(A/N: This was years in the making. I've had this story planned since... geez, I'd say around 2002, I just never got around to it until now. Pokemon and Digimon have been two of the greatest rivalries in the anime industry since nearly they're creation, so now I'm bringing them together for one big epic story. As usual, I'll be posting every other Wednesday. Enjoy the first chapter.)
{BIG NEWS: I'm in the process of attempting to publish my own original novel. I'll be updating information for it in my profile if anyone is interested, but it's never too early to start advertising.}
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
"POKEMON VS. DIGIMON: When Worlds Collide"
Chapter 1: Worlds Beyond
How was it that the evil Digimon kept managing to cheat death and come back stronger than ever? It was a question many of the DigiDestined had long since wondered. Etemon had done it, somehow surviving getting absorbed by the Dark Network and getting lost between dimensions before coming back stronger as MetalEtemon.
Myotismon had done it, his bat familiars sucking the energy of other Digimon to resurrect him as the vastly stronger VenomMyotismon, and even after his second death, his data had survived, allowing him to possess Owikawa and use the power of the Dark Spores to become the even more powerful MaloMyotismon.
Diaboromon had done it, his data surviving online until he was able to reform and create an army of Kuramon, only to die again and use his army to Digivolve together into the unbelievably strong Armageddemon.
Kimeramon and the Dark Master Machinedramon had done it, defying time and space to combine their data to form Millenniummon, who later resurrected himself to Digivolve to MoonMillenniummon, and then later to uncomprehendingly powerful ZeedMillenniummon.
Even Apocalymon's data had managed to form Mephistomon after he was destroyed, who then later Digivolved to Gulfmon. True, it wasn't the same as the others, but it still allowed Apocalymon's reign of destruction to continue through another.
Yes, it seemed survival tended to favor the evil Digimon; likely because of the immoral methods they resorted to in order to survive. And now it seemed to have happened again. Devimon had return, and he was out to cause trouble.
This wasn't his first time either. After Angemon had destroyed him over five years ago, Devimon was revealed to have survived, having lost the lower half of his body, and retreated to hide in the Dark Whirlpool. That is, until Ken, back when he was still the Digimon Emperor under the influence of the Dark Spores produced by Millenniummon, discovered him, taken his data, and used it to help create Kimeramon.
Izzy theorized that after Magnamon had destroyed Kimeramon, Devimon's data managed to survive and reform into the fallen angel Digimon once more. At least he was back to his original size, the black gears he had absorbed to grow in size and strength gone.
All the same, Devimon was a truly evil being and a formidable opponent. This was why the DigiDestined were tracking him down. As long as he was at large, there would not be peace within the Digital World. And so, the six members of the second generation of DigiDestined were on the hunt, having discovered his location.
Flying through the air and running on the ground, the chosen children rode on the backs or flew in the arms of their Digimon partners. With the exception of Gatomon, who had Digivolved to her Ultimate level, Angewomon, the others had Digivolved to their Champion levels. With Devimon at the Champion level as well, their combined power was more than enough to defeat their original enemy. Either Angewomon or Angemon on their own should have been enough to take him out, but they didn't want to take any unnecessary chances.
"Alright, we're coming upon the location Gennai mentioned," said Davis, the leader of the group, as his Digimon, ExVeemon, carried him along. "Lets finish this quickly."
Riding on the back of Ankylomon, Cody, the youngest member of the group glanced at him. "We still don't know what the anomalies that are happening in this area are about, do we?"
It was Ken that answered, shaking his head as he flew on Stingmon's back. "Not yet, but the area does seem to be unstable. It's likely due to BlackWarGreymon destroying so many Destiny Stones. The Seeds of Light Azulongmon planted must not have grown enough yet."
"Whatever Devimon is planning," TK growled from on Angemon's shoulder, "it can't be good. We've got to stop him."
