Scene #8423: KRE: Super Hero Taisen II-1

Owner	Pose
Hamada Haru	GRAND KOUGAMI HOTEL, TOKYO Sometimes, you need to onboard new people quickly because a problem you created needs to be dealt with before it becomes too big of a problem TO be dealt with. Sometimes you've already done that and expect specific flavors of trouble. And sometimes, you just want to make a ridiculous quantity of cake and need somebody to eat it all before it becomes stale and gross. Those who are present for a special conference by the Kougami Foundation are, near universally, elites in attendance to hear about one such problem. But mostly they are low-key here to be cake disposals. The ballroom that has been set up for what looks like any major event is filled with tables situated with a good view of the main stage, which has a massive screen suspended in the middle of it. It currently displays a KOUGAMI FOUNDATION logo, which spins in place like an ancient screensaver. There is a full, open bar set up to the left side of the room, and a "buffet" on the right side of the room that is entirely populated by cakes. There is no non-cake food. It's probably the best cake you've ever eaten, though, if you bother trying any. It turns out that a lunatic who makes multiple cakes every single day actually gets good at it. Arranged at the foot of the stage is a series of tables on which a spread of identical pamphlets have been placed. The face of the pamphlet displays a trio of COINS: Left in red, center in yellow, right in green. Beneath it is the Oda Clan Emblem. Shortly after the gathering has begun the screen on-stage flickers to... the interior of a kitchen? A middle-aged man in a business suit and a chef's apron is currently making more cakes in what is PROBABLY this hotel's kitchen. Possibly a dedicated kitchen for his use instead, but certainly somewhere in the building. "Welcome! As you can see, my assistant Satonaka has arranged some literature to simplify this--" President Kougami begins. It is at this exact moment that every closed door surrounding the ballroom bursts open and a group of black, bandage-wrapped humanoids with a single cycloptic black void in their face rapidly shamble in and overturn the tables full of pamphlets. Kougami glances to the side. The sound of a weapon being loaded nearby can be heard. He continues baking cakes. This whole 'shambling weirdos breaking in' thing is loud enough that he has to raise his voice to be heard even through the speakers in the ballroom, "LONG STORY SHORT, THE INCARNATE GHOST OF ODA NOBUNAGA HAS OBTAINED A ZIKU DRIVER AND IS AMASSING POWER TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD. WE NEED TO DEAL WITH THAT BEFORE IT BECOMES PERMANENT. SATONAKA, ONCE YOU'RE DONE WITH THAT, PLEASE REPLACE THE PAMPHLETS." The mildly toyetic gunfire from off-screen is probably the answer to that.
Xion	Among the bandage-wrapped Yummy who menace and gesticulate and shamble are a small group of taller and heavier forms. Instead of wrapping, these frowning-jawed humanoids resemble sharkmen in battle speedos and chest braces. Gilled and finned, the muscular aquatic humanoids evoked the same general energy as their lesser mummified forms but from beady, hungry eyes and teeth-filled frowning mouths instead of a yawning void. They are studded, like rivets had been driven into them at the thigh and shoulder and chest, and wear belts and chains and studs and braces as accessories. The group of them, led by a Shark Yummy with a metal sword themed at the base with a fishbone hooking, advances behind the Yummy stack at the table, stalking and presenting threat as a Freshly Debuted Upgraded Minion Type. The sword-bearing leader of the bondage sharks crouches to select a pamphlet off the ground, bending down a little awkwardly with its head to peer eyes down on the text. The Same-Sword Yummy does not get to read anything. Three bursts of golden-bright sparks explode from the broad chested sharkman, each heralded by a bright coin-'pting!' of ejection. The flashing gold lights can be traced back towards... cake. From the cake table, a black-haired young man in a grey shirt, black pants, and a dark green puff vest holds a bulky blaster which resembles a disc shooter, conveniently fed by a disc cartridge loaded with faintly-shining silver metals. On his left wrist is a thick watch-brace, with a Drive-style Shift Acceptor that has been modified to show time and status when not loaded with a greeble. "It looks like work starts early." Shintaro Goto announces dully, firing another quick burst from the Medal Buster to suppress the yummy crowd to buy everyone time... To strike some poses.
Timespace Riders	The ballroom is, following a rustling of grey space-bending fabric, host to the would-be Demon King and his retainer. Woz's impossible scarf swirls rapidly around the two of them, thinning out to settle upon his shoulders and return to an imitation of normalcy. His slight, catlike smile makes an appearance, as does Sougo's wide, genuine grin. While Woz wears his usual apocalytic future garb (the olive drab greatcoat with tight black pants and zip-up ankle boots), Sougo's outfit is a study in soft summer colors. The Demon King's pale blue button-up fits loosely, matched with a pair of khakis rolled at the hem, revealing a striking plaid pattern on the inside. One end of a salmon-colored web belt hangs loosely from his waist, and the outfit is topped off with a pair of distinctive brown ankle boots. (They're timbs.) Sougo bounds excitedly over to the cake with a bouncing gait, knowing full well that Kougami is a master baker when it comes to cakes. Even though Woz is more reserved in his approach, approach he does, and the two of them help themselves to a slice each. "So good!" Sougo beams between bites, ignoring or unaware of a spot of icing on the side of his mouth. "Oh! Mr. Kougami! Hi!" Sougo wheels quickly around when the screen flickers to display Mr. Kougami himself. Sougo waves excitedly with his fork, and nearly flicks Woz with flung icing and bits of cake. Woz's smile quickly disappears and shifts to a mildly concerned downtwitch at the corners of his mouth, when the doors burst open. "Yummies," he says with some distaste. "Bummer," says Sougo with a soft frown, putting his plate down as Woz does the same. "I thought it had been a while since the last time this happened." Is this a regular occurrence with him? He nods at Shintaro, strapping on his own TIMESPACE DRIVER as Woz equips his BEYONDRIVER. Each of them then procures a futuristic pocketwatch--Sougo's is slid neatly along the side of his white belt, while Woz's is loaded into a gate, split open with a lever. Amazing! Time! Future! KAMEN RIDER WOZ? WOZ?! RIDER TIME! o/` Ka-meeen Rider! o/` ZI-O. . . Pink and blue katakana (spelling 'RIDER') fly outwards from the two watch-themed riders, slamming into the Yummies with a dramatic shower of sparks! Zi-O wields a bulky, square-nosed laser pistol announcing itself simply as GUN, while Woz charges in with the touchscreen-adorned, green-tipped polearm calling itself the JIKAN DESPEAR. As Zi-O blasts and hangs back to cover Shintaro, Woz charges in to make aggressive swipes with the spear, green aftershocks of energy following in their wake to make each strike essentially cut twice.
