(Carter's P.O.V)

It's been exactly two months since our battle against Another Shinobi and our encounter with Kamen Rider Chiteka. Geo and I have had some time to adjust to our new lifestyles. Geo adjusted to his new abilities such as super-strength, speed and his enhanced-durability. Agni and Deva gave a hand whenever they were with us fighting some of those robots that the black-haired woman. 

As for myself, I managed to improve quite a bit on utilizing my element thanks to Gwain's training, allowing me to increase my use of my stronger rider forms from 25 minutes to an hour and 15 minutes, also giving me a chance to increase my uses of water-elemental technique and on my off-duty days, I took my time meeting up with Lanney to just chat. While I talking with her, I was able to learn that she didn't know what her element was.

At the moment, I was just lying on my bed looking at my gear, specifically my set of Ridewatches or rather the only two I have. I did have the Shinobi Mirridewatch at on point, but it was taken by Kamen Rider Chiteka so that still leaves me with two.

Before I was about to get up out of bed when I felt something cold touch my neck, causing me to jump back. The cold touch came from Deva as she was standing beside my bed.

Deva: *giggling* Wow, I didn't think you'd actually be sitting around after a couple of weeks.

Carter: *confused tone* Deva? What are doing here... and how did you get in my room?

Deva: Gwain invited us here, said she wanted to show you something. As for how I got in, Roselle let my in.

I then turned to see Roselle standing in the doorway, then I pulled myself up out of bed as I followed Deva towards a large open area in the castle where we met up with Ami, Geo and the gang to see a board with various papers tacked onto it.

Agni: So what's with the new board?

Carter: *shrugs* I wish I knew, Agni. I was busy trying to improve my elemental control to notice.

Lanney: Perhaps it's some kind request board for the knights and adventures of Gwain?

Deva: Or fliers for special events here at the castle?

???: Actually you got it right the first time.

We then turned around to see Gwain standing right behind us as she walked towards the board.

Gwain: Over the past month we've ben receiving a large number of requests and bounties for various adventurers as well as our kingdom's finest from various villages and cities outside of Gwain, however "this" request board itself is different.

Lanney: *confuse tone* What do you mean, Your Majesty?

Gwain: The requests on this board are special as they are sent by people dealing with "Unique Creatures."

Agni: *confused tone* Unique Creature? You mean like mythical beasts?

Gwain: *shakes her head* No. Either my knights or the adventures themselves would be able to handle those kind of monsters. The creatures that are specified in these requests are monsters which go back as far as the founding of this kingdom. Specifically when the Kamen Riders first appeared.

Agni: *surprised tone* Wait a second... You mean to tell us that this is...

Carter: *confused tone* A request board for Another Riders?

Gwain: Yes. These requests are for tackling Another Riders. However since Kamen Riders are the only capable of defeating Another Riders, Carter will be the only given permission to access the requests on this board.

Lanney: *concerned tone* But isn't Carter one of the Princess' Royal Bodyguards, wouldn't him taking requests taking him across Teora mean he wouldn't be able to fulfill his duty?

Gwain: I'm well aware of that. If that's the case, *points at Geo* then his duties will fall upon him to keep Ami safe until Carter returns. *crosses her arms* Any other questions?

Carter: Just one. While I am the only one meant for these missions, am I allowed to bring people with me on them?

Gwain: *nods* You can, but they must be from the people here or if you want outside help it must be run by me first and if you can trust them.

That seemed fair, since she would be the one receiving these requests it would be both her and my call to say who can and can't go. I then turned my attention back to the request board to see if any of them were legit. At the moment, I saw several requests that could appear like the monsters were Another Riders but the problem was that some of them weren't specific on the details. I wasn't sure which one to pick until my eyes stumbled across a specific one in the middle.

"To the Queen of Gwain,

I know you're a busy woman dealing with other issues at the moment, but I must insist that you send help to my people. There is a humanoid-like monster which is not only disrupting my shipping trade, but also killing thousands. I don't care what or who you send, but I ask that you get them here as soon as possible!

Sincerely from the Mayor of Marina Bay, Arthur Marine'ucard"

While I wasn't sure where this place was or anything about the mayor of the city specified in this request, I did see a picture of what was left at the crime scene they sent of a mark left behind by the monster. A mechanical human skull with wings made with Teoran blood.