Flying beside him in Angewomon's arms, Kari glanced at him in concern. Though she hadn't been present when it happened, she knew of TK's history with Devimon. During the final battle with the fallen angel Digimon, Angemon had sacrificed himself to take him out. At the time, none of them had known that Digimon were reborn after they died. TK had thought he had lost his partner for good. She couldn't imagine how that must have felt, not knowing what she would do without Gatomon. It must have been traumatic for him; she could understand why Devimon proceeded to remain a touchy subject for him.
"Hey, you ok?" she asked worriedly.
TK's eyes narrowed, and he didn't even look at her. "I'm fine!" he snapped. A moment later, he seemed to realize he had taken out his frustration on her and sighed. "I'm sorry. It's just… Devimon is…"
She gave him a smile. She understood, to an extent. Myotismon had been a similar touchy subject for her and Gatomon. "It's ok. Things will be different this time."
"She's right," Angemon replied. "We hold the advantage this time. Everything will be fine."
TK wanted to believe that, but until Devimon was well and truly defeated, he didn't think he would be at ease. "I hope so."
They flew along in silence after that, getting closer and closer to their destination. Their primary concern wasn't so much Devimon, but whatever he was planning on doing with these anomalies taking place. For all they knew, he was planning on powering up somehow like he did when he absorbed the black gears, or maybe even managing to Digivolve. Not that even an Ultimate would be a problem for them when they were at full power.
"There he is!" cried Yolei, the only other girl in their group, from on Aquilamon's back.
Yes, they could see him now too, and they came in for a landing. Standing with his back to them was indeed Devimon. He slowly turned to face them, his mouth set in a wicked sneer that showed off his fangs. "Ah, DigiDestined. I had a feeling I would be seeing you."
He was the same as always, not that Digimon actually physically changed, unless one counted Digivolving. Standing over ten feet tall, he resembled a human crossed with a bat, giving him a devilish appearance. He was almost completely black, the Mark of Evil standing out in red across his chest. Large bat wings, torn to shreds, protruded from his back, stretched out, giving him the power of flight, despite their condition.
The DigiDestined climbed off their partners and glared at the fallen angel Digimon. "Devimon," TK seethed.
The smile on the fallen angel Digimon's face grew larger. "Ah, I see the little one is not so little anymore."
"What are you planning?"
He laughed. "Nothing that concerns you Digi-brats."
Davis pointed at him. "Anything evil freaks like you do is our concern."
"Yeah," ExVeemon agreed, "so why don't you just fess up? We're going to stop you anyway."
A wicked chuckle escaped the fallen angel Digimon. "Not that you will believe me, but I actually have no intention of causing you or this world any trouble."
"You're right," Angewomon told him, "we don't believe you. I know your type better than anyone."
Devimon sneered at her. "Yes, as Myotismon's former lackey, I suppose you would. All the same, I'm speaking the truth." He looked at Angemon. "The day you nearly destroyed me, I had a bit of an epiphany. I may have been trying to intimidate and discourage you when I said that there were other Digimon out there far stronger than me, but it was also the truth. There are some whose power make mine seem like nothing."
He looked at his hands, and almost appeared to be frustrated. "I thought I had a good plan. If I could take over File Island, the location of Primary Village, where all Digimon are reborn, then I could corrupt them when they were just starting out, and lead them down a path of darkness, with me as their master. But now I realize that that was just a pipe dream. It was doomed to fail from the beginning."
The DigiDestined exchanged uncertain looks. While there was truth to his words, they didn't believe he would actually give up. He wasn't saying it, but there was definitely a 'but' in his little speech somewhere.
"Do you really expect us to believe that you've changed your ways?" Angemon demanded. "That you're in this area of the Digital World by chance?"
A sneer crossed Devimon's face. "Well, you have me there. But you don't need to worry about me trying to take over this world. The anomalies that are happening here won't be able to help me with that."
"But they can help you with something else," Ankylomon guessed.
Devimon was silent for a moment before relenting. "Yes, they can. You know about the anomalies occurrences, but I'm guessing that you don't know what they are."
Yolei crossed her arms. "Oh, and you do?"
