Digimon Unlimited

Two girls, both holding massive buster swords, were fighting back- to- back. Both were rather young at the time, only about twelve. The first one had silverblonde hair, and a metal ring covered her eyes. She was clothed in silver armor over a black shirt and a black skirt. (Note: Have you seen King Arthur? That's exactly how it would look.) Specially made armor covered the skirt in a style similar to the Romans. On her helmet were- you guessed it- goggles! The other, a flaming redhead, was dressed exactly like her, only lacking the goggles and the metal ring.

Both were positively drenched in dark blood, some their own, some not.

Surrounding them were a hideous mass of dark monsters, hissing and gnashing their teeth. The redhead pointed her sword menacingly at them. "Back off!"

A silence fell. A dark figure pushed through the crowd. It had gigantic bat wings and Myotismon's red metal band over its eyes. "And who do you think you are to stop Belial Arcanimon?"

"B-Belial Arcanimon?" She stuttered.

"Who else? The Veggiemon's Diner poster mon?" Belial Arcanimon said mockingly. She grabbed the redhead by the throat.

"Saravelda... Help me!" the redhead rasped out.

"I- I can't!" The silverblonde ran from the clearing, dropping her buster sword. The dark Digimon gave way and did not attempt to stop her.

Belial Arcanimon's harsh laughter echoed through the scalding air.

A/N: Although I'm an :coughAmericancough, I use Kouji and Kouichi instead of Koji and Koichi. Why the dubbers care about one u is beyond me. The characters call each other by their American names, but occasionally use their 'real' names. They also use the metric system, with the exception of psi (pounds per square inch).

"Ouch! He-"

Zoe Orimoto's foot lodged itself under a rock as she walked. Her untied shoelace gave virtually no resistance to gravity, and she felt herself trip sideways...into the slow-moving stream she'd been walking alongside. She fell with no time to yell for help. With a resounding splash, she fell into the water.

Takuya Kanbara whirled around, looking for the source of the noise. "Oh, Zoe!" He said, almost despairingly. He was not the only one. Kouji Minamoto, Kouichi Kimura, Tommy Himi, and JP Shibayama all turned. Takuya ran past them and splashed into the stream.

"Zoe, are you all right?" He asked. Zoe looked up with her piercing green eyes.

"Of course, Takuya." Her gaze softened when she saw his worried expression. "Except I'm just a tad bit... wet!" And with that, she splashed his knees with water.

"Hey!" Takuya objected, looking down at his drenched shoes. "As if I'm not wet enough already!"

The blonde girl grinned wickedly. "Mwahahaha."

"Oh, yeah?" Takuya answered. He bent down low-his first and only mistake. Zoe jumped up and yanked his goggles over his eyes, pulling his hair down over his eyes with it. Behind him, she took a breath, dived into the water, and pulled his feet out from behind him. She surfaced, laughing.

Takuya's head popped out of the water, coughing and sputtering. "Oh, you are not nice."

Zoe smiled evilly. "The price to pay for hanging out with a blondie!"

Kouji gave a polite cough. Kouichi looked worriedly at his brother and Takuya. JP was turning redder by the second, while Tommy was fighting the urge to dive in as well. Zoe caught the look Kouji shot Takuya, and it was cold, indeed.

"I suggest," he said icily, "That you two get dried off."

Takuya's complexion turned red. Zoe was unfazed. She waded over to Kouji, who was standing on the bank, glowering. She gave him her sweetest smile.

"Come on, Kouji. The water's great. All work and no play makes one boring Digidestined."

Kouji felt his heart soften when he saw her dazzling smile. But he angrily shoved away that warm emotion. He didn't need it.

"Please, Kouji. You really need to have some fun. You're really boring." Tommy stated quite simply. He dropped his hat and dived in, splashing a startled Takuya.

"No, Zoe." Kouji said softly. He saw the pain in her eyes, and immediately regretted what he had said. But Zoe was already gone, asking JP and Kouichi to come on in. Needless to say, they did not put up many objections.

