Chapter 2: King of Vampires
Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon. Digimon is the sole property of the guy who made it. If I DID own it, there wouldn't just be fried eggs. There'd be barbeque ribs too… Ah… Ribs… The ultimate food…
D.A.T.S.
"Who are you…?" asked BanchoLeomon hesitantly. "Are you their leader…?"
"Hehehe… Very smart, aren't we…?" it stated sarcastically. "Yes… I am their leader… My name is… GranDracmon…"
Marcus gritted his teeth.
'This isn't good… This is the Digimon that I was telling the Commander about… But why would it come in person…?' he thought in a panic. 'Wait… Why am I panicking? I never panic about a fight… Wait… Did I ever actually see this Digimon before…?'
Suddenly, Marcus felt his head begin to hurt slightly.
Flashback…
Marcus and Agumon walked through the Dark Area, largely unaware of the evil that stalked them.
Agumon turned to Marcus. "Hey, Boss?"
"Yea, Agumon?" Marcus responded.
"What was it that we were supposed to look for in here?" Agumon asked.
Marcus sighed in irritation. Trust Agumon to remember these things.
"As far as I'm aware, there's a Digimon in here that's causing trouble. We're here to take it down," Marcus explained.
"What Digimon is it?"
"Not sure. All I know is that it's a Mega Level and that there aren't many Mega Levels in here. Shouldn't be that hard to find," Marcus told him.
"Oh. Ok then… Hey, Boss? Why aren't there any Digimon around here?"
"… I'm not sure… But I don't like it…" Marcus responded.
Agumon shivered. "That doesn't sound good…"
Suddenly, they both whirled around at the sound of a twig snapping behind them.
"Umm… Boss? What was that?" Agumon asked hesitantly.
As they stared into the gloom, a large silhouette accompanied by two red eyes began to peer out at them from the darkness. Marcus assumed his fighting stance.
"… I'm not sure… But I think that's our Mega Level… It's fightin' time, Agumon…" Marcus muttered.
Agumon also assumed a fighting stance as Marcus ran at it, fists at the ready. Jumping, Marcus aimed his fist at the head of the Digimon which was still shrouded in shadows.
As Marcus came towards the Digimon, a large, clawed hand was raised and, quick as a flash, Marcus soon found himself hurtling towards a tree. It was so fast that his mind was barely able to register the warm, crimson fluid that flowed from the new gash from his shoulder to his waist as he flew through the air. As Marcus hit the tree, a barely audible grunt escaped his lips as he fell to the forest floor, completely unconscious.
The next time that Marcus became even vaguely aware of his surroundings, he could hear faint voices. Strong, yet oddly furry, arms gripped him tightly. They appeared to be running, but Marcus didn't care. His head hurt too much to think about things like that.
Suddenly, the pain in his stomach flared into life and he let out a faint, pained groan. Then, he began to notice one of the faint voices calling his name. He heard the other voice begin to do the same thing. He let his eyelids flutter open to see a very blurry looking BanchoLeomon with an equally blurry looking Agumon peering over his shoulder. Marcus was barely able to see the worried expressions on their faces.
All of a sudden, they stopped and turned. Marcus was able to see the vague silhouette of a large Digimon that he guessed had been chasing them. He could hear the roar of the ocean behind them. They must have been at a cliff.
Suddenly, BanchoLeomon turned around and whispered "Hold on tight… We're jumping…"
Marcus felt the soft, furry and warm arms of the lion Digimon tighten around him and, soon, Marcus felt like he was falling.
Then, he hit something cold and wet that began to sting the wounds that he had sustained. He began to choke on the cold liquid that surrounded him, but it didn't last long. The pain and tiredness that he felt soon made him fall unconscious again in the freezing water.
After what he later found was days later, Marcus woke up again in a large cave. He could hear the faint crackle of a fire beside him and could feel tight bandages covering the wound that he sustained. The bandages went all the way from his left shoulder to his lower right abdomen.
Shaking slightly, he managed to sit up. Suddenly, he heard a gasp from beside him.
