As the capsule cracked open, the Rider image within dissolved into Hoshigaki Sora's body.
The moment the power entered him, he could feel it — his body, rapidly growing stronger.
His long-neglected frame, worn down by years of desk work and irregular sleep, was now filling with energy. Flabby edges shrank, his vision sharpened—he could see clearly without his glasses for the first time in years.
This power...
Sora looked down at his changing body, stunned. Strength was flooding through him.
That clean, invigorated sensation—he'd felt it once before, back when he was young, healthy, alive. Now, thanks to the system, it was back.
His muscles were taut with new strength. His movements felt light. His breathing flowed smooth and effortless. Every burden on his body—vanished in an instant.
And this was before transformation. Just the raw buff. What kind of Rider power had he pulled to cause this?
Eyes filled with anticipation, Sora checked to see which Rider's power he'd drawn.
And then… he fell silent.
A tech-heavy helmet image hovered in his mind's eye. The belt bore battery-like indicators, and the three antennas protruding from the helmet marked it clearly as artificial combat armor.
"…It's G3X?" he muttered, recognizing the Rider at a glance.
Kamen Rider G3-X, from the second Heisei-era series: Agito.
A man-made Rider system, designed by the police to fight monsters. Unlike Riders chosen by destiny or evolution, G3X was engineered—no mystical force involved.
But as a trade-off for its power, the armor put a massive burden on the wearer. Once you suited up, agility was the first casualty.
That said, what it lacked in speed, it made up for in raw defense and firepower.
Below the helmet image, a countdown ticked steadily.
167:59:59.
A full week.
Sora did a quick mental calculation. So the powers refresh every seven days.
What is this, some weekly gacha mechanic? My Rider powers reset every week?
He shook the thought away for now. The important thing was: G3X was more than enough to handle the current threat.
After all, G3X was specifically created to counter the Unknowns—superhuman beings forged by the Black God to eliminate humans capable of becoming Agito.
And the Black God? Practically a creator deity. The Unknowns were basically divine agents.
If G3X could fight them, then the Antimatter Legion's foot soldiers were manageable by comparison.
At the very least—he wasn't in immediate danger.
And if G3X wasn't viable, then Hikawa Makoto's story arc would've ended with a gravestone and weeds taller than his memorial.
"…Actually, maybe I should say, good ol' clumsy Kanagami-san."
Sora chuckled dryly, then his expression turned sharp. "Hen...Shin!"
A flash of blue light. Sleek, tech-heavy armor materialized around him in an instant—crushing weight slammed onto his frame.
And the first thing he felt was—
Heavy. Really heavy. Like strapping on hundreds of pounds of metal.
"If I hadn't just gotten that stat boost, I'd be flat on the ground."
Luckily, his freshly upgraded body could handle it. The armor was still burdensome—but manageable.
This is fine.
More data flowed into his mind: G3X's specs, features, protocols. He now had full access to all its systems, including the internal AI assistant.
Melee weapons could be regenerated if broken. Ammo for ranged weapons would be automatically restocked—after he took the suit off.
If the armor itself was damaged, however, re-equipping would take time.
"Which, let's be real, would probably mean I'm already dead by then."
G3X could withstand impacts over fifteen tons. Anything that could seriously damage it… would probably turn him into a red mist anyway.
Not that he expected to run into that today.
Alright then…
Everything was ready. Time to face those Antimatter grunts outside.
Sora exited the system space.
He had a battle to finish.
Voidrangers.
Once-living warriors, reforged in the "Crucible of War," now wielders of the power called Destruction.
Antimatter coursed through their reconstructed bodies, negative particles churning inside them.
They were the foot soldiers of the Antimatter Legion—manifestations of ruin, driven by pure instinct to destroy.
And now, they'd found lingering life on this planet.
The moment they saw Hoshigaki Sora, their shrunken, reactor-sized brains made a snap decision.
As extensions of Nanook's will, Voidrangers did not permit embers of civilization to persist.
Their arm-blades shimmered with volatile negative energy—capable of slicing through steel, hulls, flesh, even mountain rock.
But then—
A flash of blue light engulfed Sora.
Their blades struck the glowing barrier—and bounced off harmlessly.
The energy that could cleave through warships… stopped dead.
Raaagh?!
The Voidrangers recoiled, confused. But a new sound began to rise—a low mechanical hum, like an engine coming to life.
"You think transformation's just for show, bastards?!"
WHIRRRRRR!!
Sora's shout echoed, joined by the harsh mechanical grind of G3X powering up.
It sounded like a chainsaw ripping through wood—an ancient, brutal noise the Voidrangers had heard countless times before, in civilizations they'd already destroyed.
So why… why was it here?
Sora lunged. The G3X suit moved as one with him. A blade-shaped weapon attached to his arm cleaved through a Voidranger's waist.
WHIRRRR!!!
It didn't even scream.
The high-frequency blade of the GS-03 Destroyer buzzed to life. A vibrating weapon capable of slicing through reinforced materials at the molecular level.
Two million micro-vibrations per minute—able to dismantle steel, bone, flesh, and armor alike.
The Voidranger's body, forged from antimatter and rage, crumbled like paper before it.
Golden fluid—bloodlike—splattered across Sora's visor.
The armor's internal AI wiped the liquid away automatically.
Without slowing, Sora pushed forward through the opening he'd carved. Once in a more defensible position, he dropped the Destroyer, pulled a suitcase-shaped object from his back.
The moment the weapon hit the ground—it dissolved into light.
The remaining Voidranger didn't hesitate. It turned on Sora, blade poised to strike again.
But by now, Sora had already unfolded the suitcase.
With a thought, the lock mechanisms responded.
Beep-beep-beep: 1, 3, 2.
"Unlock complete."
The Voidranger turned—and was met by the sight of multiple black gun barrels, all trained directly at its face.
Raaaagh?!
It blinked, confused—looking at its own blade, then back at Sora's new weapon:
GX-05 Cerberus.
Sora smirked coldly.
"Sorry, pal. Times have changed."
DAKADAKADAKA!!!
The tri-barrel Gatling gun roared to life, spewing 30 high-velocity anti-armor rounds per second—a storm of destruction.
The bullets ripped through the Voidranger's body, tearing it apart faster than it could react.
There was no fanfare. Just the brutal, mechanical rhythm of firepower doing what firepower does.
Victory, in the language of lead.
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T/N: woah