Kouji sat sullenly on a rock, watching Takuya and J.P. play with Tommy. The little boy was, surprisingly, holding his own against the other two. Kouichi was floating on the water. Neemon was standing on Kouichi's stomach, while Bokomon was scowling from the bank, where he had seated himself. Zoe was on the opposite bank, leaning against a tree. Nothing he'd ever seen was as beautiful as her right now. Her stunning golden hair was hanging loosely in water-slicked spikes. Her creamy white skin was shining with water. Zoe's quiet grace was obvious in her posture. Kouji felt his heart begin to race. Yet when he followed her gaze, it nearly broke. Her intense green eyes, always vigilant, were resting on Takuya.

Zoe's eyes suddenly flickered, glanced upward, and met Kouji's stare. For a moment, he could swear that a faint blush grew on her cheeks. Then she turned away. Then, out of the blue, she dived into the water (spraying Kouichi in the process), swam over to the other side, and sat... next to Kouji.

She turned and gave him a wide grin. "Why don't you come on in?"

"Why should I?" Kouji objected, annoyed. "What's the point?"

"Oh, come on, Kouji. What do you have against fun?" Zoe gave a soft laugh.

He shrugged. All of a sudden, he felt a tingling on his spine. Zoe was running her fingers up and down his back. Kouji, unused to such close contact, felt his muscles twitch. Acting instinctively, he grabbed her arm and twisted it. Zoe gave out a cry, more from shock than from pain.

Kouji suddenly realized what he was doing. He let her go, and she fell to her knees. "I'm sorry, really sorry," he mumbled, the words tumbling out of his mouth before he could stop. "I am so sorry, Zoe! I didn't mean it!"

Takuya turned around. "Zoe! Are you all right?" He leaped up, out of the water. He sat on the ground, hugging the blonde maiden close. His angry reddish eyes glared up at Kouji.

Zoe moaned softly. She flexed her arm, and Kouji winced as he heard a popping sound. Takuya rolled back her sleeve and looked at her shoulder. "It's dislocated."

J.P. called from the stream. "What is it?"

Takuya yelled back, "Kouichi, JP, don't let Tommy come over here! I don't want him to see this!"

Zoe actually smiled. "Why are you so worried? This once happened to me during a soccer game. I just popped it back in, like so." And before either Kouji or Takuya could stop her, she pushed it back in.

Kouji grimaced. "Sorry, Zoe..."

"Oh, it's quite all right, Kouji. No lasting effects." Zoe said, now quite embarrassed that Takuya had his arms around her. She turned to him and raised an eyebrow. "Can you let me go now?"

Takuya also blushed. "Sure, but will you be all right?"

"Oh, I'm fine, Takuya." Zoe wriggled out of his grasp and raced over to the stream.

Takuya stood up and glared fiercely at Kouji. "Don't go near her again, or... well, let me just say it won't exactly be G-rated."

Kouji got up and stood eye-to-eye with Takuya. "Don't think you scare me, Takuya. Nothing scares me, so why don't you just go off and find your mommy?"

Takuya's voice dropped to a low growl. "Why don't you leave? We don't need you here."

"As if. You guys would have been beaten a long time ago if it wasn't for me."

"Oh, yeah?" Takuya challenged.

"Uh-huh. If I were to leave, you'd be beaten up in five minutes flat." Kouji responded.

By this time, Kouichi, JP, Tommy, and Zoe were staring at Kouji and Takuya.

Takuya shoved Kouji. "You know, the next time you leave and you get in trouble with Lucemon or some Digimon like that, why don't you tell it that you have friends here? It could probably use a laugh."

Bam!

Takuya rubbed his face where Kouji had punched him. "You're dead meat, Minamoto."

