Gotchard in DC Ch 18

The rest of the day goes on as it always does. But Isaac can't shake his impending afternoon with Kara at the library. He knows that Kara is Supergirl, and he doesn't know what she wants from him.

"Last night, National City PD cracked the missing minors case, arresting a group of Shadow Gang members. Hundreds of missing minors were rescued. According to our reporter..."

During lunch, Isaac sits in his usual spot in the cafeteria, enjoying his lunch and watching the news. He had a feeling the cops would bust that case wide open.

After capturing the Shadow Gang and rescuing the missing minors, the police announced the progress of the previous gang cases Isaac submitted. They urged parents of missing kids to contact them.

At the same time, the police officially renamed the "Goggles Armored Man" to "Kamen Rider Gotchard," calling him an enthusiastic citizen of National City. Isaac feels relieved that he no longer bears that weird name.

"Did you see that? National City finally has its own superhero! And Kamen Rider Gotchard sounds better than Goggles Armored Man, don't you think?"

Compared to Isaac, who only feels relieved, Kara, sitting opposite him, seems excited. She puts down her fork, her eyes sparkling as she looks at him, seeking his approval.

"Yeah, Kamen Rider Gotchard sounds better than Goggles Armored Man."

Understanding Kara's thoughts, Isaac puts on a thoughtful expression. He nods and smiles.

"Isaac, do you think Kamen Rider Gotchard might be among us? Maybe he's at school, or maybe someone we know?"

Kara loses her appetite. She rests her chin on her hand, her gaze sweeping over Isaac.

"Well, who knows? Superheroes are always elusive."

Facing Kara's glances, Isaac suppresses tension, shrugs, and feigns nonchalance.

"It would be great if I could meet him. I have questions I want to ask him."

Kara sighs softly, withdrawing her gaze from Isaac, her eyes filled with longing.

Isaac does not respond to Kara's words. He smiles and continues eating. He doesn't want others to know he is Kamen Rider Gotchard.

"Hurry! It's almost the end of the semester, and it's hard to grab a spot in the library. We need to go early."

After finishing lunch and tidying up, Kara checks the time and urges Isaac. She worries they will not find seats if they arrive late.

Isaac nods, following her out of the cafeteria. The sunlight stretches their shadows on the campus path.

The night air is crisp and cool, the moon shining like a spotlight on the empty streets. Isaac, feeling the familiar surge of power, transforms into Kamen Rider Gotchard.

He's already got his Alchemy creatures out there, doing their thing, but National City is a big place. Even with his tiny helpers, Isaac still needs to do the rounds, covering as much ground as possible to keep the city safe.

Cruising down a shadowy alley, something catches his eye. It's the same purple-black-haired girl from last night, the one from his dream. Weird.

She's in the arms of some dude who's acting super sketchy. Her arms dangle lifelessly, and she doesn't look asleep. More like she's out cold or something.

Okay, this is suspicious. But Isaac's learned to be careful. Maybe it's from hanging around X Wizard or maybe it's his newfound love for Tokusatsu stories. Either way, he's not rushing in. "Let's see what this guy is up to."

He tails the man, keeping his distance. The guy heads to an old apartment building that looks like it's been abandoned for ages. The man jimmies the lock, then carries the girl inside.

Isaac doesn't want to risk making noise by going through the front door, so he relies on the Steamhopper Form's jumping skills and his Beast Fist training. He parkours his way up the side of the building, hopping from window to window.

Just as he reaches a window covered by some ratty old curtains, a voice pops into his head. "Save me..." It's a faint whisper, trembling with fear.

That's it. Isaac's had enough. No more waiting. He smashes through the window without a second thought.

[SHATTER!]

Glass flies everywhere as Isaac drops into the room. His eyes immediately land on the man he'd been following. The dude's got a dagger and is about to stab it down.

The girl with the purple-black hair is on the floor. The dude is standing right over her! Red patterns cover the floor around her, like some kind of creepy ritual site.

Oh, hell no! Isaac's eyes narrow. He moves faster than anyone can track, appearing next to the guy and delivering a punch to his gut. He holds back, not wanting to turn the guy into paste. The man doubles over, dropping the dagger with a CLANG.

"Alright, time to improvise." Isaac chants an Alchemy spell, transmuting the dagger and some metal scraps into metal bars. He binds the man's hands and feet, making sure he's not going anywhere. Once he's sure the guy is secure, Isaac rushes over to the girl.

"Wake up. You okay?"

He gives her a quick once-over, checking for any injuries. Seeing nothing obvious, he kneels down, gently shakes her shoulder, and tries to rouse her.

Her eyelids flutter. She seems to hear him, but she doesn't wake up.

Isaac frowns, scanning the room. Red patterns, weird symbols, burning candles... The whole place gives off a seriously bad vibe.

Isaac gently scoops up the girl. He's got to get her out of here. This place gives him the creeps. He wants to get her to a hospital, let the professionals check her over.

"It's you. Thank you."