Carter: *takes the request sheet of the board* I'd like to take this request, if that's alright.

As I handed the request to Gwain, she seemed kind of surprised by what I had chosen.

Gwain: "Marina Bay?" Are you sure?

Carter: *nods* Yes, I am... *changes to confused tone* though I am a bit confused. What exactly is it?

Lanney: From what I've heard, Marina Bay is one of the largest trade-port cities in all of Teora. They often transport large amounts of cargo from all over the world and from various large corporations.

Deva: Yeah, I heard that you can find a lot of stuff there. From rare delicacies to elemental movement books and even rare items that can affect your abilities and powers if you're really lucky.

Gwain: *agitated tone* Yes, and their mayor is also known to be a notorious penny-pincher when it comes to managing his defenses.

Carter: *confused tone* What do you mean?

Gwain: Mr. Marine'ucard has been know to be cheap when it comes to his soldiers. Most of them are either weak mercenaries or underpaid workers. The fact that he's trying to hire someone from my kingdom isn't surprising. He'd rather pay some adventurer a sum of money

Agni: *confused tone* If he's that cheap of a person, why do people even work for the guy?

Gwain: He pays well for those of his workers both in port and at sea, so most of them either just grit and bare it or turn a blind eye.

I then clentch my right hand tightly after Gwain mention that. People turning a blind eye just because of how much they get paid... though I can't say that it isn't something that happens back on Earth.

Carter: *serious tone* Even if that's the case, there's still an Another Rider loose there. I can't just turn a blind eye to those people.

Gwain: *sighs* Very well. I'll approve this request. I will give you a week to prepare for your trip as well as find any allies you'd like to accompany you.

I nodded in response as I went off with the gang wondering who and what I should bring. I looked into Marina Bay to see that it was a two week hour trip by foot and two days by vehicle if we had one. Since it was gonna be a long walk, I took my time to get the supplies I needed for the trip, some of it coming from Lanney as thanks for helping Ami. As I was packing the bags for the trip, I was glad as I was planning on inviting Lanney Deva and Agni... unfortunately two days later things would hit a snag on that plan after meeting up with the gang at school.

Carter: *shocked tone* Eh?! Agni's on jury duty?!

Deva: *sighs* I'm afraid so. Apparently someone accused him of trying to sneak into the girl's locker room and unfortunately thanks to the principal, he'll be stuck picking up trash for the next two weeks after school.

Lanney: That's terrible.

Carter: *nods* Yeah. I mean it's true Agni can be a little... quirky when it comes to girls, but even I would say that he's innocent. *sighs* And I was actually planning on all four of us going since I can't bring Ami or Geo with.

Deva: *shrugs* I know Carter, but thanks to "this" we might have to go with one man short. Unless you can find someone that Queen Gwain's okay with you bringing with us on our mission.

Lanney: *curious tone* Speaking of which, did you have a plan on how we're actually going to Marina Bay?

Carter: I had a few routes in mind on getting there quickly, but since Agni isn't gonna be coming with us we're gonna have to take the paths located in the more mountainous regions toward the city.

Deva: *confused tone* Why the mountains of all places? Aren't there more quicker paths than that?

Carter: *nods* There are, but they're much more difficult to get through unless someone possess Fire or Light Magic to shine through paths.

Lanney: And from what I heard, there are places where you can get lost in deep forrest or get stuck in swamps down there.

Carter: Which is why I chose the mountainous routes as a last resort... Though it's not much better.

Deva: If you don't know the right routes, they are.

I was still wondering if there was another route we could take, however considering the threat of the Another Rider in Marina Bay as well as the time to take to get there alternatively, I didn't have many other options to get there besides car, bike or plane and I don't have neither the money to get one or rent a cab.

I was so focused on how I was gonna get the gang there, I wasn't watching where I was going until I bumped into someone by complete accident and fell backwards. 

Carter: *apologetic tone* Sorry about that. I was lost in thought so I didn't see you coming.

???: That's alright. I should have been looking where I was going.

The person I bumped into turned out to be a teenage girl with long green hair, green eyes and a school uniform same as the one Lanney was wearing and she had a unique pair of headphones resting above her eyes. She helped me back up to my feet.