"Boss! You're awake!" (1) cried Agumon.
Marcus continued to stare blankly at the floor. He was too tired to think of anything else to do or say at that moment. However, he forced himself out of his stupor when he felt a large, furry paw place itself on his uninjured shoulder.
"Are you alright, Marcus?" he asked quietly. Marcus slowly looked up, his eyes tired and blank as he struggled to form a coherent sentence.
"… W-what… h-happened…?" he asked slowly.
"We were attacked and I carried you here. You've lost a lot of blood, Marcus. I wish I could let you rest but we've stayed here long enough. The enemy is following us and we have to move." He turned to Agumon. "Agumon. Can you please put out that fire?"
Agumon nodded before lifting a nearby bucket of water and doused the fire.
'Water…? Why would they need water…?' thought Marcus. Then, he became vaguely aware of something damp near his hands. He slowly looked down at the object. 'A cloth…? Did that fall off my forehead…?'
As if to answer him, BanchoLeomon placed a paw on his forehead.
"Hmm… Your fever is still pretty high… I don't like moving you, but… if I don't… we'll ALL be killed…" the lion sighed. "Come on…" he grunted as he wrapped Marcus in his blanket and lifted him into his arms. Too tired to even protest, he fell into an uneasy sleep.
The next few weeks were all a blur as he struggled to breathe with Agumon and BanchoLeomon fighting to keep his fever in check.
It actually wasn't too long after that that a DigiGate from the human world to the Digital World opened up. Apparently D.A.T.S. had deemed it safe enough to come back and sent Thomas and Yoshi through to locate Marcus and check up on current affairs. What they didn't expect was to find Agumon at a river collecting water. He had relayed all of the information about Marcus's current condition.
Therefore, when Marcus next awoke, although he couldn't see very well, he could tell that it was Thomas who was treating him and, although the voices around him were hazy, he could vaguely tell what Thomas was saying.
The attribute of the Digimon who had attacked him was Virus. Thomas reasoned that he had, therefore, been infected with a virus from the Digital World, much as Yoshi and Keenan had many years before. However, due to the severity of his wound, his body was weakened and the virus was allowed to spread much more quickly.
Thomas had learned the antidote from Spencer many years prior out of sheer curiosity. He never thought that he would actually have to use it.
However, when he did, Marcus immediately felt his racing pulse begin to slow down and it became much easier for him to breathe.
Then, the next time he woke up, he was in the human world with Kristy holding his hand.
Needless to say, he was pretty confused as the last few weeks were incredibly difficult to remember and Agumon's rushed explanations weren't the most understandable thing in the world, as per usual. Marcus, however, didn't care. He was alive and that was all that mattered…
End flashback…
It didn't appear that he was getting off lightly, though. Now that he was here, confronted by the Digimon who almost killed him, all of those memories had come back to him.
Marcus knew why. He had shoved those memories into the back of his mind. He didn't want to remember them, and…
He didn't want to admit why, either…
He was afraid… No… Terrified… So terrified that he was frozen to the spot…
The beast in front of him was bigger than him, stronger than him, faster than him and Marcus was sure that it wouldn't hesitate to kill him.
Suddenly, a voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
"Marcus! Punch him! Use your DNA Charge!" bellowed BanchoLeomon.
"U-uh… Right…!" Marcus stammered. He raised his fist and began to run at GranDracmon.
The Digimon raised its giant clawed hand and was about to swipe it down at Marcus.
Fortunately, he was ready for it. Marcus kicked off the ground and jumped backwards, narrowly missing GranDracmon's claws. He sighed as he jumped out of the Digimon's reach.
"… I can't get close…" he muttered. He glanced at BanchoLeomon and Agumon who were still having difficulties with the Dracmon. They were separated and Marcus couldn't turn his back on GranDracmon.
He was too afraid to…
He managed to calm his rapid breathing and took a good look at his opponent. He had seen pictures of GranDracmon before and, as he could not see it through the darkness, he attempted to recreate that picture in his mind.
