared up from downtown. The young man felt his heart sink, taking in a big gulp as his hands began to shake.

“You know you're an insanely lucky old man, right?” Pepper told Sampson as she read off his papers from his bedside. “Sure, it's pretty bad right now, but nothing seems to be broken that can't be fixed with a little bit of rest and patience.”

“Looks like I've still got an angel looking out for me,” Sampson couldn't help but smile and laugh a bit. “It helps me sleep a bit easy though, thinking she's watching over me and Alex.”

“Which reminds me,” Pepper eyed Sampson, “I never really understood how it happened… mind telling me?”

“You read the report,” Sampson spoke simply, his smile fading. “Greg Walker, remember?”

“You and I both know I wouldn't ask you to talk about that,” she glared at him. “I wanna know how to honest souls went and did… what you two did.”

Sampson took in a deep breath then exhaled, “The short version… Jason, her husband… he was, and mostly still is, a prick.” He looked Pepper in the eye. “My meeting with Alice, and the appearance of the dopants, are in my mind one and the same. I didn't question when she was assigned to my unit, but I will never forget that smile of hers. Course she was taken, and clearly loved her husband more than anything.”

“Which re-asks the question,” Pepper raised a brow, “why cheat?”

“I mentioned he was a prick, right?” Sampson told her with another raised brow. “We had just finished a job, and she offered to buy me a coffee…” he sharply swallowed, a tear coming to his eye. “Then suddenly, she asked me if I was as lonely as she was. She started to cry… cursing Jason's name… and then I…. I kissed her.”

Pepper's eyes shot open in shock, “And… what did she do?”

Sampson held his head, managing an almost sad laugh, “She returned it… one thing lead to another… and then, before I knew it, Alex was born and then she was killed.”

“Have you told him?” Carter spoke up, catching the attention of both Sampson and Pepper.

Sampson paused the shook his head, “No… No I didn't.”

“Why not?” Carter asked, keeping his gaze fixed on the city in the distance.

“Because I… I wanted to protect him,” Sampson spoke in an unsteady tone. “I wanted to protected him in the same way she did. I'll do anything to make sure that boy is safe… Then again, that's rather all for not at this point.”

“No…” Carter spoke simply, pulling his dislocated arm out from the sling that held it, grabbing the part that was broken with his working arm, “it- isn't.”

Sampson and Pepper both gasped in shock as Carter, gritting his teeth to swallow the pain, began to force his dislocated arm back into the socket.

“GAHHA!” Cried the young man, Pepper shooting up to her feet and marching over to him.

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!” she demanding, going to grab Carter to restrain him only to be halted by a simple look from the young man.

“I'm not going to sit around here doing nothing, not while there are people who need me.” Carter told her, wincing ever so slightly as his arm popped back into where it was meant to be. He jumped out from his bed, pulling out his gaia memory and striking the activation button.

“RYU-O!” Cried the memory as his driver formed around his waist.

“Wait! You're hand is still broken!” Pepper told him.

“A weakness I'll just have to protect,” Carter told her before eyeing Sampson, “right?”

“If you're going, then go,” Sampson told him with a stern look, “Just don't do anything you'll regret.”

“I won't,” Carter told him, opening a window and climbing out of it.

He slammed his memory into his driver and gave it a quick spin, “RYU-O!” roared his driver, the young man kicking off the outside of the hospital as his armor formed around him. Within seconds, he was airborne and heading downtown.

Pepper huffed, glaring at Sampson, “Why let him go?! He's just gonna end up back here in worse shape.”

“No he won't,” Sampson laughed, “I know that much for sure.”

Pepper raised a brow at him, “and what makes you so sure?”

“Cause that boy's like a phoenix,” Sampson told her, “He might get burnt to a crisp now and again, but he'll keep rising from the ashes stronger and wiser than before. That's just the kinda guy he is”

---
Back in the center of the fork in the road, Bloodfist with the face of Fury grabbed the winded Alex by his waist and hurled him at a concrete wall. Alex however was quick on his feet, and pulled the Blade memory from his belt and replaced it with Blast.

“BLAST! KICKER!’ Cried the driver as Alex reset it, the top half of his armor turning blue and his Bla-jalibur shifting into the form of his blue pistol the Corona Blaster.

Aiming it at a lamp post, Alex fired off a grappling hook at it and pulled himself towards it, landing safely on the ground before staring down Bloodfist once again.

“Lovely trick,” Bloodfist laughed in Fury's voice, his fists beginning to glow bright red like the inside of an active forge, “shame I'll be dropping the curtains on you.”