He lunged at Kouji's legs and knocked him down. Takuya would have body slammed him, but Kouji brought up his feet and kicked brutally at his opponent's chest, knocking the air out of his lungs. Takuya gasped for breath, but it gave Kouji the time he needed to get up and aim a couple of blows at the gogglehead's face. Takuya brought up his knee and pushed Kouji away with a kick to the stomach. Both Digidestined faced each other like boxers, raising their fists.

Over at the stream, Tommy let out a horrified gasp. "Why are they fighting?"

J.P. yelled, "No, you guys! Don't fight!"

Zoe was already in motion, her flexible body racing towards the two fighters. Kouichi ran behind her, each understanding what the other had to do. JP let out a loud yell and sprinted as fast as he could, heading for Kouji and Takuya.

Tommy stood stunned for a moment, and then followed.

Takuya didn't have much strength left, but he growled menacingly at Kouji anyways. He curled his hands into fists and charged with all the energy he had left. Packing as much force as possible into his right fist, he drew it back and swung ferociously. He realized he felt satisfied when a shocked look streaked across his adversary's features.

Kouji would have struck back. Takuya thought he was so strong. And he probably was- only Kouji was just a better fighter. He attacked with strategy, not just brute force.

He saw Takuya load up a powerful punch. What a loser. He was about to waste all his energy on this one blow. In Kouji's mind, the equation was all sorted out- he would win. But plans don't always work the way they're intended... sometimes a blonde variable enters the problem...

Zoe rushed in blindly between Takuya and Kouji. If they weren't going to stop, then she would make them. She heard a rush of wind as Takuya's fist connected with her chest, forcing the air out of her windpipes. Then, Kouji's elbow rammed her in the back. She landed hard on the ground, searing pain shooting through her.

"I really have got to learn not to be a punching bag," she mumbled as pain numbed her.

Takuya looked at Zoe's body, lying on the ground. His face paled.

Tommy was the first to react. He rushed to her side. "Zoe! Zoe-san, can you hear me? Zoe-san! Say something!"

"Get. Off. My. Hair." was her muffled reply.

Kouichi gently picked her up. Tiredly, the warrior of wind wrapped her arms around him. He blushed and set her down softly in the shade.

She opened her eyes and gave him a smile. "Oh, yeah. Now I'm a professional boxer, go me..."

He put two fingers on her lips, smiled mysteriously, and walked away, leaving a puzzled Zoe behind.

She looked up at Kouji, plainly confused. "Does he always act like this?"

Kouji shrugged. "Occasionally. But, Zoe-" Here he bent low, staring deep into her emerald eyes-"Are you mad at me?"

Zoe gave a short laugh. "Of course not! Why would I be? However... On a more serious note, why were you two-" She pointed at Takuya, then Kouji-"fighting? On second thought," She said coldly, plainly seeing how both were turning a bit red, "Don't answer that."

Takuya tried to interrupt. "Zoe, we-"

"Aw, save it for Lucemon!" Zoe said with a snarl, and turned away.

Takuya quickly backed off, and glanced at Kouji worriedly.

Kouji shrugged, seemingly uncaringly. "Whatever."

Nobody talked about the incident. Tommy and JP glanced worriedly at Takuya and Kouji, who were glaring at each other over the fire they had built for the night. Kouichi snuck furtive looks at Zoe, who seemed oddly quiet. Bokomon and Neemon were simply muttering to each other, not daring to break the dark mood that had fallen upon the Digidestined.

Finally, Tommy spoke in a small voice. "Our fire's going out... we should go get more wood."

Without a sound, Zoe got up and walked into the woods surrounding them on their right side. JP saw a brief glimpse of his fellow legendary warrior's face, and he nearly gasped. Her hair partially covered her face, leaving half of it dark. Her normally bright green eyes had dilated, and they seemed to be radiating with a dark energy he couldn't quite place. But her eyes... besides all that, they had lost all traces of warmth and kindness that were second nature to her.
Without really intending to, JP let out a small gasp, not too loud, but loud enough to be heard by all... including Zoe. With a snarl, she whirled on JP, snatched his shirt collar, and to everyone's surprise, lifted him about five centimeters from the ground. "Got a problem, JP?"