???: *looks at Carter* Hmm... You don't look like a student at this college.

Carter: I'm not. I'm actually one of the Princess' bodyguards. Escorting her is part of my duties and when I'm not on-duty, I can hangout with my friends.

???: *curious tone* Hmm... I see.

Carter: *realization* Oh, where are my manners? *extends his hand* My name's Carter.

???: Marlow. *shake his hand*

Carter: Nice to meet you. *looks at her face* Are you okay? You look like your troubled by something.

Marlow:.. *serious tone* I was busy thinking about the troublemaker that appeared here two months prior. *sigh* And no seems to be paying attention to this menace.

Carter: *curious tone* What makes you think they're a menace?

Marlow: *serious tone* I saw him! They were running alongside a group of machines when one of them attacked me on the roof of the college and the boy running alongside them had a black hooded cloak, white hair and a visor.

Carter: *confusing tone* Wait... White hair, a hooded cloak and a visor?... You know that kind of sounds like a friend of mine. Geo, if I remember correctly? *shrugs* Then again, I was there so I can relate. *waves* Nice meeting you, Marlow but I've got to plan ahead. A request from Her Majesty in all.

I was starting to walking away with the group, Marlow literally rush right up in my face causing me to jump back a bit. 

Marlow: *serious tone* You say that this "Geo" person was here?

Carter: *confused tone* Yes?

Marlow: *serious tone* I know you're busy, but I need to ask you a few questions... about your "friend."

Carter: *curious tone* What kind of questions?

Marlow: *serious tone* They're about how much you actually know this Geo person.

Carter: Well... I did meet him  a couple months ago. He's quite the person to hold a conversation with, he's very kind sort person, pretty selfless too as he's often protecting the princess. Though since he is kind of secretive.

Marlow: *serious tone* And did you never stop to think if that was nothing more than an act? What if he's just using you to get what he wants?

Carter: *confused tone* Why would he do that? He doesn't seem like the kind of person. If anything, he just a guy looking for excitement in his life.

Marlow: *serious tone* Which is what I'm trying to tell you. That could be just an act to loll you into a false sense of security! This person could be a menace as I saw him escaping with those robots.

Carter: *sighs* Marlow... You seem like a nice person, but you can't say that for sure. Are you familiar with the phrase, "there are two sides to every coin?"

Marlow: *confused tone* Yes, but what does that have to do with this?

Carter: *serious tone* Much like the coin, there are two sides to every story. You've only seen "your" side of this story, but you don't know anything about "his" side of the story.

Marlow: *serious tone* "His" side? *shakes her head* How does that make any sense?

I then took a sigh as I was wondering how I could explain Geo's innocents to Marlow, but right now I needed to think on who I could help support Lanney, Deva and myself on my mission... Then I had a bit of a thought.

Carter: Okay... How about you and I make a deal?

Marlow: *confused tone* What kind of deal?

Carter: My friends and I are about to go off to Marina Bay for a mission, but due to certain events I have an open spot on my group for it. So here's the deal, I want you to join us on this mission. Your speed could be an invaluable and in turn, I will answer any questions you have towards Geo to the best of my abilities.

Marlow: *surprised tone* You will?

Carter: *nods* Of course.

Marlow: Alright then. When should I meet up with you?

Carter: We'll need you to meet up with Her Majesty first. We need to confirm you for our team's roster and we have three days left to prepare. 

Marlow nodded in response as the two of us along with the gang to meet up with Gwain and add Marlow to the mission. After that, I spent most of my time preparing for this mission, both with new techniques and hanging with my friends while learning more about Marina Bay. When the day came around we all met up by the entrance of Castle Gwain. Lanney was a little nervous about this mission while Deva seemed pretty excited to take part in a mission. Marlow was keen on making it to Marina Bay.

I also noticed the outfit she was wearing light green one-piece suit with a dark green jacket with light green outline and sleeves that cover her hands.

It was a pretty cool looking one to be sure, but I didn't have time to think about it. As we set off on our journey to reach Marina Bay. In all honesty, it was kind of a peaceful trip. Asides from a few attacks from bandits and a bit of small attacks from wild animals we didn't have much trouble as I thought we would. The more difficult part came from climbing along the mountain route as there wasn't many good places to set up camp and overwhelming amounts of monsters we had to fight so we had to spend three days walking through the mountains without a full amount of sleep... Not our best decision.