He chuckled. "As a matter of fact, I do. Allow me to enlighten you. You should know by now that there are other worlds out there besides the Human World and the Digital World. It seems that these anomalies are portals opening up to one of these worlds. They've been appearing almost like clockwork, and I intend to go through one. You DigiDestined can have the Digital World and the filthy Human World, but this new one will be mine." He turned around. "The anomalies have been appearing around the same time for days now. One should be occurring any minute now."
"I knew you hadn't changed!" TK snapped. "What's it going to take for you evil creeps to stop destroying everything?"
Devimon glanced back at them and laughed. "Well, you won't need to worry about me much longer. Soon I'll be out of your hair for good."
That's when it happened, a flash of light lit up the area, and a tear in space and time appeared. It was almost as if they were watching a movie, and a hole had suddenly been torn in the screen.
Devimon's eyes lit up with excitement. "The portal, right on time."
"Don't let him go!" Davis ordered.
"Hell Contract!" Devimon cried, and unleashed a cloud of cursed energy that engulfed the area, obscuring everything aside from the light of the portal.
"Everyone attack!" ExVeemon exclaimed. "Vee-Laser!"
"Moon Shooter!"
"Blast Rings!"
"Celestial Arrow!"
"Hand of Fate!"
"Knock Out Blast!"
The barrage of attacks flew into the cloud, most striking either where they had last seen Devimon or around the portal since they knew that that was where he would be heading. They heard a series of blasts as their attacks struck, but didn't know if any had found their mark.
"Hey, Angewomon," said Kari, "could you clear this cloud."
The angel Digimon's wings stretched out. "It would be my pleasure. Holy Tornado!"
A heavy wind picked up and blew away the cloud. The portal was still present, but there was no sign of Devimon.
"Whoa, did we get him?" Yolei asked.
As if to answer her question, Devimon's arm dropped down from the sky and snagged Cody, yanking him into the air. Everyone else looked up to find Devimon flying above them, now holding Cody hostage. "Looking for me?"
Davis pointed up at him. "Hey, let him go!"
Smirking, Devimon dropped down from the sky, landing beside the portal. "Certainly, once the portal starts to close; it only stays open a short while anyway. As soon as I go through, you can have your little friend here back."
"Put me down, you creep!"
The fallen angel Digimon's grip on him tightened to the point where Cody felt as if his bones were going to be crushed. "Silence, boy. I could kill you at any moment. Right now, you're just insurance."
Ken glared at him. "You'll never get away with this."
Devimon chuckled. "On the contrary," he glanced over his shoulder as the portal began to close, "I already have."
He threw Cody at Angewomon. She flew forward and caught him as the others rushed towards Devimon. He fired his Evil Wing attack, unleashing a wave of dark energy that knocked them all back. Stepping backwards, he disappeared into the portal, laughing all the while.
"No!" TK cried as the portal closed behind him. Dropping to his knees, he slammed his fist on the ground. "He got away."
"This is bad," Cody replied as he slid out of Angewomon's arms. "How are we going to figure out where he went?"
The others exchanged uncertain looks. There was really no telling how many other worlds were out there, or which one Devimon had gone to. Even if another portal appeared, there was no guarantee that it would lead to the same world he had just gone to. Nor was there any guarantee that they would be able to return once they went through it.
"We better talk to Gennai," Ankylomon suggested.
(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)
Professor August Stevens was ecstatic as he entered in the coordinates. He was close, so very close. If this worked, not only would he be recognized worldwide, it would be of great benefit to humanity. This was what he had been working on for years, and now he was closer than ever.
"Power is almost at 100 percent. Energy is stable. How you hanging up there, Porygon?"
He looked to the pink and blue polygon Pokemon hooked up to the large machine by numerous cables. "Porygon!"
He smiled and nodded before turning his attention to the computer screen where the evolution of Porygon floated around in cyberspace. "How about you, Porygon 2? Everything good?"
"Porygon 2, Pory."