Kouji's eyes widened as Takuya asked, "Zoe...?"

Zoe shook him as JP grew paler by the second. "Again, got a problem, Junpei-kun?" She raised an eyebrow, teasing, mocking.

Tommy shook violently. "Izumi-chan..." Bokomon chastised Zoe, saying, "Zoe! You are a legendary warrior, so behave like one!"

Zoe turned her head, snapping at Bokomon, "I'll do anything I want! None of you can stop me!"

Tommy began whimpering, "Zoe, don't hurt him!" He turned to Takuya and, grabbing his red shirt, began sobbing into it. Takuya did his best to comfort him.

Zoe recoiled, and seemed to come to her senses. She dropped JP, wincing and holding her wrist. Wide-eyed she gazed at her friends. JP was just looking up at her, scared and frightened, as was Tommy. Kouji was simply staring at her. Takuya and Bokomon looked at her with shock and disbelief. Neemon was muttering to himself, but he was obviously subdued.

Zoe turned and bolted into the forest.

Takuya stood up, brushed Tommy off him, and ran into the woods after her, yelling, "Zoe! Come back!"

Izumi didn't really watch where she was going, nor did she really care. She didn't care when the branches struck her face and left red scars, and if she was lucky, drew blood. She ignored Takuya's yells behind her. She tripped over a root, cutting her leg open. She simply got back up and kept going; she was strangely detached from everything, not hearing, not seeing, not touching, not feeling. Her astral self soared through the clouds with no emotions.

Ah, how she wished it was true; not to feel. She did feel; she felt every jolt going through her body as her feet made contact with the ground, her sore wrist, the cold that bit at her bare legs. Somewhere, in the back of her subconscious, she wished she'd worn blue denim jeans. She pushed the thought away. What she felt most was pain. There was an empty hollow in her chest where her heart had once been. Part of her, the living part, wanted nothing more than to fling herself to the ground and beg for forgiveness. But the other side, the dead side, kept going. She no longer remembered her name. She did not know if she was a she. It didn't know if it was even a being. And there was a third part. A piece that beat its chest like the ticking of a watch. Unthinkingly, it placed its hand on its breast. It felt heat, but it was not the same; it had a rhythm, but it was not its rhythm; instead, it ticked. And it tocked. Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Tick, tock-

"Augh! Gotcha!" And Zoe felt her astral self return in a rush, felt a pair of arms wrap themselves around her legs, and she went down, down to meet the earth.

Zoe attempted to kick him off her. Takuya let go of her legs, only for a split second, but it was enough time for Zoe to scramble to her feet and start to run. Takuya got up quickly, pushed her into a tree, and wrapped his arms around her slender waist, and fixed her to the tree. Takuya's face was so close to Zoe's face, he might have blushed if it was a less serious occasion. Zoe squirmed a bit.

Takuya glared his fellow Digidestined in the face. "What was that all about!"

Instead of yelling back at him or something along those lines, she did something totally unexpected- she burst into tears and rested her head on his shoulder.

Takuya, startled, patted her back awkwardly. He backed away from the tree, and she wrapped her arms around him. "What's wrong?"

Zoe sobbed, "I- I'm sor-sorry, I don't k-know what ca-came over m-me..."

Takuya ran his hand through the blonde's hair. "Calm down, Zoe."

Zoe sighed and cleared her throat, but still hiccupped a bit. "I'm sorry, Takuya. I-I don't know what came over me... It was like I wasn't even Zoe anymore... For a moment I forgot who I was... All I can tell you is it wasn't me back there, honest..."

Takuya gently pushed her down towards the ground, and both sat. "I know this will sound terribly cliché, but hear me out. I know how you feel."

