Disclaimer: I own Digimon… not!
By the way, in this chapter, Chevaliermon and VeeAngelmon are also called DigiKnights because I'm kind of lazy to keep typing their names.
Thoughts
speech between DNA or biomerge partners
'telepathy between DigiKnights'
Legend of the Holy Dragon 2
The Fate of the World
Chapter 8
The three SkullDesdemons snarled and fired another volley of shadow shards. They began to move in a circle around the DigiKnights, still firing shards.
Dianthamon conjured another wall of petals as VeeAngelmon constructed a globe of ice. Most of the shards bounced harmlessly off the resulting shield, and the other DigiKnights took care of those that managed to pierce their way in.
"We need a plan," Reidarmon said, shattering a shadow shard with his Warrior's Blade.
VeeAngelmon looked up. "Only one of the three SkullDesdemons is the real one, and it must have drained its energy to pull off the attack."
"So if we can eliminate the two clones…"
"Exactly," VeeAngelmon smiled.
"All right! Let's do it!" Megumimon bounced on her feet, blasting a shadow shard with her beams. "We'll group up and take on each of the SkullDesdemons separately. I'll go with Master Dracomon."
Dianthamon said, "I'll go with Reidarmon." The Digimon in question looked at her and smiled.
VeeAngelmon glanced at Chevaliermon and nodded.
"Ready?" Everyone nodded. Megumimon punched her fist in to the air.
"Let's go!"
The globe of petals and ice shattered and the three teams flew out at their respective targets.
VeeAngelmon immediately cast a torpedo shaped ice shield around herself and Chevaliermon, and they hurtled towards their chosen opponent. Shadow shards rained around them, deflected by the shield.
"Ama Detoir," she whispered, and her sword manifested in her hand. Beside her, Chevaliermon used Pyrokinesis to form a blade of flame. She met his eyes for a moment, and in that one moment, a thousand words passed between them.
She smiled, and the shield shattered around them.
As one, they flew out and towards SkullDesdemon, their movements synchronized, complementing each other, covering each other's backs. To an outsider, it would have looked more like a much-practiced dance than combat.
SkullDesdemon hissed and formed two exceedingly long shadow spikes, and, using them like double swords, fought back. The demon lord's three heads gave it an advantage; it could keep track of both opponents at the same time. However, it still found itself defending more often than not.
On the other hand, VeeAngelmon and Chevaliermon kept up an impenetrable defense, and managed to attack as well. Theirs was an ancient battle technique, the philosophy of Yin and Yang.
As they fought, VeeAngelmon's mind wandered back to the past, to happier times, when her world was simple and carefree. A time when they had wandered the Digital World together, when they had fought side by side, in perfect coordination, perfect synchronization, perfect trust.
A time before he betrayed that trust.
Betrayed her.
She could feel the pain she had felt then, sharp, burning, slicing through her heart…
"VeeAngelmon!"
With a start, VeeAngelmon was brought back to the present. The searing feeling in her chest doubled, and to her shock she saw a shadow sword sticking out of her left shoulder, barely inches away from her heart. Chevaliermon stood in front of her, valiantly battling SkullDesdemon, who had unpleasant smirks on its faces.
Hissing in pain, VeeAngelmon probed the wound with her fingers. A serious wound, but not fatal. Glancing up, she knew that she would have to rejoin the battle. There was no other way. Gritting her teeth, she took a deep breath…
And yanked the sword out of her shoulder.
Biting her lip to keep from screaming in pain, she crushed the sword into data fragments and shoved them into her wound. Immediately, the data began assimilating into her body, mending the broken flesh.
She drew in a deep breath as the pain receded. The wound was closing up rapidly; torn flesh and fractured bone knitting back together. The only question now was whether the data from the sword had been tainted, whether it would in turn poison her body.
She remembered another time, long ago, and another near-fatal injury. Chevaliermon had saved her with a transfusion of data. But it had been tainted, and she herself almost fell to the darkness…
And now she had healed herself with a shadow sword…
The sword! SkullDesdemon!
