A/N: Latest chapter has arrived, happy new year to everyone! Also I have to acknowledge Captain Nice Hardrive who pointed out a bit of a gaffe in an earlier chapter. You are correct it was indeed Lord Whamon who gave Tai the digivice. I'll be correcting that at some point. Thank you for pointing that out.
Again thanks to everyone who reviewed, sent a pm, favourited or followed. Thanks for all your support.
Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon
The Final Curtain Call
"So what exactly are you doing?" Tai questioned Izzy who was sitting down typing rapidly on his computer. They had just found Tks crest hidden in a rock wall, which had then vanished and led into some sort of strange man-made cave.
A cave filled with digicode.
"And please explain it so that we can understand" Mimi added helpfully. Izzy looked annoyed at the interruption to his work but explained regardless,
"That terminal we found, thanks to Piximons blueprints, is what allowed me to find this cave and Tks crest. That email I got requesting assistance is what opened the cave here. Why it led us here exactly I'm not yet sure. I theorise that these hieroglyphs all along the walls aren't actually just a form of writing but rather a computer code." He paused looking around to make sure everyone was still with him.
"By changing the code on these walls we could possibly change the programming of our surroundings. For instance, you'll remember back in that factory, when I altered some code, the whole place shut down. When I restored it, it started back up again. So to conclude we must have been led here for a purpose. That purpose will, according to these emails, allow us to locate the final crest. All I have to do is decipher it." He looked up at the group, "Any questions?" There was silence as they all digested this.
"So, we're in a giant computer game? None of this is real?" Joe asked scratching his head in confusion.
"It's definitely real." As he said this a hologram resembling a planet appeared a few feet away from them, "See? I'm beginning to think that everything we see and everyone we meet are just programs that have been given a physical form."
Matt seemed confused as well.
"So we're in a computer? That's stupid! For one thing, how did we get in-"
Tai began to tune out the conversation. Most of this was similar to what Lord Whamon had told him from his last adventure. That digimon were specific programs made up of zeros and ones which have a physical form. He and Zero had been the computer vaccine to destroy Daemon, the virus corrupting the digital world.
Although it got a bit confusing, since Daemon was trying to physically invade and destroy the real world as well. Something which should be impossible for a computer virus. 'It makes my head hurt' Tai thought rubbing his head absentmindedly.
"The Digital World is a physical embodiment of the data passing between computers in our world." Izzy theorised, "What occurs in one can affect the other. I believe that by using the Digicode on the walls and my laptop I can transport us to the exact location of whoever is sending us the distress call! It'll be just like accessing a webpage!" He finished triumphantly.
"This is making my head spin" Tk complained, sitting down near Tokomon.
"Don't worry Tk. It's pretty confusing to me too" Matt said reassuringly crouching down next to his brother.
"So what happens now?" Tai asked looking at Izzy. "Can you get us to whoever's calling for help?"
"I'm working on it" He replied typing rapidly on his computer. "Ok, lets give this a try!" Izzy hit the enter key and suddenly the back of the cave vanished to be replaced by an exit into daylight.
"Looks like it worked!" Sora exclaimed astonished. Tai rushed forward along with Matt and Joe right behind him in order to take a look.
"Hey look out!" Matt grabbed the back of Tai's shirt preventing him from falling off the structure the cave had opened out into. Tai let out the breath he'd been holding.
"Thanks Matt. That was close"
"Don't be so reckless" Matt replied. Joe stared out at their surroundings,
"We're standing on a sphinx." He said emotionlessly "A cave opened up magically in a totally different place, again, and now we're standing on the Sphinx that's supposed to be in Egypt." He pointed still deadpan, "Over there is a massive upside down pyramid. I'm not even surprised"
Matt and Tai meanwhile gaped at the physically impossible sight.
"Are you feeling alright Joe?" Sora asked having caught up with them. "You sound like you need to lie down"
"I think I need to take a nap. This world is getting to me." As Joe went back inside the cave Tai took out his spy-glass and began surveying the inverted pyramid. Izzy walked up behind them his laptop still in hand,
"I think that pyramid is where the signal is originating from. We should head over ther-" He was interrupted by Tai's gasp.