Zoe wiped her tears away. "How?"

He took a deep breath. "When BurningGreymon possessed me, it was like I wasn't in control of my own body... It was frightening, to feel possessed; I hadn't ever met something I couldn't beat, and it was just awful, especially when I attacked Tommy... I just couldn't stop myself, you know?"

Zoe nodded, wiping away more tears. "I know. But..."

Takuya's brow furrowed. "What? You're afraid they won't forgive you?"

Zoe nodded dumbly.

Takuya smiled sympathetically. "You guys forgave me, right?"

"Good point. But..."

"What?"

Zoe looked up at him, wintergreen eyes filled with confusion. "I know I'm not that strong...If that wasn't me, then who was it? Or what?"

Not too far away...

She jumped when she heard an odd beeping sound from a device hanging on her bedstead.

"It can't be..."

Sure enough, a purple symbol pointed at it on the screen of the maiden's D-Force.

"The power of Time has awakened..."

She took her D-Force off the little hook and went over to the window, holding it in her hands as a slight breeze fluttered through her silvery blonde hair.

"The Daughter of Time is here...in Digiworld."

She bowed her head, contemplating.

Kouji watched Zoe from the other side of the fire. Takuya had returned with her (and firewood), and Zoe had apologized to JP, who was still in a state of shock, but nevertheless in awe that his girlfriend-to-be packed a tested 87 psi punch. Right now, under hooded eyelids, he watched the blonde angel stifle a yawn.

Blonde angel?

Yes, that was what he thought of her. He knew it would seem insanely out-of-character if he ever said it aloud, but he... well, his attitude, subtle as it might seem, was different towards her than towards the rest. He knew his brother Kouichi liked her, and so did Takuya and JP. Naturally, not Tommy- yet. He couldn't help it; she was the only girl in the group, and so he couldn't resist having a bit of a soft spot for her.

Odd as the night's events had been, everything was relatively calm; Zoe fighting sleep, JP staring at her, Takuya also trying to stay awake next to Zoe, Kouichi welcoming the dark oblivion of sleep (even though he wasn't asleep yet), Tommy yawning loudly, Bokomon reading a book, and Neemon nearly setting his pants on fire. In other words, the usual.

Tommy stretched his arms. "Bokomon, got any good stories?"

"Yeah!" Zoe said excitedly. "I love bedtime stories!"

"And with Bokomon's monotone, we'll be sleeping in no time flat," Kouichi said dryly.

"Hmph!" Bokomon snorted. "I'll have you know, there's some great stories in here!"

"Well, tell us!" JP pleaded.

"Oh, fine," Bokomon said huffily, flipping through some pages. "I suppose I could... no, no; this one's for mature children..."

"Oh!" Zoe said. "I'm insulted!"

"Well, ok," Bokomon groaned reluctantly.

"Long, long ago... before the great feud between the beast and human-type Digimon... Before the evil Lucemon first arrived... There were twelve evil warriors, all of whom carried immense power.

"Any relation to the Legendary Warriors?" Tommy asked.

"Probably not," Bokomon answered.

"The first was Genimon, an incredibly powerful Digimon who possessed the power of Earth. He ruled the mountains, and everything under the ground was his domain.

"Next came Ryonumon. He lived in the deserts, and wherever he went, dry weather followed.

"Jyouromon was after him; he ruled metal and his area was modern. He and Genimon were good friends, and they merged their areas to create one big one.

"Mitomon ruled the rivers and the oceans. He could summon the entire sea to his aid. He was revered by the dark sea Digimon.

"Tricemon was seen in lightning storms, but he did not rule them; he governed the nighttime, and was visible in a lightning flash. He was the most unpredictable of the warriors, and he was never in the same place twice.

"HiroKidramon was ultra-powerful. Although the warriors were not known for their mercy, he ruled justly for the most part.

"Yukiodramon was very close to HiroKidramon. He stayed in the shadows for the most part.