Near panic, she turned back to the battle. Chevaliermon was slowly being forced backwards, but he had managed to turn SkullDesdemon away from her, so that now the Demon Lord's back was facing her.
A perfect chance.
Without a second thought, VeeAngelmon reformed her ice sword and plunged it into SkullDesdemon's back.
SkullDesdemon shrieked, the bloodcurdling sound echoing eerily in the confined of the battle dimension. As it shrieked, it blurred around the edges, data struggling to escape from its confines.
"Infra Ray!" A bolt of white-hot heat struck the writhing mass of data right through the middle, and what was left of the SkullDesdemon clone exploded spectacularly.
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As the ice shield shattered around them, Master Dracomon and Megumimon launched off, leaping effortlessly upwards like a pair of twin missiles while dodging shadow blades. As their momentum began to wear off, Master Dracomon grabbed Megumimon's arm, and fired a Volcano Blitz behind them, using the fiery force to propel them towards their designated SkullDesdemon. Megumimon deflected incoming shadow shards with her energy beams.
SkullDesdemon raised its arm, summoning even more shadow shards. However, instead of flying at the two approaching DigiKnights, the newly created blades circled the demon lord like a cyclone of death.
The rocket-propelled duo did not stop. In fact, they all but ploughed into the shield of blades, Master Dracomon turning the focus of the Volcano Blitz towards the spinning shards of death. The attack burned out a good portion of shards, creating an opening for Megumimon to get a clear shot with her Unrequited Love.
SkullDesdemon snarled, and sent the blades spinning towards them in vortex of fury.
Time seemed to move in slow motion. Megumimon, unable to turn in time after firing her beams, found herself staring at hundreds of razor sharp shadow blades. Fear gripped her heart and immobilized her.
Oh my god, ohmygod, I'm going to die. I hope Rick sends flowers to my grave. Chrysanthemums. White chrysanthemums for the dead.
Pushing the completely irrational thought out of her mind, she closed her eyes and prepared herself for the impact.
Which never came.
Instead, she felt herself wrenched away from the path of the projectiles, felt strong arms wrap around her, protecting her. She heard a gasp of pain, and her eyes flew open to see Master Dracomon using his own body as a shield to protect her from the shards, which roared past them, slicing into his back, his arms and legs.
No!
Desperately, she cried out the first attack that came to mind.
"Halcyon!"
The air around her moved, spiraled, then sped up to a point where it formed a twister. The rapid winds closed around herself and Master Dracomon, forming a wall of furiously twisting wind. The shadow shards were deflected off the wind barrier.
Inside the twister, Master Dracomon released his hold on Megumimon, both determinedly ignoring the heat in their faces.
"I didn't know you could do that."
"I didn't either."
They both looked solemnly at each other before bursting into laughter, which was, to say the least, extremely strange in itself. One simply did not laugh when being attacked by a world-domination-obsessed demon lord. So it actually made sense that the laughter was a little on the hysterical side.
Suddenly, Megumimon sobered. "How're your injuries?"
Master Dracomon grimaced. "I'll live. You cast this twister just in time, actually."
"Come on; let's show Tall, Dark and Creepy out there that no one messes with the DigiKnights! Halcyon: Spirit Mode!"
The twister exploded, cutting winds bursting outwards. The dissipating wind streams had taken care of any remaining shadow shards. For an instant, SkullDesdemon was completely defenseless. Master Dracomon took the chance and fired the attack he had been charging since the beginning of the battle.
"Ultimate Dragon Cannon!"
A huge blast of energy surged from his outstretched hands, a blast easily taller and much wider than himself. With earthshaking force, it plowed into SkullDesdemon, who let out a cry that was halfway between a screech and a howl.