Bloodfist slashed its claws at Alex, hurling a barrage of red hot energy blades at the boy. The rider didn't budge however, his gaze simply narrowing at the blades as he pulled his Kicker Memory from his driver and replaced it with Diver.

“BLAST! DIVER!” his belt cried out as the bottom half of his suit turned deep teal with fins on the sids of his boots.

Flipping his gun around, Alex fired off a clip of water blasts at Bloodfist, dissolving the hot blades they struck while on course to their target. Bloodfist, while gritting its teeth, jumped out of the way and landed along feet away from Alex.

“YOU MISSED YOU FOOLISH BOY!” it barked, again in Fury's voice.

“So you think,” Alex said with an unflinching glare.

Bloodfist looked back over its shoulder to where he was before, a torrent of water rushing towards it and ensnaring him within it all while under Ashley's control. Guiding Bloodfist to the ground, she bound him with the water and formed it into chains that allowed Bloodfist to have only its head free.

“So, Fury was it?” Ashley asked, violently grabbing Bloodfist by the face and forcing it to look her in the eye. “Just how much of you is there?”

“I am in control of this fiend, but the fiend is not me. Whatever you do, I will not feel a thing.” Fury laughed right in Ashley's face, “You fools better face facts. You're all powerless against all of me.”

“Oh yeah? Then lets run those numbers..” Ashley pointed to Alex, “but then there's him, mr power house himself. Ryu-O, who last I recall hacked off your arm and set you a blaze last time you met, there's also the ice queen who I'm not even gonna begin to get into her issues and the walking weapons depo moe valkyrie power couple.” The water coiled tighter around Bloodfist, slamming its face into the dirt, “and then Fury, there's you who has managed to piss off every last one of them.”

Fury gritted Bloodfist's teeth, glaring through his fiend's eyes. “You mock me! I will destroy you! Then I shall become a god!”

“Or you could face facts Fury,” Alex glared at the fiend on the ground. “There isn't anything special about you. You're just another asshole, and you'll be taken down just like the rest of them.”

Fury made Bloodfist laughed, “I'd love to see you try.”

With a snap of Fury's finger, the aura from Bloodfist rose out from him leaving nothing but a young boy withered and lifeless in the rubble. The aura itself shot down the road.

Alex kept his gaze fixed on the aura, tightening his fist, “So… that's where Fury is hiding.”

Ashley meanwhile, couldn't help but have her heart swell, “So young…” her eyes looked to Alex, “What… what do you plan do, after we finish off Fury?”

“Once we're done with Fury, I'll be going after Vainglory…. My father,” He turned back to look Ashley in the eye. “I'm not going to force you into it, but it will mean the world to have you by my side.”

Ashley stepped forward, placing her hand on his shoulder and looking him in the eye, “Don't worry, I will be.”

---
Outside the police blockade, Madison darted down the street at an unsteady pace, breathing heavier and heavier the longer she kept running. Her test of endurance was about to end however, as she soon neared the blockade where Marcoh was still standing with his eyes fixed on a GMR scanner. The scanner showed roughly the positions of Fury, his fiendish soldiers, and each of the riders in relation to Fury himself.

“They're splitting up? What the hell are they doing in there,” Marcoh gritted his teeth while pulling out a pack of cigarettes. He gasped, jumping a bit when he saw Madison. “Ms Tyler? What are you doing here?”

“Something stupid by the looks of things,” Madison told him firmly, walking up to him and looking in the eye. “I… I need you to let me through.”

“Absolutely not,” Marcoh told her, offering her a smoke after he had pulled one out for himself. “If I were to let you in there, what do you think Darwin, Haze or anyone else would say?”

“Nothing good?” Madison gulped, holding her open hand up and shaking her head in decline of Marcoh's offer. She refocused her gaze on the clouds of black smoke in the distance. “They're in there… aren't they? Who are they up against this time?”

Marcoh stared at Madison for a good long while. Only after lighting it and taking a big hit from it, did the officer finally come out with it. “Fury.”

Madison's heartbeat grinded to a halt, the memory of Reptilian’s tail plunging through her gut causing her body to tremble. “He… he's still alive? Why?”

Marcoh fell silent, eyeing the girl as he struggled to find the right answer. He stood there, placing his hand on her shoulder for a good long while before finally opening his mouth to speak. He didn't get to a single word however as, with a loud screeching wale of an alarm, his GMR scanner went off in his hand.

“What the hell?” He gasped, looking to the screen to see an unidentified dot rushing towards their position from behind.

The officers and Madison quickly turned to catch Ryu-O in mid flight roar past them.
An earth shattering rush of wind followed close behind Ryu-O which shattered every window on every police car, setting off all their alarms as the red rider broke through the sound barrier.