Just then, the girl stirs. Her fingers twitch, her eyelids flutter open, and she slowly focuses on Isaac's face. A look of recognition crosses her features.

"You're safe," Isaac says, his voice steady and reassuring. "Whatever you want to say, let's get out of here first."

He gives her a nod, cutting off whatever she was about to say. With a burst of steam, he leaps out of the window, landing gracefully on the ground outside the apartment.

But Isaac doesn't stop there. He keeps running, putting as much distance as possible between them and that freaky building. Finally, when he's sure they're a safe distance away, he slows to a halt and gently sets the girl down. She seems to have regained some of her composure.

"You okay?" Isaac asks.

Smaphone is already on the case, having dialed the police and sent them the recorded video. The cops will be here soon to pick up the cultist. Satisfied with that, Isaac turns his attention back to the girl, his voice low with concern.

"Thank you for saving me. If it weren't for you, I might have..."

The girl nods, trying for a smile, but the memory of her adoptive mother being murdered flashes through her mind. Her voice cracks, and she can't finish the sentence.

"Um, you doing alright?" Isaac asks, his voice laced with worry.

Seeing the girl's sorrow, Isaac feels awkward. He's never been great at comforting people, especially girls. He's just not that kind of guy. He awkwardly reaches out and pats her on the head, like he's seen in TV dramas.

He's got a ton of questions for her. Why was she kidnapped? Why did she show up in his dream? What does she need his help with?

But looking at her right now, all those questions seem impossible to ask. So, he just blurts out the first thing that comes to mind, a simple, clumsy word of concern.

"Thank you. I feel much better, Rachel," the girl replies softly.

And so, Isaac, the wannabe tokusatsu hero, stands silently with the sad girl, unsure of what to do next. After a few moments, the girl seems to get herself together. She looks up at Isaac, her voice calm.

"What?" Isaac asks, confused.

Looking at the girl, who's clearly been through hell but is trying to keep it together, Isaac's mind is racing. He can't quite process everything that's happening.

"Rachel," the girl says, "my name is Rachel Roth."

Realizing Isaac's confusion, the girl, or rather Rachel, clarifies.

"Oh, oh, hello, Rachel. I'm Kamen Rider Gotchard," Isaac replies.

Hearing Rachel's words, Isaac snaps back to reality. The girl just introduced herself! He extends his hand, ready to introduce himself too.

Of course, he doesn't give her his real name. This is the DC world, after all. You can't be too careful.

"Rachel, were you the one in my dream last night?"

Looking at Isaac's outstretched hand, Rachel tilts her head, a confused expression on her face. The atmosphere turns a little awkward. After a moment, Isaac awkwardly pulls his hand back.

To avoid making things even weirder, Isaac quickly changes the subject, diving into the questions he couldn't bring himself to ask earlier, his voice serious.

"..."

Facing Isaac's question, Rachel doesn't answer, but simply nods.

"So, what do you need my help with? And is the cultist who kidnapped you connected to all this?" Isaac asks, his mind working overtime.

As Isaac's tone turns serious, his mind races. He suddenly suspects that Rachel's kidnapping is more than just a random act. It's probably connected to whatever she needs his help with.

"That guy killed my adoptive mother and wanted to capture me. He said it was to summon their great master to this world to purify... or rather, conquer it," Rachel says, her voice hoarse, as she recounts her story to Isaac. "Actually, I reached out to someone else before you, but that guy caught up to me before they could arrive, and I had to keep running."

A flicker of pain crosses her eyes. Rachel looks down, her voice barely a whisper as she explains her experiences.

"I'm sorry," Isaac says softly. "But, a great master? So that dude really was a cultist. And he said 'they,' so it's not just one person, but a whole group, or some kind of organization. Okay, I get it. You're in serious danger. Those cultists aren't going to give up easily. So, what's the plan?"

After apologizing for bringing up painful memories, Isaac starts to analyze the situation. He's beginning to understand why Rachel sought him out.

Considering Rachel's dream-walking abilities, combined with the fact that this is the DC world, Isaac figures that the cult trying to capture her probably has some supernatural abilities of their own.

That's probably why Rachel came to him instead of the police. After all, when you're dealing with supernatural threats, ordinary cops are pretty much useless.

But since Rachel asked for his help, Isaac can't just turn away. Still, he needs to know what she wants to do before he jumps in headfirst.

"I don't know," Rachel says, shaking her head. A look of confusion crosses her face. "I have nowhere to go. They've been chasing me for so long, and no matter where I hide, they always find me."

Despite everything she's been through, Rachel's still just a kid, maybe fourteen or fifteen.

"Okay, then how about this?" Isaac asks, sighing softly. "I'll protect you from now on, until we deal with those cultists and you can go back to living a normal life." He's made up his mind. He's going to help her, no matter what.

For some reason, Rachel's situation feels strangely familiar to Isaac. He can't quite put his finger on where he's heard this story before.

"Thank you," Rachel says, looking up at him, a glimmer of hope in her eyes.