Nodding, he pulled down his tinted goggles. "Alright, lets try this again. I think I gave the right coordinates this time. Hopefully we'll be able to create a stable doorway this time." He looked at the power gauge. "If only it didn't take so long to recharge, we could try this more often."
Going back to his notes, he wrote down the date and time, along with the new coordinates and power velocity. He'd tried everyday at the same time to create a stable portal ever since he had completed his machine. Now it was just a matter of getting it working properly.
He turned his attention to his invention. It could pass for a giant Pokemon transporter that Trainers used to send and receive Pokemon, but this one served another purpose. And now it was time to try to activate it once again.
"Ok," he told the two Pokemon, "lets give this another shot. You both ready?" He received affirmative nods from the two Pokemon and smiled. "Alright, here we go. Activating now!"
Porygon and Porygon 2 winced as power flowed into them, circulating through their bodies, and was then pumped into the power converter. They had no idea how any of this stuff worked, but Professor Stevens was very smart, and they trusted him.
The professor was not blind to the discomfort his machine was causing his Pokemon, and he was sorry for it, but they were willing participants in this, intent on seeing his project through, and he was deeply appreciative of it.
"I know, I know!" he called to them, speaking loudly to be heard over the sound of his machine. "Just hold on, the doorway is appearing!"
From the satellite dishes hanging down from the top if the machine and the ones standing on the bottom, bolts of energy flowed out. The end points converged, forming a ball of energy that proceeded to grow. Even from behind his tinted safety goggles, Professor Stevens had to squint due to the light's intensity.
"Energy is stabilizing!" he said, all but shouting now. "Establishing connection! Prepare for dimensional rip!"
The ball of energy suddenly burst open, revealing a tear in space and time. The sight brought a smile to Professor Stevens' face, no matter how many times he saw it. This had been his goal ever since he had made his discovery many years ago. He had always been fascinated by the Porygon species' ability to travel into cyberspace. One day, while researching it, he had stumbled across something incredible.
There had been no way to prove it, and his discovery had vanished mere seconds after finding it, but he firmly believed that he had stumbled across a portal to another dimension. Of course, he had no evidence to back it up, and none of his colleagues believed him, but he was sure of it.
It had been proven that there were other dimensions out there. The Unown dimension, the realms of Arceus, Palkia, and Dialga, the Reverse World of Giratina, the subspace where the Ultra Beasts came from, they were all examples of this, and who knew how many others there were. It was logical to assume that there were still other undiscovered dimensions.
His colleagues had laughed at him, saying it was preposterous that another dimension existed within the computer, a man-made object. Hearing it put that way, he had to admit that it did sound ridiculous, but that had not been what he had been suggesting, just that a portal to another dimension had appeared within cyberspace, not that the dimension itself was in the computer.
He theorized that humans didn't actually create data, but had only learned how to use it, and there was actually a much greater depth to it; the portal he had discovered being one of them. It was his hope to use Porygon and Porygon 2's power to enter cyberspace in order to create a doorway to this new dimension.
Of course, this was still all just theory, but he hoped to prove it with this experiment. So far, he was able to create a portal, but was unable to maintain it in order to research it, or what lay beyond it. It was happening again, he was losing power, and the portal was collapsing again.
"No, no, no, no." He tried to stabilize the portal, but it was no use. "Another failure."
With a sigh, he looked at the readings, trying to see what hadn't worked this time and what he had managed to do right. A frown crossed his face as he looked at the readings. The doorway may have been closing, but there was another source of power. It seemed to be inside the portal. That had never been there before. And now the readings were getting stronger.
Professor Stevens' eyes widened as he looked back at the portal in disbelief. "Something is coming through… Convert all power reserves to maintaining the doorway! This could be the breakthrough we've been looking for!"
Porygon and Porygon 2 exerted more energy. The portal held, and something began to emerge from it. Professor Stevens stared with shining eyes, his mouth hanging open in an excited smile.