“Who the hell was that psycho?!” Coughed an officer as he picked himself off the ground, “Is freaking Ironman in on this now?!”

“Relax, that isn't any comic book hero,” Marcoh told the officer, grabbing his radio, “it's another one of ours. Codename, Ryu-O.”

“Ryu-O…” Madison muttered in awe, “so cool…”

In mid flight, Carter switched on the thermal scanners of his mask to see various heat scanners. Two clusters of three where what he saw instantly, his mask quickly picking up another pair of signatures before finally locking on to one off on its own.

“You're certainly showing up late,” Marcoh's voice came in through the com-link in Carter's helmet.

“Give me all you have Maroch,” Carter ordered, “I need to get to Thea, so where is she?”

“Knowing her, she'd be with Desmond,” Marcoh informed him, “but we have one rider off on their own. We should focus on backing them up.”

“I will, but only after I make sure Thea is safe,” Carter informed the officer.

“TARA can handle herself if she has Desmond backing her,” Marcoh quickly returned, “we need to focus on leveling the-”

Marcoh was cut off by Carter switching off his comlink. “Sorry Marcoh, Thea comes first.” He said before boosting up the power of his thrusters, speeding faster towards the cluster of three heat signatures he saw via his HUD.

On the ground with Hailfire, Tara and Cole evaded his shots one after the other. With a leap and a flip, Tara fired off a pair of arrows of light only for them to be shot from the sky by Hailfire's rounds. Cole attempted the same with the gatling gun on his arm and shoulder mounted missile pods, but garnered the same result.

Gritting his teeth, Cole darted for cover behind a flipped over car where Tara quickly joined him.

“Damn, that thing just shoots down whatever we throw at him,” Cole panted, giving his guns a chance to cool down.

“It's those damn guns, they're like a shield they way its using them!” Tara barked, her and Cole quickly jumping out of the way as the car they were using for cover was blown to bits.

Tara snarled as her gaze returned to Hailfire, her wings keeping her airborne while Cole was locked to the ground due to his heavy armor and weapons.

“The two of you may as well accept it,” Hailfire cackled in Fury's voice, aiming its guns at the both of them. “You are as useful to me as you are in every other instance. All you ever do is just stand there! While you're friends do most of th-”

Hailfire's rant was cut off by the growing roar of what sounded like a jet engine. The fiend turned his head, gasping once it saw Ryu-O gunning towards him like a bullet through the air. With a snap of his finger and burst of fire, Carter conjured his buster sword and drove it through both of Hailfire's hand mounted guns, slicing off every barrel except one on each faster than the eye could see.

Hailfire trembled as Ryu-O landed on the other side of him. Fury moved Hailfire and laughed, “Well well, look who is here to prove me right!”

“I'm only here to level the playing field,” Carter spoke, eyeing Cole and his sister, “Cole! Tara! He's all yours!”

With that, Carter kicked off the ground and took to the air once again. Tara meanwhile was frozen for a moment as a result of hearing her brothers word. She smirk appearing under her mask after her slight pause, pulling back on her bow once again to form yet another arrow.

“Rocky!” She called down to Cole, “Kill him dead!”

Cole smirked alongside, priming his guns as he aimed them at Hailfire. The fiend in Fury's voice snarled.

“What is wrong with the two of you! You have no flaws at all!” Hailfire barked at them, “You can't even be considered remotely human!”

“Hey dipstick, of course we have flaws,” Cole told him, rushing towards him on his trail biters, “that's just the cost of being alive.”

“The dif with us is simple,” Tara stared the fiend down, “we don't beat ourselves over our faults, and we don't use the ones we find in others to rip them apart either.”

Hailfire snarled, then laughed, “You expect me to buy that load of bull?”

“We don't need you to,” Cole said. He and Tara opened fire upon the fiend, the fiend exploding into a large burst of smoke and fire.

As the debris cleared, a withered woman laid on the were Hailfire once was. Tara's heart sank, kneeling down to close the woman's tormented eyes.

“Be at peace… you poor soul…” she muttered softly.

As she let out a deep breath, an orb of Fury's aura rose out from her and rushed past them. It darted down the road, rushing past Cole who followed it with his eyes. Cole jumped from the aura's sudden movement but turned himself back to Tara.

“Tara?!” He barked, panting heavily.

Tara looked him in the eyes, he gaze as sharp as an eagle swiping a fish from the maw of a shark. “Follow it.”