"Aren't there any girl warriors?" Zoe interrupted.

"I'm getting to that!" Bokomon scowled.

"As a contrast to the seven male Digimon, there were five female ones.

"Ruhanamon was the warrior of air, and glided from one tree to the next. She could fly, of course.

"Liramon, the good-looking ruler of the moon, was somewhat vain, but a great fighter!

"Seravalomon and light went hand in hand, living in the prairie region.

"Dralsomon, the fiery soldier of the volcano, lived in the volcanic area.

"Reikadramon was the ruler of stone, and the most methodical of the warriors, known for her great perception.

"Definitely not like Zoe!" Kouichi joked.

Zoe stuck her tongue out at him.

"He's right, you know," Takuya grinned.

The warrior of wind playfully poked him in the side and laid her head on his shoulder.

At this, Kouji lay down on the ground and closed his eyes. Sometimes he couldn't stand Takuya! Always the leader, everything exceptional happened to him... plus, he was rather envious of the easy way he had with her. Confident, strong, and handsome- how could Zoe resist him?

And I'm just some blue-haired, quiet, loner boy...Why would she ever like me?

He glanced at the blonde angel, listening intently to Bokomon's story. How he longed to run his hand through her soft hair, feel the warmth of her skin next to his-

Stop it Kouji! She'll never want you...

"The twelve dark warriors ruled with an iron fist. Unified, they had the power to destroy the Digital World completely and utterly. Separated, however, they were no match for some powerful Digimon. A potent underground organization began led by the great Nivormon. Under his command were Omnimon, Imperialdramon, Gallantmon, and Susannomon, four horribly powerful Digimon that stood a chance against the Twelve.

Omnimon and Imperialdramon attacked the cities of Air and Water first, and captured Mitomon and Reikadramon (who were caught by surprise) and deleted them both. Gallantmon took on Ryonumon of the Desert and was victorious. Susannomon invaded the City of the Moon and confined Liramon, who was defeated after a three-day battle, but could not be scanned.

The remaining eight were besieged in separate cities, except for Genimon and Seravalomon, who had been... erm... together in the City of Light at the time.

"Something tells me the word erm isn't in the book, Bokomon." Takuya said.

"Well, I don't know how to phrase it!" Bokomon said defensively. "I refuse to believe any of these warriors except maybe HiroKidramon and Yukiodramon were capable of emotion."

"Including...?" Zoe smiled wickedly.

"I'm not even going to answer that, Zoe," Bokomon looked flustered.

Takuya gave her a thumbs-up. He always had admired the way Izumi was so confident and downright daring at times. The bearer of the spirits of wind had her head on his shoulder and was absentmindedly twirling a blonde lock around her finger. Takuya felt his eyes turn to her blonde hair, her soft skin...

...Zoe...

"The remaining eight, except for HiroKidramon and Yukiodramon, both of whom mysteriously disappeared at the time and were never seen again in Digiworld, fled in the direction of the City of Light. However, Jyouromon went to the City of the Moon to save Liramon, who was apparently his sister. The two broke out and fought a reckless battle against Susannomon, who was defeated. Thankfully, Omnimon and Imperialdramon fused to become Imperialdramon Paladin Mode, who promptly overwhelmed Liramon and Jyouromon.

"Meanwhile, Reikadramon, contrary to what many thought she would do, attacked Nivormon head-on and caused him much damage. The dark warrior of stone was then scanned.

"However, Nivormon was severely injured and so Imperialdramon Paladin and Gallantmon Crimson ambushed Tricemon and Dralsomon on their way to the City. Dralsomon got away, but Tricemon could not and instead was turned into data.

"I'm sorry, but the way this story is written, you'd think that it's Nivormon and his team that are evil, and not the Warriors." Zoe objected.

"I have to agree," Kouji said, to the surprise of everyone. "I'm starting to feel sorry for them."

"Are you sure they are –were – evil?" Zoe asked.