He couldn't attack him from above. He was too big to jump that high. He couldn't attack him head on. He would eviscerate him with those claws before he could even get close. From the images he saw, GranDracmon had two beast-like heads lower down on his body, so he couldn't attack him from below.
Maybe he could distract him and attack him from behind…
He turned to BanchoLeomon and nodded at him. He seemed to understand and glanced at Agumon. They had an order.
Distract GranDracmon…
BanchoLeomon was the first to shake off the Dracmon with his large body and superior strength. He began to charge towards GranDracmon.
"King Lion!" cried BanchoLeomon. He began to slash at GranDracmon, diverting his attention from Marcus. While he was distracted, Marcus began to run quickly around to GranDracmon's back.
He reached it unscathed and pulled back his fist. Just as he was about to strike GranDracmon, BanchoLeomon was knocked aside and GranDracmon rounded on Marcus.
"You didn't think that I wouldn't smell your blood, did you?" GranDracmon smirked smugly.
Marcus glanced at his arm and silently cursed as the blood dripped down his arm from the wound that the Dracmon had inflicted.
As GranDracmon slowly reached for him, Marcus decided that he wasn't going to get another chance and quickly unleashed a powerful blow to one of GranDracmon's legs. The Digimon stumbled backwards a bit before regaining his composure. However, it was too late to strike Marcus as he had already slammed his hand down upon his Digivice Burst.
"DNA Charge Overdrive!" cried Marcus as Agumon began to glow and change before his eyes.
"Agumon Double Warp Digivolve to… ShineGreymon!" the Digimon announced.
ShineGreymon didn't waste any time in retrieving his partner. He swooped down and lifted Marcus into his hand in one deft movement.
"Thanks, ShineGreymon!" Marcus shouted over the wind that was currently rushing past his ears.
"No problem, Boss!" ShineGreymon responded as he lifted his hand to his shoulder and let Marcus jump off.
ShineGreymon turned around in mid-air and faced GranDracmon. He stretched out his wings which began to shimmer with power.
"Glorious Burst!" ShineGreymon's voice appeared to echo throughout the Dark Area as he unleashed a blast of bright energy at GranDracmon.
It the sight of the light, the Dracmon scattered into the dark trees. Marcus came to the conclusion that they had either never seen light before in their lives or it had been had been a very long time. Either way, the light appeared to burn their eyes, judging by the way they fled with their tiny hands covering their bicoloured eyes.
The light collided with GranDracmon who uttered a quiet grunt of pain before being knocked over onto his side.
As it began to pull itself up, Marcus hear GranDracmon begin to chuckle. Then, as it pulled itself upright, the quiet chuckling became raucous laughter.
"That was good, my friend… Unfortunately, you will need to do a lot more than that to defeat me…" he told them in his smooth tone of voice.
"What do we do now, Boss…?" asked ShineGreymon. "That attack was my strongest and it barely fazed him…!"
"… I think there's only one thing we can do, ShineGreymon…" Marcus responded. "Are you ready…?"
"Right, Boss!" ShineGreymon agreed.
The Digivice in Marcus's hand began to shine with a bright orange glow as he turned it on its side.
"Charge! DNA! Burst Mode!" Marcus declared as ShineGreymon began to Digivolve beneath his feet.
"ShineGreymon Digivolve to… ShineGreymon Burst Mode!" ShineGreymon roared.
"Alright, ShineGreymon! Let's give this one last try!" Marcus cheered.
"Right, Boss! Final Shining Burst!" bellowed ShineGreymon.
Just as the attack was about to be unleashed, GranDracmon chuckled ominously.
"Death Scream…" it stated quietly in its gentlemanly tone of voice. Then, without warning, it unleashed a loud, horrifying wail that sounded for all the world like every tortured demon from Hell screaming all at once.
Marcus, ShineGreymon and BanchoLeomon quickly clapped their hands over their ears in a vain attempt to block out the infernal screams that came from their enemy.