Shotaro Hidari	Three people from the Narumi Detective Agency arrived today to take part in the situation. One was a woman, in a white shirt, blue jeans, and a red and unzipped coat seems to be the boss because she was the one telling the other two what they were here to do and how important it is to make a good impression on a CEO of a company, and if they ever want to do anything other than pet detective stuff they'd need to be on their best behavior. Never mind, she is loud enough for everyone to hear. The second of the two is a very pretty young man in a light yellow shirt, green jeans, and a blue outer shirt. He has a necklace and is always carrying a book with him. His green hair is done up in two hair clips, which are actually those paper holders you find in offices. He seems only mildly interested in the boss yelling because she's not actually yelling at him... She's yelling at the third. The third is a young man, dressed in what might be considered a fashion sense born out of a noir-esc detective novel. He's got a pink undershirt, a red tie, and a black vest. He's got black suit pants with a nice belt buckle. His shoes are similarly black and shined with a nice polish to them. He's leaning in his chair, looking at the woman with an exasperated expression, shouting back that he gets it and her yelling is making them /all/ look bad. That is until the pamphlets are all knocked over, scattering the debris all over the room and causing chaos. Thankfully, their gracious host gives them a quick rundown, while the chaos unfolds. The last man, despite his yelling at the woman, actually moves to protect her from the first onslaught. He takes a shot to the shoulder, but quickly follows up with a kick to the center of mass of the yummy and aims to send it falling over. "Alright, looks up we're up early today, partner," Shotaro, the third man speaks to Philip, the second. The lady nods, "I'll take care of Philip and help anyone caught in the crossfire," she says, to which gets a nod from Shotaro, "Just keep your head down chief," he says, despite the throbbing in his shoulder. Shotaro pulls out a black and purple-looking USB stick and pushes a button on it. This is followed by a strange device, that looks like it could accept up to two of these sticks. He places it over his waist, as a belt wraps around his waist. JOKER Philip pulls out a second stick, black and green, and presses the button on his. CYCLONE Philip presses him down into a belt that has formed over his own waist. The moment he does so, he falls over, and Akiko (the chief) moves to catch him, already starting to drag him out of the back of the room and to safety. Shotaro, on the other hand, has the green USB stick appear in his belt. and he slams the one in his hand down. He pushes the holders on the belt out, forming what looks like a W as the new belt buckle. CYCLONE JOKER There is a massive wind that kicks through the room, as pieces of a suit are blown onto Shotaro, one side of the armor is black and purple, and the other side is green. He stands there, arms to his side as the suit finally forms, revealing Kamen Rider W. On his neck is a scarf that forms, flapping in the wind as he points at the Yummies. "Count up your crimes.." he says with two voices, before aiming a punch to the chest of the nearest minion, aiming to send it sprawling back into the rest of them. W, the two-in-one Kamen Rider, continues his march toward the group and gets some good old fashion minion fighting in.
Kukuru	Kukuru is more than happy to be a cake disposal. She's not a slob about it since she's dressed up nicely like she usually is (white blouse, green/brown high waisted skirt), but she's also not going to refuse however much gets shoveled at her even though she takes her time just savoring that delectably sweet stuff. She has to control herself, after all, since it's really good stuff, and leagues ahead of what she could make on her own. Naturally, she makes sure to take a little bit of everything to identify all the little nuances in each type of cake. A little more sweetness here, a little more floral there, maybe even a bit of saltyness there. She's spending way too much time focusing on that, but it does certainly help put her in a good mood once she finally takes a look at those pamphlets and listens to the man on the screen. Kukuru claps reflexively when she sees the cake boss. It's only polite! "He-llo! Did you make all of these? They're really tasty. Good job~" She greets him without knowing whether or not he'll even hear her, then looks around briefly to try and identify the mysterious Satonaka. When the shambling weirdos show up both in person and presumably on the chef's screen, though, she lets out a curious noise before quickly realizing that their table-flipping antics might damage the cakes if they're left unchecked. The mission is laid out, and she's about to start approaching those void-faced Yummys (Yummies?) when Goto reveals himself with shots from his Medal Buster. Mentally tagging him as 'friend of cake boss', Kukuru flashes him a bright smile before inadvertently obliging his opening to do a cool pose! "Don't worry, Mister Chef. Oda can't take over the world because he's not with the Concord, so we'll stop him." She affirms while reaching up to push her glasses back up onto her face only to realize she forgot her glasses today. Oh no! What if everyone thinks Kukuru's dumb and useless? Better distract them with fighting prowess is instead. She advances once again, sending out a cloud of healing nanites around the room while taking a cue from W and trying to grasp the Yummies by the arm, the neck, legs, whatever she can reach in order to start flinging them at each other before they can spread out too much and damage the cakes.
Hamada Haru	"OH, AND BE SURE NOT TO MISS THE BUFFET! ALL MY OWN CREATIONS," President Kougami calls over the sound of fighting. One of the generic yummies pauses and smashes a cake, causing the President to wince visibly. "AH! THESE CREATURES," Kougami goes on, "THEY'RE CALLED YUMMIES. THEY'RE USED BY A SPECIES CALLED THE GREEED TO GENERATE CELL MEDALS, WHICH ARE USED TO REINFORCE THEIR PHYSICAL STRUCTURES. IF THEY DROP ANY, PLEASE HAND THEM TO ONE OF OUR REPRESENTATIVES! THE ONES WITH FACE-HOLES WON'T, THOUGH." Having offered that explanation, he adds, "TOKIWA! I SEE YOU'RE DOING WELL. AND ALWAYS WITH THE GOOD TASTE, TOO! COULD YOU HELP MISS NARUMI OVER THERE -- THE ONE WITH THE OFFICE-THEMED HAIRCLIPS -- NAVIGATE TO GOTO? THE YOUNG MAN WITH THE GUN! THANK YOU." Kamen Rider W finds that it isn't that hard to handle the Yummies, but they're kind of tough! Or at least, this variety of them is. It's because they're almost literally garbage, as it happens, not that that's been explained. Sparks explode from the chest of the one that's directly hit, but the ones behind it bear the impact relatively well! Two of them rush forward and try to grab W by both arms while the more injured of the three attempts to punch him in the stomach while he's dealing with the attempt at restraint. 'Did you make all these?' Kukuru asks, and Kougami replies, "ALL OF THEM! I HAVE SPENT MANY YEARS CULTIVATING THE CRAFT, AND I COULDN'T POSSIBLY LEAVE THE JOB TO SOMEBODY ELSE!" He sounds mostly joking here. Except for the part where he's spent a lot of time on learning to bake perfectly. His tone turns a little more grave, "IN A WAY, ODA NOBUNAGA ALREADY HAS SEIZED THE WORLD. SOME OF YOU HAVE ALREADY HEARD OF 'ODA ZI-O'! HE IS THE KING OF OUR FUTURE WORLD, AND AS THINGS ARE NOW HE WILL ASSUREDLY ACHIEVE HIS AMBITIONS!" "WHICH IS WHY," He continues, pacing on camera, "HE MUST BE STOPPED NOW, WHEN HE IS MERELY ZI-O II." Kukuru hurls yummies at each other, resulting in some of them exploding into... a fragment of a coin, not even a full coin. This must be the cell medal that was being talked about, but this one is definitely less than useful at this point. In response to her sheer strength, the yummies simply swarm Kukuru in an effort to suppress her ability to move about and thus treat them like both bowling balls and pins!
Xion	The initial charge of Same Yummies towards the lads and lasses and Your Mother at the table is interrupted by the chunky CG of the King and the rude runes of the Retainer. Zi-O and Woz's transformations lead into powerful combos of moves and abilities - suppression fire AND multi-hit slashes are advanced techniques to use on seemingly basic and evolved Yummies. Surely, a quick combo of moves will clear them out! Powerfully built as they are, the crowd of Same Yummies are opened up by Zi-O and slashed back violently by Woz's (de)spear. Several fall and do not rise, and Goto scans about while knocking the emptied medal magazine off his Buster and fishing around in his jacket pocket for a reload. "This isn't that many - if it's Mezool, there's probably--" The dark haired man begins, only for both side doors to the grand ballroom to be thrown wide apart, banging loudly as more of the Same march out, swinging and pushing and pressing in as crowds of fresh dozens of Yummy enter the room, take eyes on Zi-O and Woz, and charge. The tornado of wind cast by W's transformation sends things into chaos, and the dark purple Sword Same Yummy which appears to be the leader or core member of the swarm advances menacingly. Each stomp grows louder, as for each fallen member that the Time-Space Riders defeat the Sword Same gains a brighter red tone, and a freshly minted white scar across its torso. It does not roar or howl, but instead releases a kind of awful keening bellow. Sharks don't speak - but they do smell blood, and enrage. With a powerful charge and a berserk aura, the Sword Same clotheslines both Zi-O and Woz and scene transitions them forcefully through the back doors and out into the COURTYARD! >> Grand Kougami Hotel > Ballroom Courtyard Same Yummies dash onto set behind the hurled Zi-O and Woz and the enraged Sword Same Yummy, who presses the attack after stage transition with powerful slashes that splash with bloody-red liquid that hisses and pops against armor as a sparking short-acting acid! From the crowd, Same Yummies dash in to grapple and punch at retreating Riders, and any of those that are attacked too hard only increase the fury of the Sword Same! Meanwhile... Shintaro Goto, ducking his head as the Yummy attack in force and fill the Ballroom, spots the untransformed Akiko a moment before receiving his instruction from President Kougami. "Understood!" The man shouts, and dives towards Akiko while Same Yummies menace the slipper girl holding Phillip while W fights. Covering the Osakan, Goto double-taps both sharks in the chest to stagger them, and hooks a thumb towards the courtyard. "This is a dangerous place! We'll fall back this way!" He announes, and sweeps another burst of fire across Akiko's dragging corridor outside to the Mildly More Safe outside.