"Ya- Wha? Why would they be good?" Bokomon looked puzzled.

"I'm just saying," Zoe shrugged.

"Genimon, Seravalomon, and Dralsomon were the only warriors left. Under siege in the City of Light, they attempted an escape, but only Seravalomon managed to get out. She fled to the north.

"Nivormon recovered, and alongside Imperialdramon Paladin and Gallantmon Crimson, leveled the city. Unfortunately, Seravalomon returned, but oddly, she no longer had the power of Light. Instead, she had the power of Ice. No historians can record what happened, as we do not know. I, Centaurumon, believe that Seravalomon's power caused a freezing of time, which explains why when Nivormon's army thawed out, they couldn't find the three remaining warriors, who have never been seen again. It also explains why the prairie has been reduced to a barren arctic wasteland.

"Also, a small carved message was found in a block of ice nearby:

S.V. Dragan, S.T. Dragan, R. Ootori, R. Rivera, L. Giarratano, J. Giarratano, M. Yamaki, G. Murakami, T. Thomas, R. Kuraya, H. Hida, Y. Oikawa dominated this World in the First and Second Ages. In the name of all powers, we will return.

You figure it out.

Centaurumon, official historian of Digiworld under Leomon of File Lake

"Whoa." Tommy yawned.

"How very inspirational," Zoe said sarcastically.

Kouichi was already asleep, having fallen asleep halfway between Mitomon and Reikadramon's capture. Junpei had snoozed off, and only Takuya, Tomoki, Kouji, and Izumi were still awake.

"Well..." Tommy trailed off.

"Good night," Zoe yawned, stretched, and lay down on her bed of leaves.

"Don't let the bedbugs bite!" Takuya said, and flopped down on his leafy mattress as well.

"Get some sleep, guys," Kouji murmured.

"G'night, Talky onii-chan. G'night, Zoe-chan. G'night, Kouji-kun."

Takuya smiled devilishly at Zoe from his bed right next to her. "Good night, Izumi-kun."

"Don't let the digibugs bite, Takuya-chan!" Zoe returned, equally sinisterly.

Kouji turned his back on the two. He scowled, his previous feelings returning. He remembered beating the living daylights out of the goggle leader earlier. Why was he so overprotective of the warrior of wind? Zoe could obviously defend herself.

The same reason we all defend her.

We love her.

But in a platonic way, or what?

Liramon vs. Susannomon- City of the Moon

Also known as:

Mahalomon vs. Anti- Susannomon

Mahalomon gasped as her digicode showed. No... After three straight days of battling, it could not end like this! It just couldn't!

Anti- Susannomon leered at her. "Have you given up, you miserable excuse for an Armor Digivolved Digimon?"

Mahalomon sighed as the rings of digicode faded. "No!"

"Suit yourself." Anti-Susannomon groaned. "I was hoping it wouldn't come to this... I was rather hoping you would be my girlfriend."

"Under different circumstances, yes. Under the current circumstances, no."

"Why not?" Anti-Susannomon scowled. "Think about it. Your city would be spared. You would see your brother-"

"Leave Joey out of this!" Mahalomon deathglared him.

"-And your fellow Digidestined would live. As slaves, of course. But alive nonetheless."

"That and six simple payments of $29.95 will get you a toaster oven." Mahalomon taunted. "For giving birth to a ton of little chibi Anti-Digimon? No thanks."

"But why?"

"Gee, maybe because I'm a Digidestined, sworn to protect the City of the Moon from monsters like you? What a concept!"

"Am I a monster to you?" Anti-Susannomon said fiercely.

"Let's just say I have a thing about guys who have been trying to hack my head off for the past three days! Horizon Glare!" Mahalomon's fists glowed intensely and she threw several punches at the Anti-Digimon.

"Anti- Celestial Blade!" Anti- Susannomon roared, pulling out his gigantic sword and powering it up.