---
Swords clashed in the fallen corridors of one of the ruined buildings, an image of Kamen Rider Yuki darting at Darksaber only for the fiend to slice it clean in half. The fiend snarled, looking from side to side as it sniffed the air. From the exposed rafters, Shiore stared down at the fiend in her base rider form. She gripped the Shira memory, her right arm continuing to pulse violently at the thought of using.

“You cannot hide yourself forever snow girl!” Darksaber barked in Fury's voice, “This would be over sooner if you just fight you know! I promise to make it painless!”

Shiore focused her gaze at Darksaber, gripping her sword while slipping the Shira memory back onto her belt. She moved her feet to stand, only to instead shift a stray piece of rubble causing it to fall to the floor before. Shiore gasped, gritting her teeth as Darksaber turned on his heel and lept towards her.

Shiore jumped back, the two meeting in a clash with Darksaber staring into her soul. “I was wondering when I would find the real you.” It laughed, eyeing the far more powerful memory on the girl's belt, “Though now one question remains… why not face me with that sword?”

Shiore snarled, breaking the clash with a strong swing of her blade to knock Darksaber away. “I don't need it to defeat you, that's just fact.” She panted heavier and heavier as the battle continued.

“Oh, now I see…” Darksaber laughed, “you're scared of it, aren't you? Scared it will reject you, just like the others. Those kids you call your friends-”

Darksaber was cut off by a kunai that whipped past its cheek, exploding the moment it hit the wall. Darksaber danced around the explosion, laughing when he landed on the other side of Shiore.

“Touchie…” Darksaber cooed, “but with a reaction like that, it only proves that I'm right.”

Shiore gripped her sword tighter. “Leave me-” she growled, turning to Darksaber with a heavy swing to its throat, “ALONE!”

“But you are alone,” Darksaber smirked, evaporating into a cloud of smoke as Shiore's blade cut into him, “you always have been.” Its voice repeated, this time from within Shiore's head.

The white rider shuttered, her entire being beginning to tremble. Her eyes darted across the room, her gaze locking onto her waist with a gasp as Darksaber's shadowing claw reached from the either towards Shira Memory, pumping in a cloud of its dark aura into it. Shiore jumped back, gripping the Shira memory tight before pulling it from her belt.

“If you want this so badly,” Shiore glared at the fiend, returning to her feet as she aimed her blade at it, “come and claim it!”

“Silly girl, the memory means little to me,” Darksaber told her, its face shifting to that of Fury's as he stood before a still stable door. “My former master has had her eye on you for some time now. Its you I plan to claim. First as a pawn, then if you survive, I will make you my bride.”

Shiore narrowed her gaze at Darksaber, “Not even in hell!”

Fury shook Darksaber's head, “So unwise…” he raised Darksaber's sword, “no matter-”

Before Fury puppeting Darksaber could so much as move, the door behind it blew itself open in a sudden burst of fire. The Ryu-O Buster sliced its way through the fire and the flames, cutting down Darksaber as carter himself emerged from the chaos.

Shiore's eyes shoot open, the setting changing in her mind to Ryu-O standing in an traditional japanese house and an elder male with Shiore's hair and eye color at Ryu-O's feet.

“Shiore… Run….” The man's words echoed in mind.

“Yuki!” Carter barked at her, snapping the girl back to reality as he grabbed Darksaber by its throat and pinned him to the wall. “We're ending this, now.” He said firmly before pulling out his Phoenix memory.

“Phoenix!” Roared the memory as Carter struck the activation button and slammed it into his driver. “Phoenix!” The memory roared once again, his regal emperor style armor appearing in a burst of flame with his buster sword becoming a claymore with red wings on the guard.

As the fight between Carter and Darksaber raged on, Shiore stared at the Shira Memory in her hand. With a tightening of her grip on the memory, she removed her Yuki memory from her driver and replaced it with Shira, slamming it into the active position with a quick motion of her hand.

“SHIRA! SHIRA!” Cried the memory, a blizzard roaring over Shiore to switch her into her stronger form, her twin chain linked swords forming in her hands. “SHIIIRA!!!”

As the blizzard dispersed, the eye of Shiore's wolf head shaped driver flickered a deep purple. The eyes of her mask flickered the same color as Shiore glanced down at the moon encased in a triforce seal on her chest, breathing heavily as she noted that the moon was almost full. Gritting her teeth, she re-focused her gaze upon the wall opposite her to see Ryu-O pinned the to it by Darksaber.

Ryu-O gasped for air, reaching a hand out to the other rider, “Shiore! Help me!” He pleaded weakly.