By the time we got across the region, most of us were dead tired myself included. After we got some time to breath for a moment, we decided to set up camp a few miles outside of the mountain range and get some sleep. 

By the time we woke up and continued on our journey, we were about 3/4's of the way there. After a few days later, we managed to get a glimpse at the large port city of Marina Bay from afar. A group of large skyscrapers resting beside a bustling port and marketplace.

Deva: *panting* Finally!... We made it...

Carter: *curious tone* Are you okay, Deva? You sound out of breath.

Deva: *panting* Why wouldn't... I be? We've been walking... for two weeks and... we had to fight through a ton of monsters... with three days without sleeps!

Lanney: *concerned tone* Well... perhaps we should consider taking another break. After all, the city's not too far from where we are now. As we are now, it shouldn't take us longer than half an hour to reach Marina Bay.

Marlow: *nods* Yes. That would be for the best. The four of us are still a little fatigued from our journey here. A brief rest would be for the best as if we were to go right now then we'd likely be at risk of hurting others or ourselves.

Carter: *nods* Right. We'll take a small break and we should be able to handle the situation once we get the-.

Before I could finish, we then heard an explosion coming from the harbor and smoke rising by a nearby ship. I didn't know that if it was an accident or an Another Rider attacking, but I did know that whatever was going on down there couldn't be good. I quickly rushed towards the city's harbor with Lanney, Deva and Marlow not too far behind. When I arrived, the place was ablaze thanks to some ignited drums full of fuel and a fire on a tanker ship. The workers and crew were literally scrambling for safety as two workers were backed up against the tanker ship while a Roidmude like monster bearing the resemblance to Machine Chaser.

???: OBJECTIVE: Destroy every Teoran present.

With the actions of a robot combined with the reflexes of a ninja, the monster then began trying to tear into the workers there. Without any reasonable thought, I rushed into the line of fire and blocking each blow before grabbing their right arm to hold them back.

Carter: *looks at the workers, serious tone* Run! Hurry up and get out of here!

Without another word, the workers quickly rushed out of sight with Lanney helping to get the others to safety. Another Chaser then managed to toss me aside before I managed to equip my driver and then activated my Ridewatch.

*Electronic Beeping* Digits!

I then quickly attached the watch before I took my henshin pose.

Carter: *serious tone* Henshin!

Then I spun the driver and began my transformation.

Rider Time! (Techno Rhythm) Kamen Rider Di-git-us! Digitus!

After transforming I quickly drew my Jikan Crosser as I began striking with my blade and slashing at Another Chaser, but my attacks were barely hitting them as somehow his reaction speed managed to out pace my attacks. I was able to land a few lucky blows, but as I stand now I couldn't even touch him. As for Another Chaser, he was literally smacking me around. They almost managed to literally break a hole in my stomach had it not been for Marlow and her swift kick to the head which made them skid back a bit.

Carter: *surprised tone* Marlow? What are you doing?

Marlow: *serious tone* Keeping you alive. *looks at the tanker and the drums* And that won't be the case unless we get this fire under control.

Carter: Don't worry, after we deal with Another Chaser, Deva and I can use our powers to put out the fires.

That would have been easier said then done. Even though with Marlow's help so I could get some more hits in, I was so caught up in taking down Another Chaser I had forgotten about a certain ability which opponent's like them possess and I didn't remember it until it was too late. With a swift spin and a brief flash, time for us then slowed to a crawl as Another Chaser walked toward us with his axe ready to slice us up when sparks began to fly from their body briefly stopping him.

Another Chaser: ALERT: Physical damage has exceeded 35% Heavy Acceleration now operating at 63% Risk of counterattack: 65% SUGGESTED ACTION: Tactical Retreat and recovery.

With that Another Chaser ran out of sight before time flow returned to normal. After de-transforming, both me and Deva then turned our attention to the fire itself. Using both her ice magic and my water magic to extinguish the flames, both from the barrels and on the tanker ship.

Carter: *sigh of relief* That was close.

Marlow: *curious tone* So that was an Another Rider? I had heard they were powerful, but I didn't expect them to manipulate the flow of time.

