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Tony looked out at the chaotic battlefield and grinned with satisfaction.
Sure, it had been exhausting, but today had been more than worth it. Not only did he test out a bunch of new weapons, but he also gathered loads of data on Drive and Ixa. On top of that, he got to witness Dan's new powers firsthand. Totally worth it.
"Looks like the party's over."
Stark stroked his goatee as he stared out over the war-torn valley, then hit a big red button hidden in a corner of his mobile arsenal.
"Yeah, it's over."
On the battlefield, Dan was pounding the hell out of a rhino-fanged Bloodsucker. These low-grade vamps, mutated from regular ones, were no match at all for Dan's Wild Form.
"Dan, incoming high-energy strike!!"
Krim, who'd been assisting Dan in battle this whole time, suddenly gave a warning.
"What? The Bloodsuckers launched a nuke?!"
Suddenly, a wave of intense heat surged from behind. Dan spun around, just in time to see a red missile trailing blazing flames headed straight for the battlefield.
"Shit! Stark, what the hell are you doing?!"
With a shout, Dan immediately accelerated, grabbing the still-fighting Erik and hauling him backward.
A moment later, a deafening boom exploded like thunder in their ears. A massive shockwave hit them, and Dan felt his feet leave the ground as his whole body was thrown into the air.
"Cough cough! STARK!!"
Buried in a pile of rubble, Dan struggled to his feet and roared furiously.
Erik looked completely dazed too, his head still ringing from the blast, like his brain hadn't caught up with what just happened.
"Stark, what the hell were you thinking?!"
Dan canceled his transformation and stormed over, grabbing Tony by the collar and yelling in his face.
Tony smiled awkwardly, clearly trying to play it cool in front of an enraged Dan.
"Whoa whoa, calm down, buddy. I was just trying to end the fight quickly. And hey—didn't it work out pretty well?"
Dan turned around. The entire valley had been blown into a massive crater. The ground was scorched and even had patches of sand that had turned to glass.
"You seriously dropped a nuke, didn't you?"
Dan muttered, smacking his lips in disbelief.
"A nuke? Don't insult me like that. I'd never use something that poisons generations."
Tony pulled away from Dan's grip with a slightly disgusted look and straightened his tie with pride.
"That was a high-energy condensed bomb. I based it on the kick you used in that red armor—added some of my own tweaks, and then boosted its power a few times over."
Dan rolled his eyes. Damn… the guy saw his Rider Kick just once and already figured out how it worked? What is this dude—a monster?
Just then, Erik finally came back to his senses, his face serious.
"Not good. I think we've been played."
"What?""Why?"
Dan and Tony both turned to him in confusion.
Erik explained:
"They pulled a classic stalling tactic. These guys they sent after us were just suicide troops, meant to distract us while their real leadership slipped away."
At that, Dan and Tony both snapped to attention. Of course. Why would the enemy bring the fight all the way out here to this valley unless they had something to gain? They were never trying to win. They just wanted to hold them up.
Dan frowned.
"Sneaky bastards. We can't just sit around anymore. Mr. Belt!"
"Understood!"
Krim caught on immediately and summoned the Tridoron.
The three of them jumped into the car. At this point, stealth wasn't a concern. They gunned it straight for the Blood Lake.
BOOM—!
With an explosive crash, the red Tridoron smashed through a thick stone wall and burst into a hidden base. But the place was already abandoned.
Climbing out of the car, Erik narrowed his eyes, scanning the area.
Then his nose twitched.
"There's still vampire scent below us. They haven't fully evacuated!"
"Leave it to me."
Dan whipped out his black Wild Shift Car and transformed into Wild Form again.
"Tire Koukan! Rumble Dump!"
The yellow Rumble Dump tire swapped in, locking onto his arms.
Dan took a big step forward, engine roaring.
"Hold on tight—HRAH!"
He slammed his fist into the floor. The impact caved it in, level after level collapsing beneath them.
Even the toughest reinforced floor crumpled like paper before him.
"Fast descent!"
Another punch, and they smashed straight to the lowest level.
The three of them landed inside an underground lab.
The vampires inside froze, eyes wide with terror as the trio dropped from above like avenging angels.
Stark, totally unconcerned about appearances, grabbed onto Erik in pure panic.
He only let go after they landed safely, awkwardly clearing his throat.
"Ha… don't get the wrong idea, alright? I just… I'm not used to that kind of elevator."
"Intruders!!"
The vampires shrieked and charged at them.
Stark, still trying to shake off the awkwardness, jumped ahead before Dan could even react.
"Now, allow me to introduce my latest invention!"
He raised his hand. A repulsor cannon formed in his palm. The next moment, a blinding laser blasted out, carving a deep line through the swarm of vampires. Then another wide sweep—wiping out a huge chunk of them in seconds.
Dan's eyebrow twitched.
"A concentrated ultraviolet beam cannon?"
Stark paused.
"How'd you know that?"
Dan just smiled, not bothering to explain.
With Stark clearing the path, the regular vampires couldn't even get close.
In the center of the lab, Bashar was operating a console in front of a large container, muttering to himself nervously.
"Come on, come on—faster, damn it!"
BOOM—!
An explosion echoed nearby. The sounds of battle were closing in fast.
Garulu couldn't take it anymore.
"As much as I hate to say this, Degha, we need to buy him some time."
The towering Degha nodded and followed Garulu outside.
Meanwhile, Stark was having the time of his life, blasting vampires like a kid in an arcade.
"You damn bloodsucking freaks! Didn't see this coming, did you? You just ran into the genius Tony Stark—your worst nightmare!"
But just as he was laughing, a massive purple figure suddenly burst through the beam cannon's blast, completely unfazed.
"DIE—!"
It came charging like a boulder rolling downhill.
"Stark, look out!!"
Dan jumped in, lifted his Rumble Dump arm, and smashed his fist forward.
CLANG—!
The punch landed square on Degha's rock-hard body.
Degha sneered.
"Kamen Rider… I wasn't fully synced with my powers last time. But now? You're dead."
Dan frowned. He could feel it—this purple brute had gotten way stronger across the board.
"Then come and try me!"
He raised his right hand and punched again.
Degha didn't hold back either, swinging his massive fist like a hammer right toward Dan's head.
"....."