Meanwhile, the wind from the twister coalesced into a shimmering silver form: a magnificent lion with piercing emerald eyes and huge feathered wings. At a command from Megumimon, it lashed its tail and leapt straight for the injured SkullDesdemon, claws extended and slashing.
With one last shriek, the SkullDesdemon clone shattered, just as its twin had done moments ago. As one, the DigiKnights turned to Reidarmon and Dianthamon.
And the true SkullDesdemon.
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As VeeAngelmon released the ice shield, Dianthamon immediately replaced it with an orb of petals around herself and Reidarmon. The orb rose, bringing them towards SkullDesdemon.
"Ready?" Reidarmon asked, activating his Warrior's Blades.
"Always." She smiled as her own Sword of Blossoms materialized.
"3…"
"2…"
"1…"
"Go!"
The orb flew apart, and the petals turned into missiles that streaked towards SkullDesdemon, who countered with a barrage of shadow spikes. Dianthamon immediately summoned more petals, as did SkullDesdemon. Doing so kept the demon lord occupied, and it did not sense Reidarmon until he was right behind it, slashing with his blades.
Snarling, the black Digimon caught both blades in its hands, ignoring the edges of the blades that bit into its palms. Startled, Reidarmon jerked back and lashed out with his tail.
"Toxic Whip!"
With both hands occupied, SkullDesdemon hissed and bit into the offending tail, stopping it barely an inch from its face. Reidarmon cried out in pain as the demon lord's fangs punched through his exoskeleton.
"Sunlight Dance!"
SkullDesdemon looked up as a bolt of pure white light slammed into it, freeing Reidarmon from its grasp. The light spun into thin beams, which twisted themselves around him like so many shining snakes. The Dark Prodigy hissed in fury and indignation as it thrashed against its bonds.
Overhead, Dianthamon threw open her arms. Caught by her rays of light, SkullDesdemon's arms followed suit, leaving its chest unprotected. Reidarmon slipped in between the puppet-strings of light and struck SkullDesdemon full-on with his Warrior's Blade, gouging deep gashes into its chest.
Reidarmon leapt aside, fully expecting a gush of blood, or data, or something. It never came. Instead, SkullDesdemon began to laugh, a chilling, unearthly laugh. It was the laughter of madness.
Like Dianthamon and Reidarmon, the approaching DigiKnights flinched at the sound. Suddenly, streams of darkness whipped past them, darkness from the deleted clones converging on their core. SkullDesdemon kept on laughing, laughing as dark data gathered around it, laughing as the data began to immerse into its body, as its outlines first blurred then grew. By the time its new body solidified, the laughter had become a spine-tingling, bloodcurdling giggle.
Both the demon lord's forms of Desdemon and SkullDesdemon had a certain dark beauty, in their sleekness of form, the elegant gleam of the fur. This new being that stood before the DigiKnights could only be described as grotesque. Instead of black, it was now a dead mottled grey. Patches of skin was missing from its emaciated centuar-esque body, revealing rotting grey flesh, clotted black blood and maggots. In some areas its flesh drooped, as though it was melting from the inside. From its back, through a rotting wound, bone wings emerged, the bones barely held together by ligaments and strips of skin. Its three heads were dull and battered, eyes bleeding thick black blood, with patches of missing scales along the neck. It opened its mouths, and spoke in a gurgling hiss.
"Foolissh DigiKnightsss. Dosst thee think thine fragile mortality can sstill the very godsss? Thy inpudensss sshall be punissh'd!"
Megumimon retched, eyes watering at the horrendous stench wafting from the creature. Reidarmon unconsciously took a step backward, and Dianthamon and Master Dracomon shuddered in pure revulsion. VeeAngelmon was shaking uncontrollably in the sanctuary of Chevaliermon's arms.
"F-Faulemon..." Her voice shook.
"I sssee that thee remembersss me, witch. How dosst thee likest my new form? Dids't thou think that a god can be killed? Kill'd I wasss and now, live again! I ssshall claim vengeansss for what thee and thine deni'd me!"