Carter: Well... if anything, their powers are one of many enemies who can manipulate time. Fortunately they're easily counter-able so long as we have the necessary gear or abilities.

Lanney: Why couldn't you beat this one?

Marlow: Simple. The Another Riders are copies of the original Heisei Riders. In order to defeat them we require a Ridewatch which bears the power of a certain Rider or the Rider themselves is the one to beat them.

Carter: *nods* That's right. And unfortunately I don't have the Chaser Ridewatch so that makes things a little tough.

Deva: So can't we just find it?

Carter: It's possible, but if I'm being honest I have no idea where it "could" be. *pulls out the Cross-Z Ridewatch* If these Ridewatches have been around for a long time, then their either lost or could have been passed down from generations?

???: Umm... Excuse me? I hate to interrupt you four, but would you happen to be the ones who accepted the request the mayor?

Lanney: *nods* Yes. That would be us.

As I turned to face the owner of the voice, they turned out to be a sharply-dressed man with short yellow hair and matching color eyes. He was trying to hold a calm demeanor, but the look on his face was very nervous as if he were scared before breathing a sigh of relief.

???: *relieved tone* Oh, thank goodness! You have no idea how much this means to us! *surprised tone* Oh right, where are my manners? My name is Alexander McFinlockland Gar'dal, but you can call me Alex if that's too much of a mouthful to say. It's nice to finally get some help here.

Deva: *shrugs* Don't worry, we got this.

Marlow: *looks around* So where's Mr. Marine'ucard? You'd think the least he could do is meet up with us and explain the current situation with the Another Rider.

Alex: *shrugs* Well if it's the mayor you four are looking for... I'm afraid your out of luck. He's off at a business conference over-seas and won't be back til next week.

Deva: *grabs Alex's shirt collar, shocked tone* What?! We walked all the way here to deal with his Another Rider problem and he just takes off to a conference like nothing ever happened?! Do you have ANY idea how long it took us to get here?!

Carter: *nervous tone* Deva, calm down! I know you're annoyed, but don't take it out on Alex. We just met the guy and he's probably got a lot of work to do.

Alex: *nervous yet serious tone* No kidding! He named me "Acting Mayor" until he gets back and I have to deal with not only the panic from the people but also the massive lack of workers to manage the docks since this... "thing's" been making a mess of the port!

Marlow: *confused tone* Wait, did you say "lack of workers?" From what I've heard, Marina Bay's still one of the largest port with a high worker count.

Alex: *dusts himself off* Well don't always believe what you hear. Ever since that freak started showing up, our dock workers morale has been seriously dropping and with the recent murders, a lot of them have been quitting their jobs. Those who didn't are tirelessly trying to deal with the large amount of ships coming in and out of port and can barely keep up, leaving the docks in a complete mess.

Lanney: *concerned tone* That sound horrible!

Alex: Believe me, I know. Before I ended up becoming "Acting Mayor", I was a Foremen at the docks, trying to keep everything in order. *points at the ship behind us* Believe it or not, I was in charge of helping to load this tanker ship with all this petrol a few months back before getting my new position. *groans* I'm still counting my lucky stars that I didn't loose my mind with all the ruckuses and accidents along the way.

Carter: *nods, kind tone* Don't worry, Alex. My friend and I will stop this Another Rider and help you get things back to normal for you.

Alex: *smiles* I appreciate it. 

After that, Alex then gave us a tour of Marina Bay as well as the history behind how became the large port city it is now. Apparently this place was a small fishing village until a small group of business men came by and converted it into a port to help transports goods to and from Teora and it turns out one of these businessmen was Arthur's Grandfather, Randal Marine'ucard.

Marlow: *curious tone* So Arthur's Grandfather turned this place into trade port? 

Alex: *nods* Yep. In the earlier days, they had difficult landing contracts as most companies across the seas at the time weren't interested in small port towns like Marina Bay. That is until our current mayor took up the position then things really went into overdrive. He put in so many successful business promotions he managed to bring in a lot of clients from not only across Teora, but all over the world. Heck he even managed to convince the CEO of Moon Tech to lend us some Nav. equipment since we needed to find our ways across the vast ocean expanse, but to help us avoid conflicts with monsters.

Carter: *confused tone* Moon Tech? What's that?