Suddenly, it stopped.
ShineGreymon quickly sank to its knees, the jolt caused Marcus to fall from its shoulder. He landed on the ground with an audible thud.
Marcus's head was ringing. He felt ill. Dizzy. Like he was going to vomit.
Holding it in, he lifted his head up and looked up at GranDracmon from his position on the ground, his vision blurring. The Digimon smirked.
"You could always join me, Marcus. Become one of us…" smirked GranDracmon.
Its smooth voice was beginning to worm its way into Marcus's mind (2).
'Maybe GranDracmon is right… We won't suffer anymore…' he thought to himself.
"Crystal Revolution!" called GranDracmon.
Without warning, ShineGreymon and BanchoLeomon became encased in ice crystals. After a few seconds, large fissures became apparent in the ice crystals surrounding the two Digimon. The crystals then shattered with a rush of dark energy. ShineGreymon de-Digivolved into Agumon and both Digimon collapsed to the ground.
GranDracmon continued to stare at Marcus.
"… Gorgon Eye…" stated GranDracmon in his usual gentle tone.
His eyes began to glow with a crimson light. Marcus, who was still looking at him, fell into a trance as he stared at GranDracmon's glowing eyes. (3)
His eyes began to change as he fell deeper into the trance. They became blank. Seemingly pupil less. They changed from their usual hazel colour to a dull yellow.
"… Come…" hissed GranDracmon.
Marcus pulled himself to his feet, albeit against his will. He began to stumble towards GranDracmon on unsteady legs as all emotions slowly drained away. His only objective was to obey his master. He stopped in front of GranDracmon.
"… Who am I, Marcus…?" GranDracmon asked.
"… Master…" Marcus responded in monotone. GranDracmon chuckled.
"Very good…" GranDracmon knelt down and held out his hand which Marcus stepped onto. He was then lifted eye level with the Digimon.
"… Now… Become one of us… You will help me to achieve power…" he chuckled before lifting his other hand and wrapping tightly it around Marcus. Then, he bared his fangs before burying them in the young man's neck.
It was at this point that BanchoLeomon stirred. He lifted his paw to his head and sat up, his head pounding.
"… Uh… Marcus…? ShineGreymon…?" he asked. He turned to his left only to see Agumon lying on the ground.
'… He de-Digivolved…? But… why…?' he thought groggily. He then became vaguely aware of Marcus's absence. He was dragged from his thoughts by a constant dripping sound.
He looked over to a patch of dirt not too far away from him. The source of the dripping sound lay on the dirt. Drops of a crimson, metallic substance. Blood.
He looked up to see the source of the blood. His eyes went wide and he quickly scrambled to his feet, briefly noticing the swarms of Dracmon who were currently fixated on their master and his prey.
Marcus.
BanchoLeomon could only watch in disgust as GranDracmon removed his fangs from the now still young man in his grip.
GranDracmon wiped away some blood from his chin and clicked his fingers.
"Myotismon…" he called. Said Digimon appeared from the shadows beside his master.
"Yes, my King?" he asked, ready to serve.
"Take him back to my castle. I have something to finish up here…" he told the vampire servant.
"As you wish, my King…" Myotismon bowed, taking Marcus in his left hand before disappearing into the shadows once more.
BanchoLeomon, seeing that Marcus was gone and that he and Agumon were clearly outnumbered and outmatched, grabbed Agumon and fled.
GranDracmon chuckled. The victory was his. He no longer needed to be here. He briefly wondered whether he should have returned with Myotismon or not. After all, staying here any longer would be a grand waste of his time.
As for BanchoLeomon's plans, only one person had a say in what happened now.
BanchoLeomon was returning to the human world once more.
D.A.T.S.
Typical Agumon… Always stating the obvious…
GranDracmon's voice has the "Charm" effect. Due to this, there are tales telling that its voice can lead any Angel Digimon who come to subdue it into falling down.
Gorgon Eye is a move that imprisons within darkness the hearts of the opponents that gaze at it.