Kukuru	So he can hear them! That's good to know, although trying to hold a conversation and also fight is a lot harder for Kukuru than it should be. Each time she tries to say something, she gets interrupted by a Yummy grabbing an arm, then a leg, then gawking at the medal fragments, then piling onto her by the time she can even get a full sentence out. "You're... Doing... Really good, and it... Shows! I'm proud of you, Mister... Um. You!" Kukuru's actually kind of torn with the situation she's found herself in. Even though she knows the Yummies are enemy combatants, she still can't help but feel a little fondness for the hole-faced things throwing themselves at her. Before she can really relax, though, two things happen. 1. A Yummy smashes a cake. That's unforgivable. 2. Kougami mentions Oda Zi-O taking over the future world. That's directly conflicting with the Concord and Zi-O! "Wasting food and getting in the way of Sougo's dreams... That's not allowed!" The tension builds in Kukuru's body and her tone as she briefly buckles under the weight of so many Yummies, but having them all there means she doesn't actually need to move to reach them herself. She just starts tearing at them from up close, thrusting one hand into one's face hole and yanking it back while her other hand claws at another Yummy's center mass to try and rip right through it. Any Yummies near her face, meanwhile, get the shark teeth treatment as she starts biting into them and clamping down hard on whatever she can reach, possibly even shaking them around if she ever gets enough room to do so.
Shotaro Hidari	Kamen Rider W is grabbed by both arms. Trying to struggle out of this underhanded use of pack tactics, he's unable to slip out before the injured yummy manages to strike, sending the Kamen Rider doubling over from the blow and with some Toku sparks. However, the two-in-one Kamen Rider snaps back, aiming to kick the offending yummy in the face to send it away, and then tries to spin. There is a force of wind aiming to knock the two off of him before the green side of W grabs the CYCLONE memory. He slides it into an extra slot on the side of the suit, and the voice that calls out CYCLONE says something new. CYCLONE MAXIMUM DRIVE He crouches, then creates a sweeping motion with his legs. From it, a burst of wind snaps out aiming to kick as many yummy's as he can into the air. This is followed by a jump into the air, and another spin kick, aiming to send an entire lot of the fighters across the dining room. W lands, seconds later, with the wind blowing his scarf perfectly in the breeze. The green side of W speaks up, "So that is how it is.." says the voice of Philip, to the declaration of Cake Boss. Shotaro, on the other hand, frowns. "I'm assuming there is something more to this, because if he has won in the future, then there has to be some way to change things." Not that Shotaro would shrink from fighting destiny, but he wonders if there is more to this meeting than just telling them this. Meanwhile... Akiko looks relieved, and slightly out of breath by having to drag Philip around, but she's used to it at this point. She gives her defender a sweet smile and continues her work. "Thank you!" she says and starts making her way with Philip in drag toward the slightly more safe zone.
Angela	Part of the duties of the Lobotomy Corp Agents include lending a hand to Concord agents and holdings so as to fulfill the obligations of their alliance with them. Unfortunately this time they were running a bit late because Malkuth, the one who normally is in charge of deciding how to engage the outside world, is presently having a literal and metaphorical meltdown forcing Angela to be the one to send Agents out. But she doesn't send the Control Team. Instead Nonon and Shajo arrive just as a fight crashes into their view in the Courtyard. "Well ain't this convenient." Shajo says. "Do not underestimate them. Abilities are unknown. Be patient--" Well saying that was the idea but Nonon has already burst forward, throwing a massive golden clothed fist for the closest shark person in range, a big and happy smile on her lips. "This'll be a blast!!" Nonon shouts.
Hamada Haru	The grab-exploiting injured yummy explodes into a fragment of coin which, as the previous ones are, is rather useless on account of having been used to make this thing. It's just kind of a neat souvenir, maybe, kinda. Up on the screen, Kougami paces back to the other side of the room, pauses, and takes a fresh cake out of the oven. He moves it aside and begins preparing the frosting. This one looks like it's going to be strawberry. "THE CONCORD'S AMBITION IS STRIKING, BUT ODA NOBUNAGA'S IS MORE STRIKING STILL. WE HAVE BEEN MONITORING THE SITUATION FOR SOME TIME WITH DR. HAMADA OF RIDER SERVICES, AND THERE IS NO MISTAKING THE SITUATION THAT WE HAVE AT HAND. WERE THE RESULTS NOT SO DISASTROUS, I WOULD CONGRATULATE THE MAN!" "BUT HIS RULE IS SO ALL-ENCOMPASSING THAT IT SNUFFS OUT ALL OTHER AMBITION AND ASPIRATION. THAT IS A WORLD THAT I CANNOT ABIDE," Kougami continues, though even so he sounds unduly excited at the idea of somebody who elevates themselves so thoroughly. He gestures towards Double with his pastry bag, "AND YOU'RE RIGHT! THE FUTURE IS NOT A THING SET FIRMLY IN STONE. THE FUTURE THAT WE CAN OBSERVE IS SIMPLY THE ONE THAT IS MOST OVERRIDINGLY LIKELY. WE HAVE ATTEMPTED TO DERAIL THIS PLOT FROM A SLIGHTLY MORE FUTURE VANTAGE POINT, BUT TO FIGHT POWER WITH POWER IN THIS CASE IS FRUITLESS." A horde of yummies are brought up into the air and slammed back down into a pile-- they're more impact-resistant than they seem, as before. The inner portion of them are 'shattered' back into fragmentary coins, but a large portion of them get back up and shamble right back into combat-- some immediately being bitten apart or flailed into pieces by Kukuru. "PRESENTLY, THE GREEED HAVE BEEN FORCED INTO HIS PLOT. THE QUICKEST WAY TO BUY A LITTLE TIME IS TO DERAIL THEIR PLANS, WHICH IS WHY THEY'RE ATTACKING US RIGHT NOW," he explains, further. As if on cue, a Yummy that is most definitely NOT a zombie Yummy bursts through the wall, shiny brown-shelled, with prominent beetle horns. It comes up underneath several of the trash yummies and hurls them by its horn towards Kamen Rider W, before coming about and locking claws with Kukuru, immediately after attempting to HEADBUTT her. Kougami smiles vaguely and nods towards Akiko, which is a strange thing to be able to do by monitor, but hey, whatever.
