388Disclaimer: I don't own anything that doesn't belong to me.
…
"That," Emu Houjo said wearily as he slumped onto the couch. "Had to be one of the toughest battles we've ever faced."
His Bugster partner, Parad, nodded tiredly as he slumped next to him. "I don't think even Cronus was that tough. Still, I think we did pretty well out there. Taiga, I don't think you missed a single shot. And Hiiro, that swordplay was… Well, simply amazing. Graphite would've been impressed."
"I always complete my mission," Taiga Hanaya groaned as he leaned back in his seat, eyes closed, and feeling like his entire body was one big bruise.
"There is nothing I cannot cut," Hiiro Kagami boasted proudly as he sliced, with his usual flawless precision, his standard post-battle pastry.
The last member of the team, Kiriya Kujo, shook his head in disbelief. "Still, who would've thought Burgermon of all Bugsters could be that dangerous?!"
"I warned him to stay away from that Gamedeus sample," Parad said in exasperation.
"If I never see another hamburger again, it'll be too soon," Taiga groaned, face in his hands. "Hiiro, I don't see how you can still have any appetite after all that. There were burgers everywhere."
"There is nothing I cannot cut," Hiiro boasted proudly.
"… That… Doesn't really answer anything," said the confused Taiga.
The arcade cabinet in the corner of the Cyber Rescue lounge turned itself on, and in a flurry of pixels their other Bugster ally, Poppy Pipopapo, materialized, a concerned look on her face. "Are you all right?" She asked, rushing over to check each of their wounds. "That fight looked really bad! I would've joined in, but I'm allergic to the meat they use in hamburgers."
"… There's meat in those things?" Asked a confused Parad.
"Trust me when I say it's best not to know what it's really made of," Kiriya said sagely, a haunted look in his eyes.
"Wait, how can a living computer virus be allergic to anything-" Taiga began.
"We're all fine, Poppy," Emu said, giving the Bugster a warm but tired smile. "It's just a hazard of the job. We saved the patient in the end, and that's all that matters."
"Even still, you all need to take better care of yourselves!" Poppy chided. "After all, you're the doctors! If something were to happen to you, who would take care of you all?!"
"Why you, of course, Poppy," Kiriya said with a grin. "When we are in the thick of it, the thought of your warm smile is enough to give all of us a reason to come home." Everyone looked at him. "… Okay, guess I was laying it on a little thick there," he confessed.
Parad nodded. "Yeah, we all know the only smile Taiga wants to see is Nico's. Too bad she's in America."
"I'm too tired to even tell you how wrong you are," Taiga groaned.
"Parad's wrong?" Kiriya joked. Taiga groaned even louder.
Hiiro continue to eat his pastry delicately, ignoring everyone.
Parad nudged Emu. The doctor/gamer blinked and gave him a startled look. The Bugster raised his eyebrows and nodded at Poppy. Emu swallowed, took a deep breath, and said, "Poppy, now that we have a moment to recuperate, there was something I want to ask you. Genm Corp. is having a big game Expo soon, and I was wondering if you might want to attend?"
Poppy gasped, eyes wide with delight. "An Expo?! That sounds wonderful! There'll be so many new games to play! We should all go, we'll have a great time-"
"Actually, Poppy," Emu interrupted. "I was kind of hoping that just the two of us would go."
There was a pause. Poppy blinked at him a few times. "Just… The two of us?"
Emu swallowed. "Yes."
"Together?"
"Yes."
"Alone?"
"… Yeah."
"Like… On a date?!"
"… If… That's okay?" Emu asked hesitantly.
Poppy squealed so loudly that patients on the top floor of the hospital could hear her. "EMU! I'D LOVE TO! I THOUGHT YOU'D NEVER ASK!" She shrieked, hugging him and smothering his face with kisses, much to his bewilderment and delight.
"About time," Parad said with a pleased smile.
"Pay up," Kiriya said, extending his hand toTaiga. The other doctor, face still in his hands, tossed some yen at him without even looking. Hiiro continued eating his pastry, ignoring everyone.
"UNACCEPTABLE!"
Without warning, someone grabbed Poppy and ripped her off of the startled Emu. And that someone was… "KUROTO DAN!?" Everyone cried incredulously.
"No! I will no longer go by that name!" Kuroto Dan, their frequent enemy, occasional ally, and recurring pain in the ass said dramatically, throwing back his head and stretching out his arms. "From this day forth, you shall address me as… Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD!"
There was a long pause. "I'm not calling him that," Hiiro said without looking up from his pastry.
