RABBITTANK!
As soon as the threat of killing the civilians left Night Rogue's mouth, Sento had leapt into action.
YEAH!
Build flashed past a few trees and up the incline of the knoll in an instant, flanking Night Rogue and gaining the high ground before stepping into view.
"Hey, asshole! Let those people go! Who do you think you are? Letting your goons point their guns at little kids? Don't-cha think that's kind of a scummy thing to do?"
Night Rogue grunted in dissatisfaction, electing to not answer Build. He lifted up his weapon and dashed forward; it took him less than a second to cover the distance between the two of them. Swinging down violently the moment he was in range, Night Rogue nearly succeeded in not allowing Build time to prepare his Drill Crusher for impact.
Clang!
Sparks scattered as their weapons collided, with Build stumbling back against a tree under the now relentless assault of Night Rogue. A swift diagonal slash narrowly missed Build, Night Rogue's blade grazing past his helmet's eye lenses. The tree behind him trembled briefly before splitting cleanly from the strike.
Build dodged the falling top half of the bisected tree that nearly crushed him, swiftly leaping up and delivering a kick toward Night Rogue.
Meanwhile, Ryuga hadn't sat idly by; he charged towards the Guardian bots in his clown outfit, looking quite...heroic? He scooped up a large tree branch from the forest floor and swung it in an exaggerated fashion while shouting, "Hey! Stupid toasters! Dumb clankers!"
The Guardian closest to Ryuga turned its attention from the family it had at gunpoint and grabbed the branch with its left hand. Ryuga laughed, tossing his orange, afro-styled clown hair back as he used the Guardian's grip to propel himself forward, all while shaking the dragon full bottle in his other hand.
Bang!
Ryuga's fist smashed through the Guardian's head, sending mechanical parts and a sticky, clear liquid flying in all directions. He pulled his hand back as the glow from the bottle gradually faded. The gleam in Ryuga's eye, paired with his laughter in the clown suit, was certainly a sight to behold.
He pivoted and lunged at another Guardian within his range and downed it with an insanely fast quick left hook.
"Ahh! Damn it!! Run, everyone!"
Ping! Ping! Ping! Ping!
Ryuga held up the body of the Guardian he had just totaled and used it to shield himself while the other Guardians opened up on him.
The family barely escaped the line of fire, with the children and their mother supporting their injured father as he struggled to limp away.
Bang! Crack!!
Build and Night Rogue clashed repeatedly, the Drill Crusher and Night Rogue's 'Steam Blade' sending sparks flying with every strike. If not for the lush, damp forest around them, a fire would have surely ignited from their intense battle.
Night Rogue swung horizontally to the left twice; Build parried the first strike, but the second, faster swing shifted to a slightly more vertical angle. Feeling the pressure from the second attack, Build braced the backside of his Drill Crusher to withstand the force Night Rogue was exerting.
"Ugh!" Kamen Rider Build grunted and used both of his arms to finally pivot his weapon, allowing Night Rogue's Steam blade to scrape to the side, creating a shower of sparks before being pulled back and thrust forward yet again.
Build dodged five rapid thrusts, rolling side to side with his shoulder dipping back and forth nearly fast enough to create after images.
"How's this?" Night Rogue sneered, pulling his arm back to create a wide, circular arc while slashing the Steam Blade down at Build. Build swiftly raised his weapon to block, thrusting upward to counter the strike... only to be met with a powerful kick to his stomach, sending him stumbling back several feet.
"Ufff..." Build tried to shake off the damage from the kick that just landed, slashing diagonally at the dark Rider that was trying to press his advantage, while spinning a full 360 degrees to add some power into his counter attack.
Bang!
Even more sparks flew as Build's slash landed, causing Night Rogue to fall back a little.
"Hmm... Not too bad." Night Rogue tilted his head, glancing down at the faint marks Build had left on his chest armor. He scoffed, clearly expecting Build to fire back with a retort or some clever remark.
"Yah!" Build remained focused however, releasing a battle cry instead. He lunged towards Night Rogue and plunged his left foot forward, using his rabbit full-bottle powers to lash out with a powerful, spring-loaded kick, connecting and forcing Night Rogue back.
Night Rogue lashed back at Build with a claw like swipe, knocking him off balance as he flew past.
While Build was still stumbling, Night Rogue grabbed onto a large tree sapling and used it to whip himself back the way he had come, launching a double footed kick towards Build's head.