Timespace Riders	"Hi, Mr. Hidari! And Kukur-OOH!" Zi-O's friendly greeting is cut off by the charge of the Sword Same, lifted off of his feet alongside his retainer. Another Zi-O (no, not Another Zi-O, just a second one) shows up in the ballroom to back Shintaro up as he escorts Akiko and the unconscious Philip. This one is wielding a hefty silver straight sword and sporting a bit of battle damage to the band on his wristwatch themed cuirass, fending off any stray Yummies before disappearing in a flash of pink light. The Zi-O of the present catches a slash to the chest that sends him sprawling to the ground in the courtyard. As Woz simultaneously gets back to his feet and strikes to defend his king with a rolling two-handed thrust, Zi-O pulls the barrel of his gun upwards along the grip. A wide silver blade emerges, announcing itself simply as SWORD! Zi-O disappears momentarily, traveling into the 'past' to assist in escorting, reappearing just in time to raise a knee and hit the Sword Same with a standing side kick to generate a bit of distance. "It's getting stronger the harder we hit its allies!" "Then we will simply have to crush it with overwhelming force," Woz says coolly, retrieving a Miridewatch bearing the horned, helmeted visage of a chaos god. LOKI?! Zi-O does the same, producing a Ridewatch bearing the image of a bearded, flaming giant. SURTR! "That's right, Mr. Hidari--Nobunaga won't be king... because I will!" ARMOR TIME! World-Engulfing Flame! SURTR! Future Time! Freezing! Seizing! Futurering Loki! LOKI! A suit of armor appears before Zi-O, a hefty bladeless hilt clutched in one hand. The wristband of the cuirass watch-motif is black like volcanic glass, while the hands of the watch on the helmet resemble pyroclastic sprays of lava. Glowing orange runes light up along the sabatons, greaves and pauldrons, as Zi-O sends the armor flying towards the Sword Same with a punch. The component pieces swarm it, bubbling lava burning as each piece then flies back and snaps into place over him. The hilt in his hands promptly sprouts a greatsword of roaring flame, to match the cape of ropy lava that sprouts from his shoulders. Woz, meanwhile, sports a mirrored form, cool and icy blue runes paired with gleaming silver. The hands of the smartwatch on his helmet's face turn to long, exaggerated horns of gold, curved in a sharp upward sweep. The polearm in his hand shifts to a weighty-looking Seidr staff--the weapon of a wise man. He lifts it and slams it against the ground, summoning a spread of icy spears to race towards the Sword Same with explosive force.
Shotaro Hidari	Drawing the CYCLONE memory back into the belt, Double or W based on which you feel like saying or typing (there is no real consistency to this) turns towards the remaining Yummies. However, the Kamen Rider stops, hearing something, but heard it too late as the Stag Beetle Yummy comes charging in, aiming to bury Double in minions... Literally. "Shotaro, that one's tougher than the others, stronger too by the looks of it. Try the Metal Memory." "Right," he says, struggling to reach and pull out another memory, still stuck under squirming minions. There is a muffled call out... METAL CYCLONE METAL There is a burst of wind, as a more forceful blast aims to send the yummies on him flying off of him. Shotaro moves in to engage the Stag beetle, fists surrounded by green energy that is very much wind, and attempts to repeatedly smash the Yummy back. Ending it with an open-palm fist to try and send it through a different wall than the one it entered. "We should try and work together, Ms. Kukuru," says Shotaro's side of Double. Philip, however, has more questions for Kougami. "The question is, how did they find out about this? If this didn't happen in the past because we did not get an advanced warning, then it'd be expected that he wouldn't have seen this coming, no?"
Kukuru	"Even if it's striking-ow... It's not allowed. Not unles-eeh! Unless he's gonna join us!" Kukuru proclaims in between getting whacked by errant Yummy swings, staggering around here and there since rapid healing isn't quite the same as being actually tough. "And if he does - hi, Sougo! Then... He's gotta learn to-" She outright yelps as the horned Yummy that is definitely not a zombie shows up to smash its big beetle horns right into her and knocking Kukuru off her feet. She lands flat on her back at first, taking a moment to get her shit back together and healing up that opening wound on her midsection. Afterwards, she raises her legs up in preparation for doing one of those fancy kip ups she's seen so many martial artists do in the past. It's a visually impressive maneuver, after all, and this is the perfect time to show off her acrobatic skills! ... Except Kukuru doesn't have any of that, so she just ends up swinging legs back down to the ground with enough force to possibly crack whatever's under her heels at the time. Instead of embarrassing herself further by trying to do it again, Kukuru just opens up a dark cloud underneath herself to teleport back into a standing position. "If fighting power with power isn't enough to derail their plans, then... Um." What else she got? Kukuru makes a straining noise as she tries to come up with something clever, fails miserably, then has her spirits raised when Woz gives his answer. "That's right! We've got plenty of power, so we can just keep add more until it's more than enough anyway." Turning the Shotaro, Kukuru's demeanor brightens visibly when he calls her 'Ms. Kukuru', and she smiles broadly at him before nodding. "Of course!" Having seen W in action a bit already, it's not too hard for Kukuru to actually come up with something resembling a plan. Naturally, it involves heading right back the stag beetle Yummy to engage it in close-range once again. With its claws and her hands soon to be locked in a deadly struggle, Kukuru starts leveraging the rest of her body to try and gain the upper hand. Even though its horn is tougher than her skull, she drives her head forward with massive headbutts anyway while letting her healing abilities and raw power compensate for how much it really hurts to smash her head into something designed to smash. It's all part of the (unstated) plan, of course, to keep the Yummy's attention on her. Throughout all of this, she not-so-subtly tries turning herself and the Yummy around so that it's facing away from W as he comes in!
Hamada Haru	"AN EXCELLENT QUESTION! AN EVENT LIKE THIS ONE HAS OCCURRED PREVIOUSLY DURING OUR ATTEMPTS TO ADDRESS ODA ZI-O, BUT IT ISN'T A CRITICAL EVENT. AT THIS TIME AND PLACE ODA ZI-O IS NOT INTERVENING DIRECTLY BECAUSE HE FEELS HE DOES NOT NEED TO, AND THE GREEED ARE NOT LOYAL TO HIM," Kougami answers, accidentally sending icing flying to the other side of the kitchen counter in front of him. "IT IS IN THEIR NATURE TO PURSUE THEIR DESIRES, AND SO THEY MAKE FOR POOR MINIONS, BUT ODA NOBUNAGA WAS NEVER QUITE THE BEST JUDGE OF RETAINERS!" He laughs uproariously, as if that is the most excellent joke / reference. The Stag Beetle Yummy walks directly into W's attacks, even while still locked in combat with Kukuru. It marches forward, dips its head over Kukuru's shoulder, and attempts to snag-and-hurl W directly across the room and into the opposite wall, minute sparks dancing off the surface of its body where it is struck. It comes back about on Kukuru as she maneuvers it about, drawing its head back and attempting to headbutt her a second time-- only to be headbutted in turn! Its horn cracks as it is caught at an awkward angle for it, causing the Yummy to flinch in surprise and pain-- before driving forward with the jagged stump, attempting to stab Kukuru right in the face for the crime of breaking its horn! "THE INFLUENCE OF THIRD PARTIES ON ODA ZI-O'S FUTURE HAS ALWAYS INTRODUCED MORE USEFUL VARIABLES, HOWEVER. IT'S JUST A MATTER OF FINDING THE RIGHT ONES!" He declares. Then, leaning in close to the camera, he adds, more quietly, "And Miss Kukuru, the reason that matching power to power does not work is because he aggregates power directed at him into his own. WE'VE TRIED THAT, I ASSURE YOU! NO, THE ANSWER IS IN CATCHING HIM BEFORE HE AMASSES ALL HIS POWER, I'M SURE OF IT! THE FUTURE THAT STANDS PARALLEL TO THIS ONE IS CLOSER TO OUR GRASP THAN IT EVER HAS BEEN!" In the background, a white-chitined Grasshopper man wanders past.