Master Dracomon frowned. "What's it talking about?"
"We killed it," Chevaliermon replied grimly. "Long ago. It isn't a true Digimon, but a virus of the worst kind. It corrupts all it touches, and takes over the bodies of its victims. It has already taken over SkullDesdemon. Whatever you do, do not touch it."
"Thy wordsss are wissse, varlet, but thou wilt not triumph. All will bow before me!"
With that, the walking corpse attacked.
"Plague!"
A black mist erupted from Faulemon's three heads, a thick, roiling mist. Megumimon flinched, frantically firing beam after beam of green energy. Dianthamon's petals and Chevaliermon's pyrokinetics eliminated the bulk of the mist, but still Megumimon attacked. She was hyperventilating, and when Faulemon cackled she collapsed, screaming a scream of pure terror.
Instantly, Master Dracomon was at her side. Grabbing her shoulders, he slapped her hard, watching as tears gathered and her breathing slowed. As she calmed down, he wrapped his arms around her, whispering soothing nothings, letting her cry into his shoulder until her sobs subsided. Gratefully, she smiled up at him, the two sharing a glance that promised the world.
Her whispered "Thank you" was like life itself, sweet and comforting, a panacea for all his wounds. In that instant, as they stood to fight, Master Dracomon knew that he would do anything to protect this girl. Anything.
--------------------
Meanwhile, the other four DigiKnights engaged in battle with Faulemon. Alternatively attacking and defending, they hit it again and again, yet it seemed to take no damage at all. Heads lolling, it cackled, sending wave after wave of tainted mist at them, and then changed tactics.
"Starvation!"
Tiny flecks of data began to drift out of the DigiKnights, Dianthamon shuddered, swayed, and nearly fell. In desperation, she summoned a cocoon of petals around herself, feeling brief relief as Faulemon's attack began to absorb data from the petals instead of herself. Sensing her plight, VeeAngelmon supplemented her petal shield with ice, before returning her attention to the battle.
Fierce, icy anger helped to suppress the fear in her heart. As she faced Faulemon, she remembered her past, her terrifying experience as one of Faulemon's own. As she sent wave after wave of ice shards into the zombie Digimon's rotting flesh, she pummeled away at the memory of the creature that she had been, a harbinger of death and torture, the epitome of depravity and cruelty. Remembering Faulemon's attacks that she herself had used, she used the knowledge to protect the others.
Faulemon's mind, she realised, had not changed. Neither had its attack strategy. The next attack will be --
"Carnage!"
The data which had been pulled from the DigiKnights twisted into new forms. Razor sharp bone and metal began spiralling around Faulemon, a gruesome replica of SkullDesdemon's shadow blades. The debris vortex spin wider and wider, the already destructive bone and metal gaining speed and power. As its vortex of destruction barreled into the DigiKnights, Faulemon again started to giggle hysterically.
With a roar of rage, Reidarmon wiped out the majority of the debris with his Warrior's Blade. Now that Faulemon was no longer draining data from them, he found it easier to execute his attacks. Remembering Chevaliermon's warning about physical contact with Faulemon, he raised his claw and summoned the Lance of Longinus. When Master Dracomon's Volcano Blitz cleared a path through the bone and metal vortex, Reidarmon hurled the red lance at Faulemon.
The lance pierced right through Faulemon's grey flesh, cutting it off mid-giggle. A heartbeat later, it walking corpse exploded. Megumimon and Dianthamon cheered amidst the flying chunks of dead flesh, and Master Dracomon and Reidarmon gave each other a hi-five.
"No! Watch out!" VeeAngelmon's cry had barely reached their ears before they heard another sound: the thin mad cackle of Faulemon. It seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere, and echoed in the air. The cackle grew louder and louder, cumulating in one single word.
"Demise!"
