"Humans bring nothing but ruin to our land!"
Staring up at the fiery beating wings and toothy beak open in a screech, Faith still can't quite process what's going on, having entered this world of eight years past only five minutes previous, but she feels the cool metal in her hand and continues to hold it, thrust toward the sky.
The Birdramon, worked to a fury, lets out another wordless scream. "The prophet spoke of this! We must kill on sight to preserve the peace of the digital world!" Brandishing her wings, she lets loose a barrage of fireballs toward the small ledge where Faith stands.
"Faith!" Stryker scurries toward her, the tiny In-Training intent on somehow shielding her from the fire, but the little Terriermon is both quicker and more formidable, raising his paws, a golden shimmer sparkling in the wake of soft green fur.
"Divine Protection!" Tsukimi shouts. The glitter solidifies, forming a barrier of light between the oncoming inferno and the side of the volcano. He growls softly as fireballs explode against the shield, but doesn't allow the light to fade until the last of the flames have burned out.
Birdramon shrieks in rage, wings thrashing. "Stay out of this! Will you side with them and see our world brought to nothing?!"
"I'm afraid your prophet was sadly mistaken!" Tsukimi answers the firebird's accusing glare with a confident gaze of his own; Stryker stands his ground before Faith. "These Chosen Children will be the salvation of our world, not its destruction!" He lifts his paws once more, as Birdramon's wings begin to burn.
Chosen Children... I'm not a child anymore. Faith still holds the Digivice, but now lowers it to stare at its face. Deep midnight blue and the silver of the stars stare back at her. The air crackles with heat; she lifts her eyes and sees nothing more than a small Terriermon, in appearance almost like a plush toy, but with light shining from his cupped paws and the light of faith in his eyes. I'm not a child anymore... but I can still fight for them.
"Faith!" Stryker shouts as his diminutive form is suffused in radiant blue light that falls away after only a second. The newly evolved Digimon clenches his fists, his teeth gritted and the V on his forehead shining slightly as he prepares his signature attack.
"Show that bird-brain what you've got!" Tsukimi's voice rings out clearly over the sudden activity. "Don't let hotheaded Digimon like her stand against the Chosen Children! Don't hold anything back!" The light shining within his paws suddenly turns inward; he draws his arms apart, revealing a brilliantly glowing crimson orb with a shaft of steel-grey light protruding from the top. "Use this!" the Digimon shouts. "It's yours now!"
The orb bursts forth and lances toward Faith's Digivice, red playing across polished silver and turning blue to deep violet. Even as adrenaline rises and the old fighting spirit is called up again, she stares at the screen with widened eyes, recognizing the stylized outline of a blazing sun that glows there.
Stryker knows as well, and is quicker to react as he falls out of his fighting stance, attack forgotten. "The Digimental of Courage!"
Birdramon releases another round of firebombs; flames explode on the rock face surrounding the uneven ledge. Tsukimi leaps out of the way of a meteor, moving nimbly. Stryker dives forward, stopping just short of the edge as he keeps Birdramon in his sights. "Faith! Evolve me!"
The girl looks from the opponent in the sky, screaming and defiant, to her partner, waiting for the surge of power that will allow him to fight for her life. She thinks of courage, and once more thrusts her Digivice toward the sky, now prepared to fight fire with fire.