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Chapter 10
Not Making Sense
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The fight was short and--bizarre.
While Taomon's digivolution vortex was still spinning down, Yinmon flicked the cage that hung around her neck with a huge finger and then pointed that finger at Guilmon. "That one," she said.
Calumon's forehead mark blazed to life and a second vortex spun into being around the little red dragon.
"What's she doing?" Rika hissed to Taomon.
"I don't know," Taomon replied, "but whatever she's up to can't be good for us."
"Because it's all about you, isn't it?" Yinmon sneered and flung a Night Rune into the vortex surrounding Guilmon. It was sucked into the spinning maelstrom and disappeared. Her move was so unexpected that none of the others had a chance to stop it.
"That's it!" Rika shouted, "Taomon, take her out!"
"Jump for your master-- slave!" Yinmon spat as Taomon slid her gigantic calligraphy brush out of a sleeve. From somewhere in her ragged clothing, Yinmon pulled a gnarled staff that rippled with barely visible violet flames at one tip.
The two giant Ultimates drew their magic symbols at nearly the same time. The Talisman of Light and the Sigil of Darkness met each other halfway between their creators and flared into eye-searing brilliance. The symbols expended their titanic energies against each other until only a ghost of the Talisman was left. It hit Yinmon on one shoulder and forced her back a step. Almost immediately Leomon's Fist of the Beast King slammed into Yinmon's other side and she cried out and went to one knee.
Growlmon stepped forward and his maw blazed with the fiery energy of a Pyro Blaster. Yinmon flung a Night Rune at the blast of flame that seemed to take some of the force out of it but it still knocked her flat.
"Be careful of Calumon!" Jeri yelled, needlessly. All of the digimon were targeting their attacks as precisely as they could.
"Don't worry," Taomon reassured her, and flung out her sleeves with a flourish.
The tiny bits of red paper that made up the Thousand Spells attack shot out of her robes and whirled around Yinmon, their razor edges ripping into her-- and Taomon would have smiled at the scream of agony she gave out if Taomon had been in the habit of smiling.
The problem was that Calumon was also screaming.
The digivolution vortex that erupted around Yinmon was startlingly powerful and Jeri groaned in dismay. Rika felt like doing the same but she kept her lips pressed together in a tight, grim line.
The figure that emerged from the vortex was huge and heavily armored but otherwise more like Kunomon's original form than any of her other digivolutions. Beneath her dark gray armor could be seen bits of gold and white fur. Her tail was topped with a long line of spiked metal lames but the underside was a familiar brush of fur. The most striking difference was the pair of powerful wings that sprouted from her back.
"Arisimon," Rika read from her digivice through gritted teeth, "Mega. Her specials attacks are--"
"--killing insolent humans," Arisimon finished for her and lightly flicked the butt end of the huge poleaxe she held in her right hand up and into Rika's chest. The girl's digivice flew from her hand as she cartwheeled into the bushes lining the shore and landed in a limp heap.
Taomon gasped and clutched at her chest, writhing in agony.
"Pitiful," Arisimon observed. "Coyomon said that tamers were your great strength. All I can see is an obvious weak spot."
"You will pay for that!" Leomon roared, and flung another Fist of the Beast King attack at her. She flipped the blade of her poleaxe around and blocked it without bothering to look away from Taomon.
Arisimon held out her free hand and flexed her armored fingers. "I should thank you for what you've done for me." She slowly let a smile spread across her face. "But I won't." She leaped into the air with one powerful sweep of her wings and flew off toward the distant mountains, vanishing from sight within moments.
Taomon knelt over Rika's body and placed one huge hand across her back.
"Is-- is she okay?" Jeri asked.
Taomon didn't answer. Actinic light flared beneath her hand the sharp smell of ozone stung her nose. She poured more energy into Rika's unmoving body, shuddering with the effort. Finally, Rika gasped and twitched and Taomon's body flared briefly into brightness and then shrank into her Kyuubimon form.
Rika sat up and groaned. Jeri threw her arms around Rika and cried, "Oh Rika! I'm so glad you're okay! I was afraid you were dead and then Taomon healed you and--"
"Yeah, yeah," Rika said, pushing Jeri away, "don't get all choked up about it. I'm fine. Where's Arisimon?"
"She's gone," Kyuubimon told her. "She just flew away."
"What? Then what was the point of attacking us in the first place?"
"Maybe--" Kyuubimon began hesitantly.
"Spit it out," Rika told her.
"Maybe she needed us to trigger her digivolution."
"Okay," Rika nodded, "that sort of makes sense. But then what about making Guilmon digivolve? That makes no sense at all."
"No," Kyuubimon admitted, "no it doesn't."
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"Y'know," Coyomon said to his daughter, "I just can't believe how fast you learn."
Ceyamon smiled, pleased by her father's praise. "It's all so fun! Even talking with that Elecmon and tricking the Jagamon. There's so much more than fighting!"
"Oh yeah," Coyomon grinned at her, "just wait until you taste doughnuts!"
Ceyamon glanced up. "What's that?" she asked, pointing at a spot high above the mesa they were sitting on.
Coyomon turned and gazed into the distance. "Hmn-- big damn something or other, that's for sure."
"Fight or talk?" Ceyamon chirped.