Xion	Kougami Corporation operates (among many other things) a premium hotel - with Ballroom! - and has set out inviting pamphlets for guests including guest-of-Honor Sougo 'Timbs' Tokiwa and his Concord allies. Courting alternate Kings to the tyrant rule of Oda Zi-O was just excellent business... And President Kougami was storied in his extreme love of beginnings and birth-days. Commemorating new beginnings was a signature act of the Kougami Foundation. While it was not on the menu card as a refreshment, the refreshing presence of outdoor brawling is something the L-Corp members arriving late to the scene can partake in! Nonon's rushing forward into the crowd of Same Yummies that gang up on Zi-O and Woz provides a bowling-over blow that crashes the flanking wing of muscular sharkmen, and their dramatic transformations of titanic fire and ice blast back the crowd of goonish frowning musclesharks in an extended wave of power-suppression. Zi-O SurtrArmor and Woz FuturingLoki unleash the reverse of the classic fire-and-ice cataclysm combo on the Sword Same - a steam-blasting spark cascade as first the Sword Same is engulfed in superheated armor that drips lava, and then blasted with explosive detonations of diffusing super-chill! The Same Yummies that have been hit spill silver medals all over, the same kind that shine in the magazine of Goto's Medal Buster. The enriched desire-metal of the Cell Medals being steadily depleted reduces the power of the Yummy and leave piles of coinage around on defeat... Just like the Sword Same does, when it is double-finishered by Woz and Zi-O. All of the Yummies in the Courtyard bellow-keen, and the sword flies out of the explosion and lands near another Same Yummy: who picks it up. Scarring like the original Sword Same, bulking and reddening, it appears as if the real core is the Same Sword! In a terrible mechanic that could only be decided by a childish sadist designing the worst gimmick possible and then giving it to beefy sharkmen, the Same Yummies and their cursed Same Sword swarm once more, many beefy sharkmen trying to grab and tackle Nonon and bite her, more menacing Shajo by chasing her with powerful hands and horror monster foot-pace. The bearer of the Same Sword fights with the same berserker abandon as the original, but with far less of the intelligence, having only just been granted the cursed villain powerup. Zi-O as the swordbearer is the target of the cursed blade, two-handed combos leaving abyssal acid rents in the courtyard ground and splashing arcs out with every swing. Emphasized foot-stomps assault Zi-O and Woz equally with geysers of CG bad-water that fizz for a moment underneat the Riders before exploding upward. MEANWHILE: Shintaro Goto keeps Akiko and the downed Philip covered with crouching bursts of his weapon, letting some of the Yummies get close enough that when he guns them down he can scrape reloads into his Buster gun from the fallen Cell Medals. Looking behind, he sees the Stag Beetle Yummy menacing the party. "Miss, tell your Rider friend that some powerful Yummies have Core Medals in them - the Professor-" Which one isn't important right now. "-said it's important to collect them!"
Shotaro Hidari	The Stag Beetle manages to do the same thing as before, trying to yeet Double instead of yummies at him. Thankfully, Shotaro is ready this time, and when the throw happens, he isn't able to get out of the blow but DOES manage to brace himself just enough so that he has control of the flight. W hits the wall, but with his feet, and uses it to springboard back towards the beetle. This time, a weapon is in his hands, the Metal Shaft, which is a long staff made out of metal. During the flight, however, he hears a message from his chief, relaying the information about 'Core Metals'. "Shotaro, use a memory break, it might have the same force for these core metals as it does for Gaia memories..." "Right..." he says, inserting the CYCLONE memory into a slot on the metal shaft. As the two-in-one Kamen Rider land, they swing the staff down, aiming to try and put the Stag Beetle's footing off. They spin, aiming to repeatedly hit the Yummy multiple times, an actual cyclone forming as the two spins, before aiming to launch it toward Kukuru for a follow-up. CYCLONE MAXIMUM DRIVE! With Shintaro, Akiko gives him a nod. Pulling out a beetle, she flips it into a phone and immediately starts telling Philip about what she is being told. "What... is a core metal anyway?" she asks, following up the instructions with some questions for her protector. Meanwhile, with the words from Cake Boss, Philip makes an interested 'hmm' sound. "Then another question... how did Oda Nobunaga come to be in this era, and come to possess this power? As I remember it, he was a military general from the past, correct?"
Angela	"The hell he talking about?" Shajo asks, distracted by the shouting cake man. Angela focuses on the 'shouty cake man', going quiet. A rule so all encompassing it snuffs out all other ambition and aspiration .. So, she thinks, this is how the chiefs of Wings outside her world are like. "So ambition is to be tempered but striking." Can Kougami even hear her amongst all the shouting, fighting, and power up noises. "But all ambitions push out others. At what point do you say 'too ambitious'...?" Shajo is distracted from the trouble Nonon is about to find herself in when he sees beefy sharkmen running for him. "I had a dream about this..." He says, a faint red to is cheeks. "HA!" Nonon says as she's falling to the ground. "I knew you'd be into this!" Shajo swings his axe in a wide arc to try and open some space, running through one door-- And out another one across the courtyard, Scooby Doo style indeed. "SO ARE YOU!" Shajo shouts. "I'll try wearing a shark mask next time--" Nonon starts flexing. "Not in front of the Outsiders! They seem Kid Friendly!" Nonon curls in and then flexes super hard in an attempt to send the Yummies flying like she's Mr. Incredible or something.
Kukuru	"This has happened before, then? No wonder we're here..." Kukuru murmurs in between headbutts, starting to reel again as the repeated impacts have her regretting the choices she's made today. Healing only fixes the physical injuries rather than preventing them outright, after all, and she's getting quite the headache from this in addition to all the blood that's spreading from those headbutts alone. Still, if she can just get one more good hit in now that its horn is broken...! Wait. Broken things are usually sharper, aren't they? Realizing this just in the nick of time, Kukuru takes her mid-headbutt swing just off course enough that, instead of getting a spike through her face, she instead gets a nasty gash across the side of it instead. The wound is still rather horrific as she screeches in pain, but it's far better than the alternative if taking it right down the middle. "He aggrega... I know this one!" Despite the pain shooting through her face, Kukuru actually sounds proud of herself (when she isnn't making whining noises at the pain shooting through her face). "So that's why that doesn't work.. I get it now. We have to know where to put the power, not just more!" While her cheek starts knitting itself shut again, she actually changes course as she sees W doing something weird with that long shaft. Instead of going for more headbutts, she takes Kougami's recommendation and W's battle plan to heart and ducks down briefly before shoving the Yummy towards W's strikes (and to get herself out of the way). Taking that moment to catch her breath, Kukuru stays in that hunched-over stance as W's cyclone starts carrying the Yummy back to her, and she rakes her fingers along the ground dramatically while putting all of her strength into a single upwards swing, clawing through the air to catch the Stag Beetle Yummy just as it's about to reach her again!