VeeAngelmon shrieked as her wings began to turn grey. Behind her, Chevaliermon's arms started bleeding black. Master Dracomon gasped as his armour cracked, revealing grey flesh underneath. Megumimon watched in horror as maggots crawled out of her skin. Reidarmon's wings began to moult skin and flesh, and Dianthamon's eyes bled under her mask.
They were becoming Faulemon.
"No! NO! NOT AGAIN!" VeeAngelmon screamed in blind panic, ripping at her greying wings. "THIS CANNOT BE HAPPENING AGAIN!" The DigiKnights watched in horror as she summoned Ama Detoir and sliced her own wings clean off. Chevaliermon cursed and wrestled the sword from her grasp, pinning her arms down as he tried to stop the blood that gushed from her back. His own black blood seeped into her wounds, instantaneously turning the wound black.
Megumimon was starting to hyperventilate again. Panic clouded her mind until all she see was the maggots eating away at her flesh. Oh my god, no. Oh my god ohmygod ohmygod, no. No no nonono! Help me! HELP ME! Swiping at the maggots, black spots danced in her vision, and she fainted.
Master Dracomon caught her as she fell, intending to place her somewhere safe. Unbidden, his arms spasmed, the flesh on his arms and chest convulsing. Shocked, he looked down to find that his flesh was almost completely grey now, and starting to clench and twist under his skin.
Reidarmon clenched his teeth against the pain in his wings. Turning to Dianthamon, he cried out in shock as black blood streamed out of her eye sockets; her eyes were completely gone. Heart clenching, he gathered her in his arms, frantically trying to think of a way out of this.
Come, on Takeshi! Think! We can't die here, not now, not when were this close to success! The Digital World cannot fall into the hands of Faulemon! Even Kakodramon is better than this monster!
Wait. Kakodramon!
"Dianthamon! Kei! Can you hear me?" She nodded. "We have to DNA Digivolve into Kakodramon. It's the only thing that might be able to defeat the virus!"
Dianthamon gaped at him, then, as thin wounds began to rip across her skin, she nodded. "All right. Let's do this. But without hurting the others."
"Without hurting the others," Reidarmon agreed. Dianthamon smiled, and suddenly Takeshi and Shaulamon could see Kei and Kangamon smiling at them. They smiled back, knowing that they may be walking to their deaths, knowing also that to be together, even in death, would be worth it all.
Reidarmon and Dianthamon began to glow, blue and purple, turning into light, feeling the taint of Faulemon being burned away in the fierce energy of the Digivolution. Four hearts beat as one, four minds linked, and one thought rose above the rest.
Save us all.
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Chevaliermon and Master Dracomon looked up as Reidarmon and Dianthamon exploded into a blinding burst of light, brilliant indigo and violet bleeding into black. For an instant, Master Dracomon's heart stopped as the unforgettable, terrifyingly beautiful call of Kakodramon rang out from within the black mass. Beside him, Chevaliermon and even VeeAngelmon had stopped moving, panic shoved aside to make way for awe and dread at this spectacle. In the background, almost drowned out by Kakodramon, Faulemon's mad giggle continued.
Kakodramon's roar turned into a howl, and from within that earthrending howl the three DigiKnights heard four voices blended into one.
Save us all.
The ground, the air, the very dimension that they were in began to tremble. In Master Dracomon's arms, Megumimon stirred. Opening her eyes, she beheld the sight of a roiling black mass and an all too familiar feeling of pure power. Like Master Dracomon, she immediately recognized the signs that heralded the Chaos Dragon's arrival.
It was inevitable, after all that they had done. The Digital World was doomed to fall under Kakodramon's devastating End of Earth.
I'm sorry, Jinlingmon. We couldn't save the world. You must be so disappointed. I'm sorry.
And yet, it was better that the Digital World be destroyed than turned into the playground of Faulemon; living, but a cruel mockery of what it had been. Megumimon sighed. Even though this was inevitable, it still tasted bitter, the taste of failure.
I'm sorry.