Darksaber gripped Ryu-O's throat, “Why would she ever help you? Especially after what you've done.” The fiend snarled as throwing the rider to the ground, turning its gaze to Shiore, “Yuki! Get over here already!”

Shiore sucked her teeth, “So that's your play? Is it?”" She muttered to herself.

She slipped her swords into one hand and pulled out a pair of kunai with the other, all while she made her way over to the conflicting pair. Placing her feet down firmly on the ground, she tossed the kunai at Ryu-O pinning him to the ground.

“Shiore! What are you doing!” Ryu-O barked on the ground, “Fury, he turned you against me! Didn't he-”

“Shut your mouth,” Shiore glared at the rider on the floor, aiming her sword at him, “Fury.”

Ryu-O stared at Shiore, snapping his fingers to remove the aura around Shiore's eyes. With that, he revealed itself to be Darksaber while the true Ryu-O stood beside Shiore.

“So, what gave it away?” Darksaber asked in Fury's voice.

“My name firstly, Ryu-O has never used it,” Shiore told him in a cold tone. “second… the way you begged. It's hardly his manor while fighting.”

Fury made Darksaber laugh, its body beginning to fade. “Well then, show me how the two of you fight for real then. I'll be waiting.”

A black aura shot out from Darksaber, leaving nothing but a shriveled man in a suit behind as it shot out from the building. Carter knelt down and looked for a pulse.

“He's… he's dead…” Carter spoke as his heart sank.

“And more will be, if we do not stop Fury,” Shiore told him as she went to the door, stopping only to take a look back to the other rider, “coming?”

Carter nodded, placing a tracker on the dead man so someone could find his body before following after Shiore.

“This is Carter, calling all riders,” Carter spoke into his communicator on the way out, “Everybody still alive out there?”

“Whoa! Hi!” Ashley spoke suddenly, “Would've been nice to know my suit had this hours ago!”

“Yeah, it's kind of an undocumented feature,” Tara chimed in, “Totally not at all like they just suddenly appeared out of convenience or anything!”

“Cole here,” the rock rider spoke, “thanks for the assist back there Carter. We owe you.”

“Carter?” Alex questioned, “aren't you supposed to be in the hospital?”

“I checked out early,” Carter told him, “while I have you all, how do we plan to get rid of Fury? He'll be expecting a brute force attack.”

“I have an idea… but it's kinda risky,” Alex said, “and I'm gonna need everyone.”

Carter took note of this, his gaze narrowing upon the speaker of his comlink, “I'm listening.”

---
Fury stood in the rumble of the building he had destroyed, the three orbs of his aura circling around him as he stared with a smirk down the road where he predicted the riders would come down.

“The bait is set, now we await the fish,” Fury sneered. The bitter patter of footsteps caught his ear, but not from in front of him. He cocked a brow, looking to the left of him as a Shira form Kamen Rider Yuki darted up towards him with her swords drawn. As Shira-Yuki swung her swords, Fury took one step back and caught them both with his claw.

“You rush in alone?” Fury scoffed, crushing Shira-Yuki's blades in his grip, “that is possibly the worst move you could have chosen.”

“Correction Fury,” Shiore's voice echoed from the rider that stood before Fury, a glimmer flickering from above Shira-Yuki's shoulder, “it is you who is alone.”

From that glimmer came a blinding armor of light that struck Shira-Yuki and shattered her into ice.

“A clone?!” Fury snarled as the ice shards swirled around his claws, his eyes darting from side to side, “Come on out my little snow bunny! I'm looking to play with you some more!”

The ice shards turned to water, the water shifting into chains that constricted around Fury's arms and pulled him to the ground. Fury gritted his teeth while he pulled his arm against the pull of the chains, laughing like a mad man as his eyes frantically shifted around various spots of his self made arena.

“YOU'RE FOOLS IF YOU THINK KEEPING YOUR DISTANCE WILL SAVE YOU!” He roared, “EVEN MORE SO IF YOU EXPECT A BIT OF WATER TO HOLD ME!!”

The ever confident Fury was beginning to tremble, this was not how he expected things to play out. Four fire hydrants broke open, Fury jumping back while beginning to sweat as four rushing geysers rose up from the hydrants along with the bursting of a sewer grate.

“A little water won't hold you?” Shift's voice echoed from the depths below, rising from the grate in a pillar of rushing water. She glared at Fury, the eyes of her mask illuminating as she aimed her warglaives at him. “Then how about I give you a lot of it?”

With a flick of her wrist, Ashley sent all the water she had collected hurling at Fury. Landing on the ground once Fury had been crushed beneath it, she looking over her shoulder while keeping her hands fixed on the water.