Build barely managed to dodge the attack, stumbling to the side as shards of tree bark scattered from the impact of Night Rogue's feet slamming into the tree behind him. Night Rogue clung to the tree, defying gravity as he stood horizontally on its surface.
Night Rogue attacked relentlessly, slashing down at Build with nearly feral ferocity, but Build countered each strike with precise stabs and upward slashes from his Drill Crusher.
Off to the side, Ryuga was busy beating down the Guardians and making sure that the guide and the family were making a getaway.
"Hurry and go!" Ryuga cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled after their retreating figures. Suddenly, he ducked with wide eyes, his bright orange clown hair puff swaying as a thick baton narrowly missed him.
"Get lost!" Ryuga caught the next swing, smashed the Guardian holding it, and used the baton to pummel a couple more of the pesky machines.
ICE STEAM!
Night Rogue finally leapt down from his strange perch and unleashed a finishing move. Ice formed on his Steam Blade as he executed intricate combos, each strike sending bursts of frost into Build's body with every hit.
"Ugh!.. What!?" Build's body stiffened visibly, a thin layer of ice spreading over him from each point where his armor had been struck. His movements slowed to a crawl as the ice fully encased him, completely freezing his motion and temporarily making him a sitting duck.
ELECTRIC STEAM!
Without a moment's pause, Night Rogue swapped out the bottle in his weapon, aimed, and unleashed a powerful beam of bright blue plasma and electricity at Build.
"Aaaaaarrrggg!"
Build's body convulsed violently as the electricity coursed through him. The ice restraining him quickly melted, and steam rose from his armor as the intense lightning superheated him.
Build was finally hurled away, tumbling across the dirt and leaves of the forest floor as smoke trailed behind him.
"You are not going to Hokuto."
As Kamen Rider Build struggled to stand, Night Rogue closed in on him. Summoning his strength, Build swung the Drill Crusher, but Night Rogue effortlessly blocked the attack and sent him crashing to the ground once more.
"...And neither are you."
Night Rogue looked away from the still tumbling Kamen Rider and turned his attention towards Ryuga, who was just finishing up with the last Guardian, he had managed to pummel all of them in a short amount of time.
He slowly raised his Steam Blade and pointed it towards Ryuga, preparing to make his move. Ryuga's eyes went wide with shock and fear for a moment, until a sudden look of mockery flashed across his face replacing any hint of worry.
Night Rogue tilted his head in confusion until he heard a motorcycle engine roaring to life and stiffened, quickly turning around.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Build summoned his bike, and just as Night Rogue turned to look, three blasts from the gun-form of the Drill Crusher were already headed his way. Night Rogue dodged, hitting the ground in a roll as Build sped past him with a wheelie.
The bike came to a stop beside Ryuga, Build handed him a spare helmet and patted the seat rapidly.
"Banjo, get on!"
They tore across the forest floor, kicking up a massive wave of dirt at Night Rogue. Realizing they were already beyond his reach, he spun toward a patch of high ground fifty yards beyond the walking trail and bellowed, "Stalk!"
Blood Stalk, who had been hiding behind a tree this entire time, stepped out into the open and loaded a full-bottle into his rifle.
RIFLE MODE
"Yeah, Yeah..." Blood Stalk answered him with about as much enthusiasm as a salted fish.
FULL BOTTLE!
STEAM ATTACK!
Blood Stalk took aim at the back of Ryuga and Build and took his shot.
Bang!
A missile-like projectile with a bunch of strange-looking steam surrounding it trailed behind the two.
"Oh shit!" Ryuga noticed the quickly approaching warhead. "Get a move on! C'mon man!"
Just as the missile was about to hit them, it suddenly veered off course, making a sharp 90-degree turn and soaring into the sky, its misty aura trailing behind. Then, it looped around and came hurtling straight toward Night Rogue!
Boom!
The steam missile exploded right at Night Rogue's feet, blasting him away into a couple of trees.
"Hell yeah!" Build cried out triumphantly as he and Ryuga launched the bike into the secret cave entrance leading to the path to Hokuto.
"Agggghhhh!" Ryuga screamed as they entered the tunnel at max speed. "I-it's dark in here! Whoa! Slow down!"
Night Rogue jumped to his feet and took a few steps towards the cave entrance before stopping, then looked to where Blood Stalk had just been. He was now nowhere to be found.
Night Rogue growled in anger at the unexpected betrayal.
"...Bastard..."