--------------------
Within the mass of light, the consciousnesses of Takeshi, Kei, Kangamon and Shaulamon mentally linked hands. Both separate and blended, the data that made up of their bodies mixed and coalesced.
Save us all.
The data drifted together, beginning to merge, fusing into a long, coiled form.
Help us. Save the world.
The data firmed, forming a head, legs, a tail.
We call on the Dragon. Give us the strength to purge the foul virus.
Data twisted, rippled. Horns formed on the head, talons on feet, scales along the body.
Save us all!
--------------------
Afterwards, when Rick thought of this moment, he would always remember that everything happened so quickly.
SAVE US ALL!
Before the watching DigiKnights had time to react, the mass of black light burst apart. Mentally, they braced themselves for the terrible, beautiful visage of the Chaos Dragon.
It never came.
Instead, blazing white light replaced the black, light so white, so bright that it burned into their eyes, momentarily blinding them. At the same time, a majestic roar split the air, a roar as terrifying and as awesome as that which issued from the black light, but with a different timbre. Instead of creating visions of death, this call heralded the arrival of life. VeeAngelmon gasped and sank to her knees.
The white light engulfed them, burning and soothing at the same time. It wove flesh anew, closed wounds, turned black blood back to red. Above all, it purified, leaving the DigiKnights feeling clean in a way that they had never felt before.
When they could see again, it was not Kakodramon but Hierodramon that hung before their eyes.
The Holy Dragon was a spiral of black and white scales, topped by white flames that ran down its back, flames that hurt the eye to look at. Horns fanned crown-like along its head and neck, and glowing digital cores orbited around its body.
Appearances aside, the main difference between the Holy Dragon and its Chaos counterpart was the aura that it gave off. Unlike Kakodramon's aura of pure darkness, Hierodramon's aura was pure light, and conjured the image of Heaven.
In the face of such holiness, Faulemon's voice grew into a bone chilling shriek, and then faded, and the DigiKnights knew that the monster was finally, completely vanquished. The air glowed briefly, and loose data gathered into the form of SkullDesdemon.
The DigiKnights gasped, but SkullDesdemon paid them no attention at all. Instead, it gazed up at the Holy Dragon for what seemed like an eternity, before slowly, finally, kneeling before the ruler of the Digital World.
"You are forgiven, my child."
SkullDesdemon seemed to smile. As it turned to the DigiKnights, it started to glow, blurring at the edges as data fragments drifted from its body. The Black Prodigy bowed in gratitude for freeing it from an existence as Faulemon, and vanished as the data supporting its shape dissolved. At a signal from the Holy Dragon, VeeAngelmon returned them all to reality.
Now Master Dracomon and Megumimon de-digivolved, and Rick, Sacchi, Vipermon and Pekomon stood in their place, looking up at the Holy Dragon.
"Thank you, DigiKnights of Jinlingmon, for resurrecting me and restoring my world to its former glory. The Digital World will always welcome you as its saviors."
The four shared a smile, a warm feeling rising in their hearts. But happiness was marred by one thing. A little apprehensively, Sacchi spoke up. "What about Kei and Takeshi? What will happen to them?"
Hierodramon seemed saddened. "I am sorry, DigiKnights. Kei and Takeshi, as well as Kangamon and Shaulamon, no longer exist. In saving you and the Digital World, they gave up all. Even though only Kangamon and Shaulamon were meant to be sacrificed in my resurrection, them being born from my own data, Kei and Takeshi are now an intrinsic part of me. I am truly sorry."
"What?" Rick had to struggle from yelling at Hierodramon. "How can this be?"
"Can't you do something, my Lord?" VeeAngelmon asked.
Sadly, the Holy Dragon shook its head. "Though I rule the Digital World, I am afraid that even I cannot reverse the process. Usually, when Digimon DNA Digivolve, it is only temporary. However, when the end result of that Digivolution is a God Digimon, and when all parties involved decide to sacrifice everything for the Digivolution, it is permanent."