Timespace Riders	"IWAE!" cries Woz, just in time for Angela, Nonon and Shajo to hear. His armors are thrown wide, helmet held high as he exults in his and his king's strength. "He is heir to the power of all Riders, and I am his faithful chronicler." Woz whirls the Seiðr staff overhead, blasted by a geyser and sent flying--but not at all discouraged for it despite the shower of sparks which flies from his armor. With a nimble flip, he lands on his feet, pointing the staff at Zi-O, cheering him on even as the newly-made Same opens up on him. "The ruler of time, traveling beyond time and space to reign over past and future... By his side, I stand, the prophet of the one true timeline!" Letting loose a battle cry, the retainer muscles his way towards the powered-up putty attacking Zi-O, clubbing it in the shoulder with a vicious overhead, sending out a freezing shockwave from the point of impact that all but demands with its force that the Yummy be driven to one knee. Taking advantage, Zi-O shouts and makes a furious straight kick, meant to send the Sword Same flying backwards. "His name is Kamen Rider Zi-O Surtr Armor, and mine: Kamen Rider Woz Futurering Loki." Zi-O follows-up on the tail end of his kick by removing the Surtr Watch and placing it into a slot near the crossguard. FINISH TIME! RAGNAROK GIRI-GIRI SLASH! The blade of his greatsword glows furiously and extends to easily cover the distance between them. He makes an advancing slash, cutting hip to shoulder, swinging the outsized blade across the battlefield. The sword carves a molten path through the air and sets the ground beneath its arc ablaze, scorching the well-maintained courtyard adn the Yummies alike. More importantly--the size of the blazing sword is used to ensure that it passes over the cursed sword held by the Yummy! "In this moment, we pen another page in a glorious new history!" Woz's finger taps the screen on his staff and rapidly races between the icons, setting a blizzard to blowing about him. BEYOND THE TIME! GIANT UNSEALING STRIKE! The retainer drives it into the ground with an exultant 'hmph,' chin of his helmet turned up. Spears formed of solid ice burst from the flames Zi-O's strike conjured, spearing into the Yummies and promptly exploding, in a pre-emptive attack meant to keep the struck sword from finding any new targets.
Hamada Haru	Core Medal The Core Medal is a concept that is present in the Gaia Library. Although it was not the first form of a "Gaia Memory" conceived and put into action, it is the second eldest of these thought-spaces, and the only one (that Philip can identify) with the full spread of concepts available to it. Its predecessor, the inventions of the Rinto tribe, was rather more focused on tool usage in style and available abilities in accordance with the primitive form of humanity that they were. Although a "Gaia Memory" in most ways that matter, most beings cannot interface directly with them because they are simply not manufactured in that way. The OOO Driver is necessary to make meaningful use of them, or, alternatively they can be absorbed into the body of a Greeed or similar being. As a rule, Core Medals are broadly sturdier than Gaia Memories, most of which are mass-manufactured in quality. In this case, it's irrelevant because there are no Core Medals in action. "OH, THAT'S SIMPLE. I BROUGHT HIM BACK AS A GREEED," President Kougami explains cheerily, as if this is a normal thing to do. Despite that, there is no sinister quality to it. He puts the finishing touches on a chocolate cake and passes it off to somebody off-screen. "I NEEDED SOMEONE OF TRULY MAGNIFICENT AMBITIONS TO UTILIZE MY ZIKU DRIVER! THAT HIS AMBITIONS WOULD BLOAT OUTWARDS UNTIL THEY CONSUMED ALL OTHERS LIKE A CANCER WOULD NEVER HAVE OCCURRED TO ME!" "TOKIWA THERE," he gestures from the screen in Zi-O's direction, "REPRESENTS WHAT I WOULD CONSIDER MY IDEAL OF AMBITION. OVERWHELMING, BUT NOT INDIFFERENT! A CARING AMBITION THAT ENABLES THE GROWTH OF OTHERS!" A combo-and-vortex from Kamen Rider W sees a veritable fire-works show from the STAG BEETLE YUMMY, which is then propelled back into Kukuru who UPPERCUTS it aaaaaand it has exploded into hundreds, perhaps thousands of silver coins. The cell medals rain down onto the ground with the characteristic sound of change hitting the floor, rebounding, and hitting the floor again as they all skitter about. They're around the size of a silver dollar, though rather thicker. President Kougami claps excitedly at all of this.
Xion	THE COURTYARD: A few evolved Yummy full of Cell Medals are a danger to civilians such as Akiko while she is armed with only slippers and Philip while he is unconscious. Goto doesn't have to plink away at all of the Same Yummy, however, because the bold presence of Nonon strongarming through bitey sharkmen cuts a firm figure that imposes force onto the rather easily tossed about Yummy. At the end of the Scooby Doo'ing, Shajo lets his axe rip and tears into the peeled-away goons, far from the influence of the cursed Same Sword and giving no bonus energy to the power-absorbing blade. Not that that blade will be a problem much longer! Zi-O and Woz both unleash their big driver pump effects, emitting highly destructive ground effects that repave the Courtyard in blackened rock and ashen earth. Scorched air trails reveal the red Sword Same, covered in scars, with a bright orange gash through the fishbones of the sword and the torso besides and through, falling apart in halves. The Same Sword continually absorbs the Cell Medal energy of the falling mooks, but cracked open as it is with a much bigger and meaner sword, the cursed blade meets its own end time and shatters. In an artfully iced barrage of Yummy-exploding spears, the circle about Zi-O and Woz are defeated in chaining sequence until only one chesty sharkman is left, Shajo's axe tearing medals out of its rubbery flesh until it expires in a pile of magical coin-loot. In the ashes, the Same Sword's get is a rather tremendous piled up mountain of coins that Nonon can barely see over, accumulated from much swording and sharking... But no Core Medals. Just a truly nasty curse.
Kukuru	With the Yummy swarm depleted, Kukuru finally lets herself relax, but not too much. Taking a seat right on the ground, she lets out a heavy exhale and instinctively touches a hand to her cheek, pulling in more of those nanites to patch that up before looking over at the group. "Good work, everyone! Ah... Come on, gather here if you need a little pick me up~" Logically, that would probably just mean going near Kukuru, as the nanites are indeed spread out enough to allow for recovery just by lingering near her. That won't stop her from patting her lap, though, clearly offering both legs for whoever decides to take her up on that. Shajo? Nonon? Sougo? Woz? Everyone! Even W and Goto are offered spots to sit with/on her. "So that's where he came from... Oh, that's a really good idea." She comments completely seriously in response to how Nobunaga came to be in this era, perhaps not even realizing that he had come from the past until after it's mentioned. "Smart people can do a lot with the right support... But it's important not to put too much on their plates, either. I wonder... If maybe that's why Nobu's ambitions got as far as they did here." Tapping a finger to her chin, Kukuru finally remembers to get up briefly to check on the cakes before returning to that same spot (ideally with some cake). "Sougo's got a lot of work to handle, too. But... He's part of the Concord family, and he knows we're always here for him." She flashes a smile at Sougo to emphasize that, then picks up one of those coins. "So this is what those thingies were made of, huh...? Um. The Yummy?" As Kukuru starts to recall what it felt like while she was biting the Yummy, she stares at that coin a little too long. If she's not stopped, she's going to just bite down on one of those coins and do a little taste test/comparison.
Timespace Riders	Silver coins rain down in a virtual king's ransom--or, given that none are Core Medals, more like a white elephant. Zi-O and Woz remove their respective Watches from their transformation belts. In washes of pink and green, their armors disappear. Pulled from the temporal footprints and potential futures of Sylvi, those powers are not without their consequences. King and retainer share a glance--the silent understanding that using those gifts felt right. Not only right, but good. Woz's smile matches his inner thoughts--and Sougo's does, too, for once. Mostly. The Demon King fusses with the hem of his blue button-up. "Sylvi's power... do you feel it, too, Woz?" A light-headed sort of feeling, that spreads to the chest. The buzzing afterglow of adrenaline. "Indeed, my Demon King," purrs Woz, with a forward inclination of his head. "After all, hers is a power which will not be wielded, without the will to crush and seize. Nor," he adds, with a theatric flick of his wrist, gesturing to his king, "Without accepting 'what happens to you.'" Her words. Sougo nods, his pensive frown quickly replaced by a warm smile. "Well... I think it'll help me be more firm, anyway. Hey, Angela! Nonon, Shajo!" Sougo strides up to the two of them (and the tablet-bound Angela). "You're sticking around, right? I know you're busy lately... and we're definitely going to help with that." A slight flash of puppy-dog eyes. "But President Kougami would really enjoy meeting you, I think! And he's been really helpful to me and Woz." He claps each on the shoulder, before heading back into the ballroom with Woz in tow. The both of them grab a slice of cake, provided there's any intact.