"It's Etemon!" He exclaimed spotting the Ultimate's monochromon-pulled trailer. "He's just entered the Pyramid!" Tai could just make out monkey-suited monster stomping murderously into the pyramid flanked by two Gazimon.
"He must be going after the crest" Matt said crouching down next to Tai, squinting his eyes in an attempt to spot their enemy.
"Then we need to go down there now and grab the crest quickly!" Tai exclaimed. Izzy grabbed the back of his shirt,
"That's far too reckless! We don't know what sort of traps or defences he has down there. Besides everyone's tired. A fight right now against Etemon would be ridiculously one-sided." Izzy explained trying to exercise caution.
"But if he gets Sora's crest before we do he could hide it or destroy it!" Tai argued back. "We don't have much time!"
"According to the plans Piximon gave me, this place is the source of his Dark Network. It's going to be heavily guarded no matter what, so we should be at full strength if we want to mount an assault" Izzy countered logically. Matt then decided to speak up,
"Wait. If that's his base of operations, he must not know that Sora's crest is in there!" He realised as the other two looked at him. Izzy looked especially surprised,
"That's a good idea Matt. If Etemon is unaware then it must be well hidden. So it would make sense to attack tomorrow." He then turned to Tai, "It's unlikely Etemon will discover it tonight. Afterall we only discovered ours because they reacted to ours tags remember?" Tai thought back to the glowing wall, the giant cactus and the entrance to the cave they were currently in.
"Oh yeah. They reacted to the crests. Hey wait a minute" Realisation struck him, "Where did Joe find his crest?" Izzy and Matt shared uneasy looks with each other.
"It was at the Colliseum" Matt finally replied, being the braver of the two. "When Joe found his crest it caused the floor to collapse remember?" Matts voice, normally neutral and distant, was beginning to show just the barest hints of concern. Tai faltered. That had been during his hallucinations. Tai had to admit that he hadn't been paying much attention to anything else back then.
"Oh yeah" Tai said quietly in an emotionless tone that fooled neither of the two boys. "I remember now." After an uncomfortable silence they went back inside the cave and decided to get some rest for the now oncoming night.
Hours later at the original entrance of the cave when darkness had set in, Tai and Agumon were being relieved of watch duty by Sora and Biyomon.
"You two can go to bed now. We'll take it from here" Biyomon yelled out cheerfully.
"Great!" Exclaimed Agumon standing up, "I'm exhausted! Goodnight everyone!" He marched back into the cave to join the others for a good snooze. Tai who was sitting by the fire, made to get up but Sora put a hand on his shoulder to stop him and then sat down next to him.
"About tomorrow..." She stated unsurely.
"Yeah?"
"I'm worried. Etemon is so much stronger than us; I don't think it's worth the effort just to get my crest" Voiced Sora quietly, as if afraid that he would rebuke her. Tai caught onto the fact that this was hinting at a bit more than just her obtaining her crest.
"You know you're only saying that because it's yours." He reasoned, "If it was mine or anyone elses you'd be all for it. What is it that's really bothering you Sor?" She grimaced and looked around to see if anyone else was listening. The cave behind them was dark and quiet, Biyomon was talking to Agumon by another outcropping and the rest of the desert seemed empty.
Satisfied Sora began to speak,
"I'm worried about everything Tai. What Izzy said about us just being data, about possibly being killed any day. About that unkown evil we might have to face. About everyone here and what our parents are thinking right now." Her voice drifted off towards the end. Tai knew Sora didn't get on well with her mother, although she hadn't told him the details. "I'm also worried about you as well Tai" she continued startling Tai.
"Why are you worried about me?!" He asked incredulously. "I'm fine! Never been better!"
"You've been acting weirdly since Piximons training. Tell me honestly Tai. What was it that you saw?"
"Hey! I didn't-"
"Don't try to lie to me Tai!" She warned with a dangerous tone in her voice. Tai gulped and promptly surrendered. There was no use arguing when Sora got like this he had learned. She was too kind to be dissuaded. He looked down, unable to meet her eyes.