Mahalomon cried out, "Mahalo Shield!"

But a champion Digimon is no match for an Anti-Mega.

She fell to the ground, digicode shining. A glow spread through her body, and she de-digivolved into Iotamon. Unfortunately, because the rings of digicode were still there, she figured she was apparently de-digivolving once more.

And if she reverted into Lisa, it was all over.

Anti- Susannomon smirked lustily at the rings of digicode. "This was so easy."

Iotamon smiled back as her Crest of Faithfulness, D-Terminal, and D-Force lit up with an ethereal light. "Guess again! Iotamon, Warp Digivolve to..."

"...Metriomon!" The half-wolf, half-Amazon warrior Digimon took a huge glaive off her back.

"Bring it on," Metriomon grinned wolfishly.

Anti- Susannomon charged.

"Zoe? Izumi-chan! Are you all right?"

"Ya- wha-?" Zoe groggily opened her eyes to meet Kouji's navy blue ones.

"You were muttering and thrashing in your sleep." Kouji said worriedly. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, thanks," Zoe answered airily. "Was I... saying anything?"

"Something about an Anti-Susannomon and various Hawaiian words," Kouji responded. "Whatever an Anti-Susannomon is."

"Sorry," Zoe said apologetically.

"Yeah," Kouji said, and stood up. "Have a good night."

"Kouji?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I ask you a personal question?"

"Sure," Kouji shrugged.

"Did- did I scare you? I mean, when I went all bizarro on JP...?"

Kouji stared deep into her eyes and kneeled down. He put a hand under her chin and raised her face towards his so their lips were nearly touching.

"Yes." He answered, and Zoe could feel his breath on her face. She strangled a moan of primeval pleasure, but she felt her consciousness slip away...

It was pure instinct, and the only thing it could feel was lust. It pushed a shocked Kouji down to the ground and straddled him with its legs.

"Z- Izumi?" Kouji was stunned at such a rapid change in his friend's attitude.

"Kouji... is that your name? This host has some very interesting thoughts about you... and I do too," Zoe's mouth opened and closed to the words, but it wavered between her normal voice and an old, haunting voice... He looked at her eyes, which were not their normal bright green eyes, but a dark, evil shade...

But then it blinked and it was gone, replaced with plain, nice Zoe.

She put a hand to her head. "I'm sorry, Kouji-Kun..."

"Zoe?" he asked worriedly.

"Just leave me alone," she said, retreating from him to a darker corner, hiding from the firelight.

He gazed at her, concerned.

Maybe she's going schizo...

"I hope she's better in the morning," Kouji murmured right before falling asleep.

WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME! Zoe thought furiously, trying to think of some reason, any reason for trying to do something to Kouji.

Kouji-Kun... Please don't hate me...

Several times during her stay in Digiworld, she'd never really thought of running away, at least not seriously. But now she began to think sincerely about it.

Kouichi-Kun... He's a mystery, so I don't know how he'd react...

Junpei-Kun... He's seen what I've done firsthand. He'll understand.

Can I really do this to Tommy-kun? He'd be too young to understand anyway... Takuya-san will take care of him.

Kouji-Kun... Takuya-san... I don't know how I feel about them... they're both terrific...

... And I love them all. Especially those two.

This is why I'm doing this.

I'm running away.

Her mind made up, Zoe reached into the fire and pulled out a half- burned charcoal stick. Dragging over a dry, flat rock from the banks of the stream, she wrote a small message:

For your own safety, I'm gone. I'll be fine on my own. I hope you guys can defeat Lucemon on your own and that you'll get home safely. Do not, I repeat, do not try to find me. I have to do this on my own.

Izumi-Chan

Standing up, she mused, "Where should I go?" After some thought, she decided she would walk along the stream. The warrior of wind gave one last glance at her friends, hoped that they would be all right, and strode off into the night.

My first story... Tell me if I should continue! The fight scene was really crappy > Please R&R!