The creature stepped out of the portal, and the doorway closed behind it and vanished. The smile diminished from Professor Stevens' face as he stared at the creature, he had never seen anything like it. It almost looked like a Zubat, or one of its evolutions, crossed with a man. It was… intimidating to say the least.
He shook his head, choosing not to judge by appearances. After all, some Pokemon looked pretty menacing, but could actually be quite friendly, and the reverse was true too. Perhaps this creature's frightening appearance was merely a defense mechanism against predators.
That isn't to say he wasn't going to be cautious. He motioned to both Porygon and Porygon 2, beckoning them to come to him, and they immediately came to his side, the latter emerging from his computer. He carefully approached the creature while his Pokemon stood in front of him protectively.
"G-Greetings to you," he said, trying to keep his voice steady. "Welcome to our world. I am Professor August Stevens. I bid you welcome."
The creature looked down at him, its eyes narrowing. "You're human. Different from the ones I know, but human all the same."
Professor Stevens' eyes widened in astonishment. They spoke the same language! This was astounding. Was it natural, or a result of crossing over dimensions? "Yes, I am human. You say there are humans in your world too?"
A scowl crossed the creature's face. "Far too many of them." It looked at the two Pokemon. "And what manner of creatures are these? They appear to be Digimon, but are unlike any I have ever seen before."
The professor looked at his Pokemon. "Um, this is Porygon and its evolution, Porygon 2. They're Pokemon, short for Pocket Monsters. There are hundreds of different Pokemon in the world, all with different powers and abilities." He looked at the creature expectantly. "What are these 'Digimon' you speak of? Is that what you are?"
"Indeed," the creature replied. "I am Devimon, a Champion level Digimon, one of the many different types of Digimon in my world."
He stared at the Pokemon hard, seemingly deep in thought. Raising a hand, he pointed a clawed finger at them. "Tell me, how strong are these creatures compared to the other… Pokemon in this world?"
The professor blinked, not expecting the question. He wondered if this Digimon was worried if they would attack it and was trying to see if they were a danger to it. "Well, a Pokemon's strength varies based on its species and how much it trains. In terms of overall strength species-wise, I would say they fall somewhere in the middle."
Devimon stared at them with interest. "You don't say. I would like to test this strength of theirs. Have them attack me."
Professor Stevens stared. "I'm sorry, what?"
"I said, have them attack me. Death Hand!" A beam of unholy energy shot out of Devimon's hand. It struck the ground by the professor's feet, burning a hole through the floor.
Professor Stevens jumped back, alarm bells going off in his head. This creature was hostile! "Porygon, use Tri Beam! Porygon 2, Psychic!"
The two Pokemon jumped forward. A blue aura of psychic energy surrounded Porygon 2 and was launched at Devimon. Likewise, Porygon fired three triangle shaped beams of red, blue, and yellow that swirled together. Devimon raised his hand and easily swatted the attacks away. "That was pathetic. Evil Wing!"
A wave of energy flowed out of his wings, destroying most of the technology in the room as the darkness flowed over it, including the machine that had opened the portal. Both Porygon and Porygon 2 were blasted back by the attack. They hit the wall hard and dropped to the floor with dizzy swirls in their eyes. They were both down for the count, defeating with a single attack.
Professor Stevens stared at his fallen Pokemon in shock. "No way! He beat them so easily!"
Devimon gave a bark of laughter. "If that is the 'average' strength these Pokemon possess, then taking over this world will be all too easy." He spread his wings wide and pointed at the professor. "I hope you valued your freedom up until now, because that is a thing of the past. Say hello to your new lord and master."
(A/N: If this were a Pokemon movie, this is the part where the movie title would pop up before introducing Ash and his friends. We'll get to that next chapter though when our heroes enter the fray. Ash has faced off against a lot of Pokemon. Lets see how he fairs against a Digimon. And what are the DigiDestined going to do about their original enemy dimension jumping. You know they're not going to sit idly by and let him do as he pleases. And what of Professor Stevens? Who is he, and how will he fit into the story? There's lots to come, so stay tuned for more.)