“BOYS! YOU'RE UP!” She barked, Cole rushing by her on his Trail Biters and wrist mounted laser swords extended.

Slashing apart a pair of street signs, Cole bent the steel poles in his hands while rushing over to Fury. Ashley parted the water long enough for Cole to drive the bent poles over Fury and into the ground to further bind him, Carter flying above and welding the poles to the ground with a series of concentrated blasts from his hands. Once Fury was secured, Cole rushed back to Ashley as she re-submerged Fury.

“How much time do you think that's bought us?” Cole panted heavily, Carter flying down on the other side of Ashley.

“Probably-” Ashley grunted from the strain of holding Fury, “five seconds?”

“Then we need to move fast,” Shiore declared, moving so fast that it was as if she just appeared beside Cole. Tara meanwhile dove down to land beside Carter.

“Then we better move faster than that,” Tara declared, calling out behind her. “SUPERSTAR! I'D RUN FOR HOME IF I WERE YOU!”

“STAR! RUNNER!” Roared Alex's driver as he rushed past the other riders in a blur towards Fury, the Xtreme Memory coming down from above and connecting to his driver in the process. “XTREEEEME!” Cried the memory as Alex ascended into his Ultimate form.

“Now Fury!” He closed the Xtreme memory on his belt, preparing to re-open it for his Maximum Drive, “Your rampage-”

Before Alex could make his mark however, all three of Fury's orbs rushes into his body beneath the water. The water turned black, deep violet energy boiling to the surface which sent the black sludge hurling towards all the riders and knocking them all to ground, breaking their formation and Alex's attack.

“Clevver trick,” Fury laughed as he emerged from the black ooze, more demonic than before with the wings and tail of a dragon protruding from his body, “but your magic of friendship, heart of the cards act?” He sneered at Alex, kicking him in the gut, “Face facts, you think I'm not special? Well you aren't either, you're just another pebble beneath my foot.”

Fury went to pull his foot back but found that he couldn't as Alex was now holding on to it and staring Fury dead in the eye.

“You're right… I'm not…” he grunted as he rose to his feet, delivering a hard uppercut to Fury's jaw, “I'm just the pebble… that broke your giant foot…” He declared, pulling X-Calibur from his chest as his body began to glow in a white aura.

Fury's entire being began to tremble.”W-What the hell is going on?! What the hell are you?!”

“HE'S SUPERSTAR! ASSHOLE!” Tara barked at him, gritting her teeth as she forced herself to stand up, “AND HE IS SUPER PISSED AT YOU!” As she stood, a bright yellow aura began to erupt from her in the same rhythm as the one that surrounded Alex.

“Him?... Pissed at me?” Fury’s lip twitched into a smirk, regaining a sliver of his charisma. “Perfect, let the master of wrath feel yours boy!”

“Master of wrath?” Shiore scoffed, glaring at Fury a she rose to her own feet as a pale blue aura surrounded her. “I’d say it's high time you felt the wrath of someone other than yourself.”

Ashley felt an air dread wash over her, taking a step forward only for Carter to step forward and put his arm in front of her. A bright red aura surrounded him already.

“This is Alex's fight,” Carter told her, “unless it takes a turn for the worse, we shouldn't interfere.”

Ashley glaring at Carter, her heartbeat racing as she gripped her warglaives, “Are you nuts? He's going to kill him!”

“Have faith,” Cole told her, a green aura erupting from him. He patted Ashley on the shoulder as he looked to Alex staring down Fury. “You did so before, didn't you?

Ashley took in a deep breath, then called out, “ALEX! KICK HIS ASS!”

Alex narrowed his gaze upon Fury, raising his sword high. The moment his arm was fully extended, his aura shot out from the hilt of his blade and grabbed the Gale, Rock, Yuki and Ryu-O from their respective riders. Upon his aura retracting, each memory was placed into a slot on the hilt, Alex's own Star Memory being placed at the top of the handle.

“GALE! MEMORY CHARGE! ROCK! MEMORY CHARGE! YUKI! MEMORY CHARGE! RYU-O! MEMORY CHARGE!” Screamed X-Calibur, the blade phasing back into Alex's body as Gale's wing extended from his shoulders, Rock's armor formed onto his shins, Yuki's claws extended from his wrists and Ryu-O's fire blasters activated in the palms of his hands.

Fury snarled, baring his claws at the new Xtreme that stood before him, “Now what in sweet hell are you?!”

“We are Xtreme-” Alex spoke, the voices of the other riders echoing out along with his, “United.”