Deva: *surprised tone* Wait, you haven't heard of Moon Tech?

Carter: I'm not from Gwain, so I can't say that I have. *curious tone* So what is Moon Tech?

Alex: Truth be told, it's the largest tech company in Gwain. If you want to find any high-end electronic such as phone, headset, computer, gaming systems and many others like it, then you can bet that Moon Tech will be suppling it. Their CEO is quite the business women and both her and Mr. Marine'ucard are actually quite the business partners, in fact most of the ships use Navigational Tech provided from Moon Tech which were acquired by our mayor.

Before we could ask any more questions, the sound of wood colliding with the ground interrupted us. Without another word we rushed towards the sound only to find that some workers had accidentally dropped some crates.

Worker #1: *nervous tone* Mr. Gar'dal?! I'm so sorry! It just slipped when we were moving the supplies.

Alex: *sighs* That's quite alright. How bad is the damage?

Worker #2: Well asides from a bit of broken wood, the contents inside should be in good condition.

I took a sigh of relief. Considering their current situation, the last thing that they need right now is some set backs or damage cargo, but then our eyes soon caught something faintly glowing under a small crate's cracked lid.

Deva: *confused tone* Am I the only one seeing that something's glowing underneath that crate?

Alex: No. I see it too. *looks at Worker #1* Where did this crate come from? From the looks of it, I don't think that was part of this ship's cargo.

Worker #1: *shrugs* We don't know, sir. This ship came from Vandleus, but we don't know who loaded the ship as we couldn't see their faces properly.

Alex: *sighs* Well we won't find out just by standing here. *looks at Worker #2* Open it.

Upon his request, the crate was indeed opened but what was inside is what caught us by surprise.

Lanney: *surprised tone* Is that... what I think it is?

Carter: *nods* Yes. This is the Ridewatch we were looking for. *curious tone* Though... how'd it end up on another country?

Alex: *shrugs* Who knows, but it found it's way back here and with it, you can stop that monster.

We nodded in response before collecting the Chaser Ridewatch. After that we began looking for Another Chaser to find him and stop them. Unfortunately we didn't have to, "they" found "us." Catching us off-guard, Another Chaser managed to use his Density Shift to slow us all down... well "almost" all of us. Thanks to the power of the Chaser Ridewatch, I was shielded from the affects of the Heavy Acceleration.

Carter: Sorry there, "buddy" but this isn't gonna be like last time.

???: Indeed. "This" time none you will escape.

I then turned around to see a cloaked figure walking towards us, unaffected by the effects of the Density Shift. Which was confusing as no humans or Teorans couldn't be immune unless they have means of resisting it. 

Carter: *confused tone* Who are you?

???: Who I am isn't important, but what will happen to your friends might be more important to you. Give me the watch.

Carter: *confused tone* What? Why would I give you the Chaser Ridewatch?

???: If you give me that watch, then I will spare you as well as your friends.

Another Chaser: FALURE TO DO SO WILL RESULT IN TERMINATION. BOTH IN CARTER GRANDAL AND ALLIES.

Carter: *serious tone* That won't happen! Even if I wanted to, I would never forsake anyone's life. Not my friends or anyone, so the Ridewatch stays with me.

???: *chuckles* Is that so? Well that's a pity. *grabs his cloak* You don't have a choice in the matter.

As the figure tossed the cloak to the side, my eyes widened with shock as the cloak floated to the ground and revealing the identity of the figure... and I knew things had taken a turn for the worse.

Another Drive: Now then, shall we begin?

Without word, the two Another Riders then charged at me as I did my best to get some breathing room. When I did I quickly pulled out my Ziku Driver as well as my Ridewatch before activating both of them.

Digits! Chaser!

As I quickly equipped them to my Driver, I let my guard down and I got hit in the side by Another Drive and sent flying back by Another Chaser. I skidded to the ground as I coughed up a bit of blood, but that didn't stop me as I pull myself up from the dirt.

Carter: *does his transformation pose* Henshin! *spins his driver*

Next Time on Mirai Gwain Riders!

Alex: *nervous tone* How'd things get even more worse?

???: At last we meet, Kamen Rider Digits.

Carter: *surprised tone* A temple for a Kamen Rider?

Start Your Engine!