Hamada Haru	The cell medal isn't very edible. It's intended to be "absorbed" more than it is intended to be eaten. Insofar as it tastes like anything, it tastes mostly like licking a plasma globe. "A cell medal is sort of an energetic representation of material existence. It is what Greeed's bodies are made out of. A 'Yummy', those creatures you just fought, is a mechanism for multiplying a single cell medal into many more cell medals by absorbing the desires of humans," President Kougami explains, sending another cake out. They're getting brought in by hotel employees who seem utterly unphased by the hole in the wall or the shredded pamphlets everywhere. Thus, there is in fact intact cake, even if there was not previously. One is strawberry and the other is chocolate. A flock of red robotic birds begin collecting cell medals abruptly. Nobody reacts to them, though, so they're probably supposed to be doing that.
Angela	"Why did you make him shout more--" Shajo complains to Angela under his breath. He can feel the headache coming but Angela doesn't seem particularly interested in Shajo at the moment. 'I brought him back as a greeed' Angela frowns. ''That his ambitions would bloat outwards until they consumed all others would never have occured to me' Angela is still frowning. 'Tokiwa represents what I would consider my Ideal of ambition' Angela raises both eyebrows, and she coughs into her fist. Her gaze slants to the right. "Ridiculous." She murmurs--but is it really, she wonders, thinking of a small sun in a tiny secret garden. In the absence of orders, SHajo and Nonon operate on default--fortunately, violence is pretty much their one solid trait between them (that is likely to be relevant to outsiders anyway). But neither of them are really expecting a mountain of coins exploding out like this. Nonon, standing on her tippy toes, says, "Oi! What's all this then?" She picks a coin up and tries biting it. "You don't know where that's been, Nonon." Shajo chides gently. ''Hey Angela!'' Angela's shoulders slouch back down and she says, "Very well. We'll stay. Operating the facility without Malkuth does not take a significant amount of my processing power. There is no need to worry about that." Hopefully, she thinks, Kougami has an indoor voice too. "He feels like a proper Nest Head so far." Angela tells Sougo. Is that a compliment? Well...
Hamada Haru	//Ridiculous.// "You may be surprised," President Kougami says, back turned, fiddling with his oven, "how very rarely it is that I make a serious error in judging the qualities of a person's ambitions! But if we could always evade our failings, they would hardly be failings." Like Kukuru, Nonon gets a taste of plasma globe. It's not unpleasant, just kinda weird. It's not meant to be eaten and it isn't actual currency.
Shotaro Hidari	Double stands in the middle of the exploded coins shooting into the air, turning to look at his work, the two-in-one consider what they've been exposed to, and share a thought on what the Core Metals really are. Sadly, other than the cakes that were just made and put down, the wind of W might have had some unintended victims. Truly, a terrible crime. To the offer of sitting on Kukuru's lap, Shotaro turns away and crosses his arms. Obviously not to hide a blush or anything, because he's OBVIOUSLY too manly for that. "No, thank you. I will, however, stand here with you until the others get back in." This is spoken as the W belt is pulled up, and the memories retrieved. Once more, the armor breaks into tiny pieces and seems to fly away in an unseen wind, as Shotaro stands there once more. Akiko, armed with her slipper and protected by Goto, is enough to keep Philip safe. Thankfully, he wakes back up a moment later, sitting up. "Thanks," he says to both the chief and Goto. In the main hall, Philip will arrive back with the others, as Shotaro is turning to face their host. "So... you brought back this man from the past, turned him into a Greeed, gave him a driver... and now he's looking to completely become the overlord of space and time?" he asks, making sure he has the right of it. Philip chimes into Kukuru, who isn't 'too manly' to sit with her. "Not likely. Oda was known as a very ambitious leader, bloodthirsty as well. I doubt it is because of too much being on his shoulders... but the nature of the core metals he was imbued with." he says, looking towards Kougami, "Which I mean to say, they are Gaia devices, one of the oldest forms of them. Which concepts were they imprinted with?"
Xion	Shintaro Goto, brigade captain within the Kougami Corps, helps Akiko with Phillip for a moment, nodding to the rising half-of-a-Rider with a professional bob of the head and the vague sense of a satisfied job-well-done out of the professional anti-rubbersuit soldier. "It's my job." He confirms with the same satisfied tone, and joins Akiko and Philip inside the hall... Only to look to Kukuru's offer. The ice falls back into the man, but he is a professional, loading his spent Buster cartridges with loose medals while the Candroids collect the rest. "I'll stand, ma'am." The Professional Soldier, lacking the Most Powerful Secretary's appetite, takes only a small piece of cake. "We've been working with Professor Harley Hendrickson of Harley Heavy Industries and the Arizona Space Lab, after the Roidmude attacked to secure our latest Driver technology. It's been a hard road ever since, but thanks to Professor Harley, the Kougami Foundation's technology has advanced beyond what Oda has stolen." Personally sour, Goto stabs his cake piece with a fork and takes a sour bite. "We're not relying on things in mothballs in this fight any more."
Kukuru	Kukuru is only mildly disappointed by the lack of real taste from the cell medal. She's got cake, after all, and the fact there's more coming out just makes things better! She even forgets about gnawing on that medal by the time all the robot birds come flying in, although she does gawk at them for a while. "Humans do have a lot of desires, huh? Wow... It's too bad the Yummy are hostile, then. I wonder if they'd be happier if they could just be somewhere else." She comments with a light sigh, partially a wistful one and partially a full one since she's gotten more than her share of cake by now. At the rate Kukuru's going, she won't even need to make dinner tonight! "Oh, Kouga. You mentioned the Greeed a couple of times before, right? Um... Can we talk to them?" She asks with a curious look on her face, giggling briefly when she notices Shotaro standing there instead of sitting. She gives his leg a gentle pat, then does the same for Goto if he's close enough to reach. After that, she reaches over to Philip to ruffle his hair a bit in reward for the sittening before finally turning back to Kougami-on-the-screen as a single gear turns in her head. "If the other Greeed aren't working with him... And if they don't like Oda, maybe we could convince them to join us. Then we'd all be in a way better spot than now, right?" She suggests, going quiet after a bit as Philip gives his own thoughts on Nobunaga. "If it's the core medal that made him that way, though... Hmm. How hard would it be to replace it with a different one?" Surprisingly, though, that actually leads to a second gear turning in her brain. "And... Do these medals work for anyone? Like if we could absorb them?"
Timespace Riders	"So, Nobunaga has acquired the power of Zi-O II in this time," ponders Woz, between bites of cake. Setting the plate down, he procures a rather unique Ridewatch. Unlike the others that Sougo uses, this one is wider, and made of two component halves. One is silver, bearing the analog-watch aspected visage of Kamen Rider Zi-O. The other is black, inlaid with gold, its face hidden behind the silver half. "Perhaps..." He tosses it to Sougo, who nearly drops his cake. "Woz! Give me some warning next time," he says, after one of his distinctive, buffoonish 'oooh's of surprise. "Apologies, my Demon King. If it please you, indulge me and press the stop." Sougo does. Nothing happens--the hands on the watch refuse to move, and there is no announcement, as was the case with the Surtr Watch. "Mm... still nothing," he says with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Woz." Sougo pockets the watch, and resumes eating his cake. Woz purses his lips and sighs through his nose. "Unfortunate. I had hoped the power of the Strongest would awaken the necessary emotion." "Maybe it will," says Sougo hopefully, between bites. Frosting has smeared his plate where the cake threatened to slide off. "If I use it enough." It already has its hooks in him. This brings a catlike smile to Woz's face. "Indeed." "What do you think, President Kougami? Is that what I need to catch up with Nobunaga--being more firm as a king? Or... is there something else I'm missing?"