Flaring out his hand at Fury, Xtreme blasted Fury back with a powerful fire blast before darting up to him using his wings. Fury couldn't so much as react as Xtreme grabbed him with his claws and took him high into the air, releasing him mid flight before kicking him right into the top floor of a building.

Tara who still stood on the ground with the other riders, let out a whistle and patted Ashley on the back, “I…. I see why you needed to jump on that.”

Ashley's eyes shot open, jabbing Cole in the side, “Alex told you?! And you told Tara?!”

Cole winced slightly, holding his chest, “Yeah, sorry about that.”

Ashley glared at him, “Does Madison know?”

Cole shook his head, “Not unless Alex told her.”

Ashley let out a sigh, her heart sinking as she looked back up to Xtreme in the sky above. “Then there's one less thing I need to worry about…” she muttered to herself as she watched Xtreme dive into the building after Fury.

Pulling him out from the rubble and clutter of the destroyed office he was just thrown into, Fury winced and groaned. His smirk and chuckle returned only when Xtreme came down and began to approach him.

“So, you defeat me and then what?” Fury readied his claws at him, “There will always be someone else out to kill you. If not me, Vainglory, or that witch Desire, then it will be someone else. What will you and your band of goodie goods do then?”

“That is for us to decide,” Xtreme told him, drawing X-Calibur from their chest. “Now Fury, your rampage, ends here!”

Xtreme raised X-Calibur then pulled back on the trigger, “STAR! GALE! ROCK! YUKI! RYU-O! MAXIMUM DRIVE!!!” roared all the gaia memories on their sword, unleashing a super charged slash upon Fury.

Fury felt time slow around him, one final smirk coming to his face as he watched the multicolored slash of energy hurl towards him.

“Forgive me…. Mother…” he muttered to himself, the image of Desire coming to his mind as he felt the slash cut through him, “it seems as though… I have failed you…” he closed his eyes, a single tear running down his cheek, “Forgive me.”

Ms Seraphina watched this defeat from an orb in her hand, scrolling through it before locking onto Shiore on the ground. “Quite the opposite, my child. You have given me exactly what I nerd.” She smirked, turning her gaze towards the hospital she stood in front of, “Now, it's time I play my part.”

Back at the police blockade, Derek Maverick was being loaded into the back of one car after the riders had all powered down. Shiore stared at her reflection in the mirror of one car as a swirl of purple aura flickered in her eye.

She winced as a result, holding her eye closed to bare through the slight bit of pain it caused.

“Yuki,” Carter spoke as he came up to her, Shiore turning to face him, “you alright?”

She removed her hand from her eye, looking back into the mirror as she watched the aura fade into her eye. She closed both her eyes and nodded, “I'm fine,” she huffed.

Meanwhile, Alex stood by the car that Derek was in the back of looking him in the eye with an ice cold glare.

“You’re going away for a very long time, Derek,” Alex told him, gripping the edge of the door where the window came out from, “any final words before you leave my sight forever?”

“Just… one…” Derek managed a smirk, glancing over to meet Alex’s gaze, “when Shredder and I killed your mother… I regret not being able to end the life of that officer… the one that lead to your miserable existence. Sampson, I think his name was.”

Alex’s eyes shot open, the boy letting out a small gasp, “W-What did you just say?” he muttered as he began to shake.

Suddenly, Derek whacked his head hard against the cage that divided the front and back of the police car, a fit of laughter escaping his lips, “Know this Alex Darwin, it was Vainglory who ordered her death,” he told him, blood dripping down his face as he went to whack his head off the cage again.

“HEY! STOP THAT!” An officer barked, trying to get the door unlocked.

“See you in hell,” Derek said once more before delivering the blow to his head that left him limp and motionless.

Alex stood there, frozen by what he just heard and saw. Even Marcoh trembled, regaining his composure after a moment and looking the other officer in the eye, “Is he… dead?” Marcoh asked with a tremor to his voice.

The other officer got the door open and checked Derek for a pulse, “Still alive,” he breathed with relief, “the bastard just knocked himself out cold.”

Marcoh, with a snarl, balled his hand into a fist, “Dammit. Right when he was actually telling us something to. I doubt that will happen again.”

“M-Marcoh…” Alex spoke quietly, catching Marcoh’s attention, “What he just said.. About my mother… and Sampson… is it true?”

Marcoh took a deep gulp, not sure what to say. Fortunately for him, he didn’t have to.

“It is,” Carter spoke, coming up from behind Alex, “Gordon told himself… about being your father anyway.” Alex sharply swallowed, unable to say a word. Carter, after a moment, placed his hand on Alex’s shoulder, “I know it’s rough… especially after today. But for now, just be glad that you have a father that cares about you. Alright?”