"Kuroto-" Poppy began.
"Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD," Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD corrected her.
"-What are you doing here?! We thought you were dead! Again!" Poppy continued.
"Yeah, I distinctly remember killing you. Then dying. Although I got better," Kiriya recalled. "And I thought I saw you when I came to pay my respects, but that might've been a hallucination. It was kind of unclear."
"Should we really be surprised?" Taiga groaned. "Repeatedly coming back from the dead is kind of Kuroto's-"
"Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD," Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD corrected him.
"-Whole thing," Taiga continued, head starting to throb.
"How did you come back this time?" Emu demanded.
Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD cackled. "Not even death can stop my godly talents! You see, all I had to do was-"
"I don't actually care," Taiga moaned. "I have a headache, and every word out of his mouth is only making it worse. Somebody kill him again, please."
"Okay," Parad said, standing up.
"Wait!" Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD shouted. "I've not come here to fight this day, but to prevent a terrible blasphemy from taking place! Emu Houjo, I forbid you from dating Poppy!"
"I don't think you actually have a choice in the matter, Kuroto-" Emu growled.
"Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD," Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD corrected him.
"Yes, I'm a modern Bugster! I can date whomever I please!" Poppy agreed, wrapping her arm around Emu's.
"Preposterous! As Poppy's creator, I have the final say in all things regarding her!" Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD declared. "And so I say that Emu Houjou is unworthy of being her paramour!" He raised an index finger. "However, I am a merciful God-"
"Since when?" Taiga muttered.
"And so I shall give you a chance to prove yourself worthy of her hand," Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD continued. He held up a Gashat with the words 'Quiz Brain' pasted on the side above a picture of a brain in a jar wearing spectacles and a mortarboard hat, surrounded by letters and numbers. "I challenge you to beat this new game I have designed, Quiz Brain, where you must stretch your mind to the limit by answering a series of increasingly difficult multiple-choice questions to win! Clear the game, and you shall have God's blessings to date Poppy."
"And what if I refuse to play along?" Emu asked, getting irritated.
"Then… You shall NOT have God's blessings!" Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD said triumphantly.
Everyone stared at him, unimpressed. "So, can I kill him, or…?" Parad asked.
"Also, I'll unleash a new strain of the Bugster virus on the city to trigger a new pandemic," Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD added, pouting that the prospect of not receiving his blessings didn't seem to move any of them.
"Yeah, was kind of expecting that," Kiriya admitted.
"I hate him so much," Taiga groaned.
Hiiro continued to eat his pastry.
Emu sighed in resignation. "All right, Kuroto-"
"Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD," Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD corrected him.
"If it'll save lives, then I've no choice but to accept." He gave Poppy an apologetic look. "I'm sorry about this, Poppy. I never wanted to have to do something like this to win your affections, I respect you too much for that."
Poppy clasped her hands together, giving him an adoring look. "That's okay, Emu. If it'll stop Kuroto's-"
"Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD," Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD corrected her.
"Newest naughty scheme, then I understand you have no other choice." She blushed. "And besides, I'm kind of flattered, actually." Emu also blushed and looked away.
Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD smirked maliciously as he strapped on his Gamer Driver and raised the Quiz Brain Gashat into the air, Emu quickly putting on his own Driver and readying his trusty Mighty Action X Gashat. "In that case… Let the games begin!"
At the same time, they pressed the buttons on their devices, causing the Gashats to cry, "MIGHTY ACTION X/QUIZ BRAIN!" As a wave of pink and magenta light washed over the room, making everything pixelated for a few seconds as the stage for the latest round against the Doctor Riders' most persistent foe began to take form…
…
And so begins my first foray into Kamen Rider fanfiction! And is something that you, the readers, can take part in!
That's right, this is a story that allows for reader participation! Each chapter going forward will end in a question from the game master, Ultimate Final Super Great Neo-Shin Kuroto Dan GOD. I leave it up to you, the readers, to guess the correct answer and add it in your review. In the subsequent chapter, whichever answer will have the most votes will be the one Emu uses, for better or worse. In addition, I would like you to explain why you believe that your answer is the correct one.
In addition, I am open to suggestions for quiz questions. I already have a few ideas lined up, but I'm curious to see what you all can come up with. If I like your question well enough, I may use it in the story, and of course credit you for it. However, if you have a quiz question, please include the correct answer as well as an explanation for why that's the right one.
I've yet to decide how long this story shall be, so I guess we'll just play it by ear. So, put your thinking caps on, because next chapter is when the game begins for real!