"It's just... a lot has happened in the past week. First with Agumon in the colliseum and then that cave." He absentmindedly fiddled with his hands as he spoke. Doing his best not to think too hard about the incidents. Sora watched Tai's uncharacteristic nervousness with concern.
'It's been going on longer than that though hasn't it?' She thought when he had paused to compose himself. 'Something has been bothering you for months now Tai. But now we're in the digital world you've been acting even weirder.' Tai then began to speak again,
"When we went into that cave I found myself in a completely different world. There was no colour or anything else except for a black ocean and a grey beach. Inside one of those caves I saw-, I saw-" Tai struggled a bit, before taking a deep breath. Sora watched on in anxious trepidation. "I saw Kari. She blamed me for nearly- you know. It was horrible. Like I was all alone, Kari hated me, my parents hated me, everyone. I nearly gave in. I was on my knees, but then Agumon pulled me out. He reminded me that I'm not alone, and I escaped."
Tai looked up at her, his eyes shining. "And that's what happened." He finished with a false majesty. "That was my 'training' with Piximon." He said bitterly. Sora was dumbstruck. She knew Tai felt guilty for what had happened to Kari, but that was years ago! She had thought he'd gotten over it.
"Tai that was ages ago! Kari doesn't blame you for it" Sora said placatingly. She'd already explained that to him once afterall.
"I know" he said quietly, his despondent expression not shifting in the slightest. "That's the part that hurts the most. She doesn't even blame me. Do you know who she blames Sora?" He asked a tormented mocking in his tone. "Herself! She blamed herself Sora! How can I call myself her older brother after that? I don't deserve it!"
Tears were falling down his cheeks. He clumsily began to wipe them up with the back of his arm. Sora watched on trying to think of what to say.
She eventually decided to just go with her instincts.
She slapped him across the face.
The slap rang out through the night reverberating through the small canyon they were in. Tai's face was looking out to the side in shock. He slowly turned back to her eyes uncomprehending.
"Tai the only person who still hates you for it is yourself! Kari doesn't hate you! Your parents don't hate you! I certaintly don't hate you! The only peron who hasn't forgiven you is yourself! You need to get over it and look to the future!" Sora chastises, slightly red-faced at the end of her speech as Tai stared at her, hand cupping his stinging cheek.
For a moment she was worried she'd gone too far but then he smiled a little.
"Thanks Sora" he said sincerely, "I am getting over it. It's just that, that cave... It brought up old wounds." She smiled back at him relieved,
"Good. Just remember we're all behind you. No matter what." They sat next to each other in comfortable silence for a few minutes. Looking up at the stars.
"What else was bothering you Sora?" Tai asked tenderly.
"Well other than my best friend getting moody..." she teased as he lightly punched her arm. "It's mostly what Izzy said earlier."
"Oh yeah, that." Tai said unsure. Sora sighed,
"You weren't listening were you?"
"eh...not as such no..."
"You knucklehead" she said affectionately yet also with a hint of admonishment. "What he was saying was that we're just shadow versions of our real selves. That the digital world is a parallel world to our own and that they could affect one another. We're made of data while our real selves are made of flesh and blood. It just makes us seem so small you know? There's so much we don't understand. It worries me."
"You shouldn't be worried Sora." Tai exclaimed with some of his old confidence. "We wouldn't have been sent here if we were that unimportant. We've just got to get your crest, beat up Etemon then find a way home. It couldn't be simpler"
"You make it sound so easy. But, I hope it is Tai."
"Anyway it's just a theory, he might not even be right. I mean we've all cut and bruised ourselves plenty of times and we still bleed. So it's probably more complicated then that" Tai finished making Sora blink.
"That was actually pretty smart thinking there Tai" She complimented shocked.
He grinned,
"Why thank you- Hey was that insult?" He asked incensed. Sora giggled which then developed into full blown laughter as she let loose the tension she'd been building up. Tai let his false anger fade away as he smiled at her obvious joy.
"Are you going to bed?" She asked him,
"Nah, I feel comfortable where I am now."