After a moment, Alex nodded, “I… I will.”

Silence filled the air, only to be broken by a voice filling the air.

“ALEX?!” Madison cried as she came up to the boys, letting out a breath of relief once she got a good look at the boy she was running towards, “Thank goodness, I was worried.”

Alex looked to her, raising a brow, “Madison?... What are you doing here?”

“I came to make sure you were okay,” Madison told him, a sad look coming to her face. Cole, Tara, Shiore and Ashley were now gather around them.

“You came all this way… for that?” he asked with a bit of a wince, turning his gaze away from her, “I thought you were done with me.”

“I know I said that, but I was wrong,” Madison told him, grabbing his face with both her hands and forcing him to look back at her, “I care about you…” She gulped, feeling her heart begin to ache. In the spur of the moment, she pressed her lips against his to the surprise of everyone including herself. Madison’s eyes were closed, however Alex and Ashley’s eyes were wide open. Madison pulled away after holding the kiss for a moment, opening her eyes back up as she pulled away, “I love you.”

Alex stared into her eyes, more confused in that moment than ever before, “Madison I…” he placed his hands on her shoulder, swallowing his complicated feelings on the matter, “I’m sorry.”

Without a second word, he took from the scene and headed off down the road leaving both Madison and Ashley standing there with their hearts in their stomachs. Madison’s lower lip trembled, balling her hand into a fist as Ashley came up and placed her arm over Madison’s shoulder.

“Ash… I’m a bitch…” she muttered, looking her friend in the eye, “aren’t I?”

Ashley let out a heavy sigh, “Of course you aren’t,” she muttered as she watched as Alex disappeared over the horizon. “No one’s perfect, Maddy.”


---
Back at the Hospital, Sampson lay asleep in his bed only to be woken by a gentle hand taking hold of his own. Slowly but surely, his eyes opened to see a woman with short chestnut hair standing above him with emerald green eyes.

“Alice…?” he muttered, tears coming to his eyes.

The woman smiled and nodded, “It’s time Gordon,” she told him in a voice softer than silk, “it’s Alex time now, to pick up where we left off.” She extended a hand to him, “He can handle the rest on his own.”

Sampson reached his hand out to take Alice, only to hold it in the air and coil it back after a moment. He stared at the woman before him, his breathing getting heavier and heavier.

Alice looked at him with a raised brow, “What’s wrong?”

Sampson shook his head, “I can’t go yet Alice… not like this.” He leaned himself back, staring at the now fogged over window, “there are things I still need to do.

Alice managed a small laugh, “Stubborn as always I see…” she stepped away from him, the pitter patter of footsteps beginning to echo in the distance. “Well, know this,” Alice looked him in the eye, her own becoming bright yellow, “when the day comes when you do decide to see me again, I’ll be waiting.”

Sampson smirked at her, “and I’ll be ready then.”

Alex darted down the hall, throwing the door to Sampson’s room right open as he came in looking as if he had just run a marathon. The room was empty, save for Sampson who was still on his bed.

“Hey there…” Alex said between breathes, “dad…”

Sampson’s grin faded, “So.. Carter told you?”

Alex sharply swallowed, then nodded as he stumbled into the room and pulled up a chair, “Why didn’t you?” he asked as he sat down.

“I was, too ashamed to…” Sampson admitted, hanging his head a bit, “but now, so much time as been wasted between you and I.”

Alex reached out, taking hold of his father’s hand, “Well… no time like the present, right?”

---
Later that same night, Marcoh was driving down a busy city street as rain poured down from above. His eyes moved to the re-view mirror, glaring at Derek who was still knocked out in the back seat. Glancing back, a dark figure walked in front of his car.

“Oh shit!” he shouted, slamming on the breaks as the figure fell in front of his car and Derek smacked his head on the cage again. “What the hell?!”

He got out from his car, horns blaring from behind him. Marcoh flipped off the drivers behind him as he moved to the front of his car, gasping when he found an injured Rylee clawing at the ground with the Spite memory clenched tightly in her hand.

“Damn you to hell…” Rylee muttered weakly, clutching her bleeding side, “Fury…”

{Insert Ending Theme: “One” by Altima}

Next time on Kamen Rider Ultimate Xtreme

With Fury defeated, the conflict between META and the riders moves into its final phase. Amidst the chaos brought on by Fury’s actions, Inertia finally plays his hand.

What are the intentions of the elouf commander of META?

All will be decided when Kamen Rider Ultimate Xtreme continues in
Episode 40: Inertia’s Final Gambit
Show us your True self, Inertia.