"With something that big and maneuverable, it's usually up to them," he told her, shading his eyes with one hand while trying to make out some details of the large flying digimon that was fast approaching them. "Which reminds me-- there's another effective technique that I haven't taught you yet."
"Really?" she asked him eagerly, "what's that?"
"Running and hiding."
The sky flickered and abruptly snapped into darkness in sections.
Coyomon grinned. "That should help."
--o--o--o--
"I didn't know that could be done," Leomon remarked quietly to Kyuubimon as they sat near the fire in the night. Growlmon and all of the children were asleep.
"The healing? It could only work in the Digital Dimension. Here, Rika's digital body can accept a direct upload of energy and data. In the real world such a technique would probably electrocute her."
"I never thought about how vulnerable Jeri was before now. I always do my best to protect her, of course, but I saw how easily a tamer can be hurt today."
Kyuubimon said nothing.
"Not that I'm saying you did anything wrong, of course." Leomon hurried to add. "These things can happen."
Kyuubimon said nothing.
"I would like to be prepared," Leomon continued, shifting uncomfortably "in case it should ever-- happen to Jeri."
Kyuubimon lifted her head from her forepaws and looked at him. "Yes?"
"I would be very grateful if you could teach me that technique."
Kyuubimon was silent for so long a time that Leomon thought he must have offended her in some way.
"If there is some reason why I should not--" he began.
"No," Kyuubimon interrupted him. "I can see that it would be a good thing for you to know. It's just--"
Leomon wisely waited silently for her to continue.
Kyuubimon sighed. "Hold out one finger." Leomon did so. Kyuubimon extended a forepaw and lightly touched Leomon's fingertip. "Now, think of what it feels like to absorb an opponent's data and-- and--"
"Yes?"
"Promise me you'll never mention this to Coyomon."
Leomon blinked in surprise. "Uh-- of course, I--" Then shock hit him.
--o--o--o--
Coyomon watched from his hiding place as the gigantic figure stood in the night, surveying the desert by the light of the Earth overhead. It lifted its armored head several times as if scenting the air. It was obviously searching for something-- or someone. Through the darkness Coyomon could make out a few details of the figure and he was tortured by uncertainty.
Finally he couldn't stand it any longer. "Ceyamon," he said just loud enough to be audible an arm length away.
"Yes father?"
"I'm going to do something really, really stupid in a minute."
"Why?" she asked, frowning in perplexity.
"My coyote nature, I suppose," he replied. "I just hope you got the common sense part of your brain from you mother. Anyway, if things go badly I want you to stay hidden and wait for Renamon and the others to get back."
"I want to go with you!"
Coyomon shook his head. "No. You have to stay here. As your father, I'm ordering you to stay out of this." He sighed at her hurt expression. "It's because I want to keep you safe. If there's only one other lesson you ever learn from me--" he continued, rising and brushing sand off his fur.
"Yes?" he daughter asked in a subdued voice.
"Never, ever do something as dumb as this!" he winked at her and threw himself off the mesa, crying out in a loud, cheerful voice, "HEY! You with the wings and the nifty stick! You looking for me?"
--o--o--o--
Growlmon woke up suddenly and looked around sleepily. Leomon and Kyuubimon were still sitting at the fire but they were on opposite sides and facing away from each other.
"Did something happen?" he asked, yawning, "I thought I heard a noise."
"No!" Leomon said sharply. "Nothing at all happened!"
"Oh," Growlmon said, shocked by the force of Leomon's reply, "okay--"
"Go back to sleep, Growlmon," Kyuubimon said softly. "You'll need to be well rested for tomorrow. You may have to carry Guardromon if he's not up to walking."
Growlmon didn't understand why his friends were acting so strangely but shrugged and settled back down again.
--o--o--o--
Coyomon had tried very hard for a long while to be more thoughtful before he gave into his impulses but he found that, if he tried to do much in the way of planning or analyzing, his thoughts became tangled up with all the possibilities of a situation. The leap-then-look approach had worked out okay for him so far but this time he was wondering if he was going to survive to regret it.
The towering digimon in front of him had to be the digivolved Kunomon. He could now see Calumon in a tiny cage hung around her neck and it wasn't very likely that some other digimon that just happened to look like a giant armored renamon with wings had captured the little guy. Not likely at all.
So now he was stuck. Trying to flee a digimon that powerful was just pure suicide. There was a slight chance that she wouldn't be able to phase out in this form but he was only going to risk it as a last resort. Besides, he had his pride to think of.
He had no idea what her mood was but, given all that had happened between them, he didn't think she'd looked him up to give him a bouquet of flowers. Still-- relaxed confidence was the best way to deal with most situations-- even if it had to be faked.
Coyomon stopped about thirty meters from her, not because he wanted to keep a safe distance between them but because she was so tall that any closer and her breastplate would begin to obscure his view of her face.
He stood with his hands on his hips and said in an easy voice that completely belied his real feelings. "Hey there, kiddo! You're looking great!" his gazed traveled over her imposing form. "Have you lost weight?"
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Author's Notes:
In the Digimon Tamer series after the defeat of Orochimon, we see Rika's group listening to the celebrating Gekomon in the forest country. The next time we see them, they are back in the Iron Desert and Renamon and Guilmon have digivolved into their Champion forms for some reason. No explanation is given. It's like there's a missing scene or episode in between. Always bugged the heck out of me, so I decided to fill in the gap in my own, rather improbable, way.
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