"No," Sacchi was on the verge of tears. "We were supposed to go home together." Wordlessly, Rick took her hand in his, silently offering comfort. Their Digimon huddled around them, heads drooping, trying to overcome the loss of their four friends. The Holy Dragon sadly watched the four grieving friends. It felt a slight tugging in its body, where the vestiges of the individuals that used to be Kei, Kangamon, Takeshi and Shaulamon resided. They too wanted to comfort their friends in some way.
Just then, the Holy Dragon brightened. The DigiKnights watched as four of its digital cores glowed, and were detached from the string of orbiting cores. The four detached cores glowed brighter as they floated down to the DigiKnights. Sacchi, Rick, Pekomon and Vipermon each caught one core. Rick looked down at the glowing orb in his hands, and gasped as Takeshi's face smiled up at him. Signs of shock from the others told him that all four cores held the image of one of their friends.
"Wha- What's going on?"
The orb with Kei's face in it twinkled, as if she were laughing. "These digital cores are our new bodies, Sacchi. Don't look so shocked!" Sacchi's jaw fell open as she stared down at the orb. Rick distinctly heard her mumble. "I'm dreaming. Nobody pinch me."
Turning back to Takeshi's orb, he asked, "How did you do this? I thought the Holy Dragon said-"
Takeshi smiled. "Hierodramon said it couldn't return us to our former bodies, because that data is its body now. However, he could implant our individual consciousness onto the digital cores, so here we are!"
Pekomon purred happily as she batted Kangamon's orb in the air in true kitten style. Rick laughed as he saw the expression on Kangamon's face; she could not decide whether to be amused or disgruntled. Vipermon, on the other hand, was poking at Shaulamon's orb, much to the latter's chagrin.
Smiling as he took in this scene, Rick raised his eyes to look at the Holy Dragon. The ruler of the Digital World was smiling as it watched them play, and humming in contentment. Wait a second, humming? Before he could react, the Holy Dragon winked one massive eye and took off into the sky. Chevaliermon and VeeAngelmon followed, waving goodbye to the DigiKnights.
Rick turned to the others. "Let's go home."
Happily, they agreed. The digital cores pulsed in tandem, and a portal flashed into existence. When the portal flashed once again, the Shrine of the Holy Dragon was empty, save for the setting sun.
- Fin -
AN : And so ends a project that stretched for six years O.o It's a happy ending, hope you guys like it. Once again, thanks to mario72486 and Sakura Kuonji for their contributions, without which this story would not have been possible. Thanks also to Acy and Vee, on whom Chevaliermon and VeeAngelmon were based.
This chapter actually came out rather differently from what I had planned (while I was supposed to be studying . ). For one, Faulemon was a completely new addition. Originally, I was going to have SkullDesdemon do a DNA Digivolve of sorts with Daemon's data, with the end result called Desdaemon (I'm not very original . ). Anyway, Desdaemon was supposed to look like this:
Before their eyes, the black aura swooped away from the Black Prodigy, revealing a new, infinitely terrifying form. In size itself, the new Digimon towered above them all. Instead of three heads, it now had nine, the newly sprouted slim hissing heads curling around the main three like Medusa's hair. The cobra head was now more dragonlike, with sleek horns curving from just above its third eye all the way down to its neck. It retained the humanoid shape, though it was now fully plated with scales. Wickedly curved talons decorated its hands and feet, and its three tails were now fully barbed. It looked like a god of the underworld.
But most terrifying were the eyes. Except for the glowing third eye of the cobra head, all of its eyes were merely sockets, all brimming with thick balck blood that streaked down like decadent tears.
The black aura gathered on its back, forming a pair of skeletal wings.
I wrote Faulemon into the story without first consulting my draft, which is how it ended up from 'god of the underworld' to 'gruesome beyond belief'. But I'm quite happy with how it turned out. :D Cheers!