Level 8: The Unseen Hands!

This is the eighth chapter of Kamen Rider Arcade.

Episode Description
Gunpei and Dan continue to investigate Imagitech as they contend with the combined forces of Phantex, Jagstalker, and Horn Buster, but things become complicated as a survivor of their assault reveals a terrifying secret that endangers Ami. Meanwhile, Ken and Inara work to teach Julie about what it means to be a Kamen Rider.

Summary
The battle between Gunpei/Scope and Jagstalker is interrupted as Horn Buster moves to join his "brother". Using the Accuracy Tokenroid, Scope breaks free from Jagstalker's grasp, but soon finds his weapon inadequate to penetrate Horn Buster's armor.

Dan/Faust finds a survivor in the lab, Dr. Chambers, but as he coaxes her out, Faust's battle draws closer.

Jagstalker's ability to use Tokenroids continues to push the battle in the favor of the Viron. At the last minute, Faust interferes, but before he can do much, Dr. Chambers enters the battlefield and becomes a target of the two Viron. With no choice, Faust uses the Tokenroid he found earlier, which is revealed to be an experimental Time Slow Tokenroid. Using the effect, he pulls Scope and Dr. Chambers to safety.

Elsewhere, the winged Vice Lord reassures Gukkedon that his plan will soon reach fruition.

At Comcon, Ken, Ami, Dan, and Gunpei discuss Dr. Chambers, but Julie storms in, furious that no one had bothered to tell her that Gunpei and Dan were Riders as well. Ken begins to tell her, almost discussing her predecessor in the process. However, before she can get many answers, Ami dismisses her out of hand, getting Ken to take her to her next training session. Returning to the problem at hand, Dan says he almost recognizes the three Viron, but can't remember from where. They decide it's time to question Dr. Chambers.

At her apartment, Madison Paige goes through her notes regarding the possibility of Kamen Riders being in Tobesei, and finds images of Gunpei and Dan at multiple incident scenes.

Back at ComCon, Bushnell meets with Dr. Chambers. She reveals the horrors she witnessed, and that the Viron apparently learned nothing of the Rider system itself. She demands to know why he didn't send help if he knew the lab was being assaulted, and he says he couldn't risk revealing Elite to the Riders yet. He demands to know where a certain item is, assuming she had it with her since Dr. Alberts didn't. He finds it in her bag, but tells him it's useless without the information on the Imagitech server. He says they'll simply have to go back for it.

On a nearby mountain, Ken watches as Inara forces Julie to undertake a dangerous training exercise by climbing down the mountain blindfolded without her Driver. Julie slips and Rubix Tokenroid rushes to get Ken. He dives after her and transforms into Arcade, rescuing her at the last moment using the Jet Boost Tokenroid. As he changes back, she apologizes for always causing him so much trouble. He waves it off, saying that Riders are SUPPOSED to be there for one another. For the first time, he sees a glimmer of understanding in her eyes, and promises to, in the near future, tell her about Hayao, the first Lumine.

In Ami's lab, Gunpei tries to ask Ami out, but she's too busy analyzing the new battle data. Dr. Chambers enters with Bushnell and Gunpei demands answers about what was going on at Imagitech. Bushnell admits that Imagitech was being used to develop Generation 2 Tokenroids so as to not divert attention from their struggles with the Viron. They were also researching the origins of the Viron. Needing the data from Imagitech to help defeat Jagstalker's altered system, they agree that it's time to return to the scene of the crime. Gunpei, however, watches Dr. Chambers closely.

Over the comm, Ami asks Ken to take over comm duties for her since she'll be in the field. As he heads for the comm station, he discovers a box addressed to him. No one knows who left it.

Dr. Chambers leads the others through Imagitech's remains as they head for the server. As they find the reinforced door, Gunpei volunteers to guard the rear while Ami and Dr. Chambers enter. Ami gets to work downloading the data, saying that they need to hurry before the Viron return. Dr. Chambers says that won't happen until she tells them to. Ami gapes at Dr. Chambers, who realizes her cover is blown. To Ami's horror, Phantex emerges from inside Dr. Chamber's body... Dr. Chambers was already long dead.

Phantex reveals that she was telling the truth about needing the data and says she wants Ami, too, but before she can make a move, Gunpei blasts her from behind. But he, in turn, is ambushed by Jagstalker. As he contends with the Viron, Phantex abducts Ami and rushes out of the server room.