So they sat together and watched for a little while longer as the night slowly lightened and the stars faded away one by one to reveal the sun rising over a new day.
The coming morning found the Digidestined and their Digimon waiting behind the sphinx; planning their mode of attack.
"Etemons gathered a large number of his forces so this will be tricky." Izzy summarised to the team. "A large number of Tyrannomon and Monochromon are surrounding the pyramid as you can see. I propose we divide into two teams. One team will distract these digimon; allowing the other team to enter the pyramid without any fuss. I've been given, by our mysterious helper, the map for secret tunnels throughout the pyramid. So infiltration should hopefully be relatively simple."
"So who will be on which team?" Matt asked, getting right down to business.
"We want the distraction team to be as large as possible as they'll have to handle most of the fighting." They all nodded at that, "Whereas the infiltration team will need to be as small as possible so you won't be detected, yet still strong enough to fight off any opposition you might encounter."
"I'll need to be on the infiltration team" Sora stated, they all looked at her. "We won't be able to find the crest without the tag remember?" Izzy nodded,
"Good idea" He then turned to the others, "So who will be on what team?"
"We're going to need fast digimon with long ranged attacks on the distraction team" Tai said, voice brimming with tactical confidence. "Garurumon and Ikkakumon will be good additions for that. You'll be able to stay ahead of the short ranged Monochromon and Tyrannomon." Matt and Joe looked surprised at being mentioned but nodded nonetheless.
"Stay far away from the enemy and pelt them with torpedos? Sounds good" Joe mentioned, relieved.
"I'm fine with that" Matt stated curtly.
"If Matt's fine with it then so am I" Gabumon agreed happily. Gomamon nodded,
"Yep, sounds good. I don't think Ikkakumon will fit in the pyramid anyway, he's big boned."
Tai smiled, glad they were so accepting.
"Good," he said pleased, then turned to Izzy, "You should be on the infiltration team with Sora. Afterall you'll have to guide us once we're inside the pyramid"
"Naturally."
Tai then turned to Mimi,
"Mimi, you and Palmon should provide back up for Garurumon and Ikkakumon. You guys will need as much firepower as possible." To everyones surprise the normally fussy girl accepted the job with no complaints.
"You can count on us. Right Palmon?" Mimi stated firmly looking at her partner,
"Roger!" The plant digimon agreed giving an approximate salute.
"What can I do?" Tk asked eagerly, Tokomon sitting snugly in his arms. Tai faltered,
"Errr..." he scratched the back of his head, trying to think.
"You'll be sticking with me squirt" Matt said in a tone that bordered no room for argument. "Tokomon can't digivolve yet. You'll be safer with me on Garurumon"
"Ok Matt" Tk agreed dejectedly.
"Don't worry Tk." Togomon reassured him, "When I'm Angemon again, we'll kick all kinds of butt!" This cheered up Tk immensely and he cheered.
"What about you Tai?" Sora asked curiously, "Who are you going with?"
"Well I thought I could go with you and Izzy. Me and Agumon could be used to bail you out if things go wrong."
"We might need more firepower on the outside though" Izzy voiced, cupping his chin with his hand.
"Yeah but what if you run into Etemon?" Matt asked, "Isn't he in the pyramid?"
"He might leave once he notices our attack" the red-head theorised.
"He shouldn't know what we're searching for. He'll probably just think it's an attack on his base. So he might come out to deal with us himself" Tai pointed out in concern.
"Guys!" Sora yelled annoyed. "We're not going to get anything done if we keep debating like this! Should Tai come with us, yes or no?!" They all looked at her then Izzy sighed.
"Fine. Tai can come with us. It'll be two teams of three and four, assaulting the base. Ok everyone, you all know what you need to do. Good luck" Izzy said solemnly.
An hour later, the sun was higher in the sky. The start of another sweltering day in the endless desert that was Etemons domain. The Tyrannomon yawned and blinked sleepily at the new dawn. Silently preparing themselves for the gruelling guard duty under the hot unforgiving sun.
A large blue wolf darted amongst the Tyrannomon, much too fast for them to react to much less attack.