Angela	"...For a loud man, your hearing is quite sharp. Nobody would turn from their ambition if a bit of cruelty was all that remained to make it happen or you wouldn't be turning people into 'Greeeds'." Whatevr Greeeds are. Were the Yummies Greeds? He did top shouting at least. Nonon grimaces and tosses te coin aside, losing interest in it but Shajo collects one for analysis at Lobotomy Corp later. Hopefully this doesn't result in ... something happening. Hopefull. Oda Nobunaga again. She's been hearing that name a lot lately. Nonon looks towards Goto, her exprssion clueless--then back to Kougami her expression somehow more clueless. "So we're gonna murder that Oda guy?" She asks. "We're not volunteering." Shajo adds. hastily. "What is that guy's ambition that's so strong? Forming a big company himself or what?"
Hamada Haru	"That summarizes things nicely, yes," President Kougami agrees with Philip, genially. As to the core medals however, he grins a little wider. "It may surprise you to hear that I am quite familiar with the similarities between core medals and gaia memories. There isn't much that goes on related to Kamen Rider that I'm not familiar with." He swaps pastry bags, "The medals used to solidify the homunculus Oda Nobunaga did not have a particular character. That is to say, they were not basic core medals, or purple medals, nor were they identifiable. Based on the form that he adopted as a Greeed, I believe that a scorpion, crab, and some other type of crustacean or insect are involved." "Mm? The Yummy are not people. They are impulse driven by the cause of their creator," Kougami asides to Kukuru. "They are hostile because their creators are hostile. Some are even farther removed from personhood than that much. Uva's particular breed tend to be extensions of the human they were made from." "And in order to convince the Greeed to even have a chat," he continues, "they will need to be convinced that 'we' can win. Presently, they do not have such an impression or expectation." //Do these medals work for anyone?// "The core medals require a certain spirit. The cell medals are usable by practically anyone with a mechanism to interact with them. The birds collecting the coins are cell medal-operated equipment," he answers. //Is that what I need to catch up with Nobunaga--// President Kougami pauses, looking very seriously at the camera. "Ahh... you know I can't just hand you the answers, Mr. Tokiwa! Do YOU think that such an endeavor would bring you closer to Oda Zi-O's might?!" //Nobody would turn from their ambition if a bit of cruelty was all that remained to make it happen or you wouldn't be turning people into 'Greeeds'.// "It may surprise you that resurrection did not change Oda Nobunaga very much. It is for that reason that I brought him back to begin with, and it was hardly an act of cruelty. There are those ill-suited to such a reality, and those I would not burden with such power," Kougami says, coolly. "As for his ambition, it is total domination of all time and space. I am sure you can see why that would be a problem."
Shotaro Hidari	Philip, who has decided to sit with Kukuru, is mussed. Thankfully, Philip's hair already looks like it's messy. The clips continue to stay in his hair, pinning up one side of his hair to keep his face clear. When Kukuru asks about getting them for herself, he shakes his head. Shotaro looks a little put out by the suggestion as well. "Gaia items are... not corruptive, but they have a negative effect on people. I suppose you could call it a type of corruption, but they're not inherently evil, just powerful and dangerous. We can only use Gaia memories because of our belts, which form a sort of middleman between us and the memories." "If you were to use a memory directly, then you would turn into a creature known as a Dopant. The memories become like a drug to a person, eventually, they'll do anything to use the power... and it's lead to some heartbreaking situations.." Shotaro says. "I can't imagine the core metals are any different." This is almost immediately confirmed by Kougami. "So that's it," Philip says, "It's not what they individually embody, but rather the fact that collectively they embody greed or desire... which aren't too different by comparison." He taps on his chin, placing his book in his lap to be held in place by his knees. "Hearing what I have... it's likely it took a very ambitious man and enhanced it to such an extreme." Shotaro's eyes glance over to Sougo, specifically because of his question. What drove the lad to be a king himself? Hmm... perhaps there is a way to get an answer without exactly trying to dig. "Sougo, let me ask you a question in return. What are the qualities of a good king?"
Timespace Riders	"It was worth a shot," Sougo answers with an impish smile. "I think that... I could afford to be a little more stern. But even if that's not the answer, I'll find what is." Balancing his cleaned plate in one hand, he wraps an arm around Woz's waist and pulls his close, drawing a smile from the retainer. "I have some really special people supporting my dream. People I can count on." Woz makes no effort to escape Sougo's embrace. "I chose to stand by Sougo Tokiwa because I believe he would be the better king," says the retainer to Angela, on the heels of Kougami's response. "I wish to see the future that he will create, and not the one that Nobunaga desires." "There's a difference between 'rule' and 'domination,'" Sougo says to Shotaro. "A good king makes the world a better place for his subjects. He understands that 'equality' isn't the same thing as 'fairness' because his subjects aren't all the same. That... decisions he makes may affect some of them disproportionately. And..." The would-be king pauses, setting his plate down, that he might tap his chin with an index finger. "A good king would fight like a demon to protect his subjects. That's what I think. That's why I'm going to be the greatest, kindest Demon King!"
Kukuru	Kukuru watches the watch-based antics of Woz and Sougo curiously, eventually breaking into another calming smile moments later. "I'm sure you will, Sougo. Even if it's not as fast as other people's ways, it'll be a way that makes you happy, and that's what really matters." After finishing some more of her cake, Kukuru furrows her brow at Nonon's thoughts on Oda murder. "I'd rather not do that if we don't have to, especially if we can stop him from taking over things before he gets to be that big of a problem. Or... Maybe we could even get him to join us, then?" She sounds uncertain of that suggestion compared to the previous one about the Greeed, even though Kougami gives her a clearer idea of how unlikely even that could be. "Could they win on their own? If they could, then I guess it'd make sense not to wanna bother with us, but if they can't..." She trails off, stroking her chin after a moment. She keeps doing that even as she hears about the cell medals from Kougami and the Gaia memories from Philip. Thankfully, it doesn't take much convincing to have her relenting with a firm nod. "They sound pretty bad, then, if you can't control them. I know plenty of people that get addicted to stuff real easy, so... We shouldn't mess with them too much, mhm. But getting Oda to stop using them might be really tough, too." She leans back slowly with a thoughtful noise, eventually falling right on her back with a tired grunt. "Where do we start with this.. Um. Dealing with Oda's stuff before he gets too strong, then?"
Hamada Haru	But President Kougami offers no sign as to whether or not Sougo or Woz give him the answer that he was looking for. He does glance towards Woz, half-amused. One final cake hits the counter, and Kougami begins to decorate it with white icing and strawberries. "Ahh, but we've run out of time, for now. I thank you for your defense of our event. Satonaka will have pamphlets summarizing what I have told you delivered shortly." "And I look forward to seeing the futures of your ambitions," he adds, and at last the great screen at the head of the room turns off. The pamphlets, as it turns out, briefly summarize the matter of Oda Nobunaga's resurrection through a comical omake featuring President Kougami and a sour-looking man who has a baby doll on his shoulder at all times but appears to be a scientist of some kind. HOW WILL WE ADDRESS THIS? Another silly omake is included of Oda Nobunaga's historical self being driven to ritual suicide through betrayal by Akechi Mitsuhide. It's not spelled out, but the implication seems to be that getting Nobunaga to trust the wrong person is a goal.