Back at ComCon, Inara's extreme training continues as Julie collapses on the stairwell. Julie says that Inara would have been a far better Rider since she's fearless. Inara dismisses such a claim, saying she's very familiar with fear, and she uses it to get stronger. As Julie ponders this, Inara is informed about the return of the Viron and tells Julie that she is to return to her quarters since she's clearly not ready for combat, and won't be until she herself decides she is. Julie realizes that Inara's been doing more than she was ordered to, and Inara admits it, saying that no one should have to live in fear. Inara moves to escort her to her room, but Julie refuses, having decided that it's time to confront her own fear. Pleased to hear it, Inara gives her a Tokenroid starter kit, and Julie rushes off to join the battle. As she goes, Inara contacts Bushnell and reports that she's on her way.

Gunpei is joined by Dan and they transform. Scope begins battling Jagstalker as Ken listens in, but Faust stays back, watching. Furious, he argues with his partner as he manages to get the upperhand with the monster. Their argument is interrupted by Horn Buster, who grabs both of them. He begins to squeeze, but a well-timed blast from the Lumine Driver forces the Viron to release them. Julie steps forward, and after saying it's time she confronted her fear, she transforms into Lumine. Phantex orders Horn Buster to capture her for Gukkedon. Jagstalker gets back up, and Faust decides it's time he got involved, telling Scope to focus on Phantex. To everyone's shock, he moves with blinding speed and begins pummeling the Viron. Scope and Lumine split up to divide their enemies, forcing Phantex to place Ami in a magic circle so she can fight. To Scope's frustration, Phantex immediately proves to be a tougher opponent than he imagined.

Lumine uses her dance moves to evade Horn Buster's charges, but he proves to be faster than she thought and slams her to the ground. Changing tactics, she begins spamming Tokenroids, combining Strength and Grapple to trip up the Viron. Once he's down, she adds in Machine Teminos and Firebird to swing Horn Buster into a fuel truck, which explodes violently. However, all this does is destroy his natural armor. Faster without it, he pummels Lumine, who's losing power quickly due to using too many Tokenroids. With only enough power for one attack from the Rubix Baton, she tells Ken to let the others know, if she doesn't make it, that she's sorry. She activates the Rider Colossus Slash and barely manages to deliver the fatal blow to Horn Buster before her armor runs out of power. A tokenroid materlalizes before her.

Faust continues to battle Jagstalker, using a one-inch punch to seriously injure his opponent. Jagstalker struggles to keep up, but Faust's superior fighting skills are too much to overcome. Having had enough, Faust ends the fight with the Rider Tornado Kick, annihilating Jagstalker. He then promptly falls asleep without changing back.

Scope struggles with Phantex, who binds him in chains again. As she moves in for the kill, two Tokenroid wolves suddenly jump her. Distracted, she loses her control of the chains, which shatter, freeing Scope. Phantex tries using her stealth to regain the upperhand, but Scope uses the Tracking Tokenroid to find her, then delivers the finishing blow with the Rider Spread Shot. With Phantex destroyed, Ami is freed from the circle. As the Riders regroup, Faust wakes up, remembering where the Viron were from, but no one cares anymore.

Gukkedon mocks his fellow Vice Lord's apparently failed plan, but the mysterious villain holds up the culimation of his strategy... a black Driver.

On the rooftop of ComCon, Ken and most of the others find Julie lost in thought, singing. He tells her that she did well today, and asks her what the song was. The song was taught to her by her mother, and was about how people begin as "ducklings", learning their way in the world and eventually maturing into "swans". She says she's been coming to terms with the knowledge that she's become a very ugly ducking, going by recent events. Ruefully, she says that even going to help Gunpei and Dan was selfish, as she was simply trying to earn a Restore Tokenroid to fix Ken's arm, which had been broken because of her.

Ken doesn't want to take it, since it's rare, but she insists, because she can't make it home without Arcade. He accepts it and it heals his arm, though it hurts him in the process, prompting Kasumi to brace him. Ken tells Julie that if she wants to become the swan, to be a better person, he'll help her. She says that she wants to change, and he says they'll work on it. He also reminds her that she's not alone. She looks at him, Kasumi, Dan, and even Inara, and realizes he's right. As they head back down the stairs, Dan flirts with her casually.

Inara makes her way to Bushnell's office and reports on Julie's progress. Bushnell is pleased that she might make a good Rider after all, but reminds Inara not to let her get TOO good, as he needs her to be a damsel in distress to motivate Ken. His comments then reveal that she was intentionally targeted to be a Rider for that purpose.

At the Mori home, Yamiya is contacted again by the mysterious informant, who sends him a video showing Ken and Julie as they transform into Arcade and Lumine...