"Howling Blaster!" A blue stream of fire struck a Tyrannomon knocking it over and causing it to howl in pain. Garurumon sprinted away as the other digimon dumbly followed after. Inside the pyramid Etemons security system went haywire. The Gazimon manning the cameras sounded a general alert.
"Lord Etemon. The digidestined are here!" One of them cried. "They're assaulting the base!"
"What!?" Yelled Etemon from another monitor, "How did they find us? I'm going out there to deal with them myself!"
Behind a nearby sand dune, the infiltration team watched as the Tyrannomon and Monochromon were led away.
"Yes! Just as we planned" Sora quietly cheered.
"Alright lets move up" Tai said as they got to their feet and ran towards the pyramids side. They hugged the wall of the pyramid, looking out for any stray digimon that could spot them.
"The entrance should be right here" Izzy said, cautiously feeling the wall until his hand suddenly went throught it. As if the wall wasn't there.
"Lets go" Tai stated and the group slipped in with Etemons forces none the wiser. Inside the pyramid lay a series of identical stone passageways.
"It's a good thing you're here Izzy, or we'd get lost in a heartbeat" Sora complimented as they walked. Izzy nodded absentmindedly,
"Indeed. Left here." As they passed through a part of the wall to the right was faded out, like a ghost. As they walked by two Gazimon sprinted past startling the hell out of the children.
"Argh!" Tai screamed surprised as the digimon took up battle positions, only to stand there looking stupid.
"It's alright." Izzy said, "They can't here us or see us through those fake walls. It's part of the design of the pyramid." Tai quickly calmed down.
"Phew, for a second there I thought we'd been spotted" he commented as they kept on walking.
"Don't worry, it shouldn't be long now." Izzy stated looking at his laptop, "We're almost there"
"That's a relief. I only hope the others are doing alright" Sora said.
"I'm sure they're handling it ok" Agumon replied confidently.
Meanwhile outside the pyramid Garurumon continued to lead the herd of dinosaur digimon away. He made sure to run far enough ahead that they could see him but couldn't hit him with any ranged attacks.
'This looks like the place' the giant wolf thought to himself as he climbed over a certain sand dune. Suddenly he stopped, skidding across the sand and turned to face the charging herd.
"Come on you little Numemon! Come get me!" He growled, baring his teeth at the oncoming force. The opposing digimon roared out in challenge as they climbed over the sand dune.
"Harpoon Torpedo!" Ikkakumon yelled from behind Garurumon as missiles rained from the sky on top of the enemy. Those that were hit yelled in agony before collapsing sliding back down the dune. However the others kept on coming. "Harpoon Torpedo!" Ikkakumon yelled again and again as more missiles struck their opponents, thinning out the numbers as a few were deleted or knocked out. The remains made it over the sand dune and were now in attacking range. A Tyrannomon opened his mouth fire gathering,
"Lightspeed Jab!" Yelled , bursting forth from the sand below the Tyrannomon and nailing him with a vicious uppercut forcing his jaw shut and knocking him onto his back. The unfortunate dinosaurs attack exploded in his mouth deleting him in an instant. Togemon grinned,
"Now lets follow it up with a little Needle Spray!" As she span sending hundreds of razor needles into the oncoming digimon. Many roared in pain clutching at places where the needles had penetrated, such as the eyes and nose.
"Howling Blaster!" Not willing to let the other two have all the fun Garurumon let loose a torrent of blue fire finishing off the distracted enemy.
"Ha ha!" Matt cheered joyfully from an opposing sand dune next to Mimi, Joe and Tk with Tokomon.
"Go Team!" Joe yelled out giving Ikkakumon the thumbs up.
"Well that was easier than I expected" Garurumon growled in his deep voice,
"Yeah, weren't expecting them to be such wimps" Togemon agreed disappointed.
"Oh you don't say?" Said an angry familiar voice from behind them. They turned in shock as Etemon stood at the bottom of the dune with another few Tyrannomon behind him. He slowly walked forward cracking his knuckles, as the Tyrannomon began to charge.
"Playtime's over children, prepare to be in pain!" He yelled angrily. Over by the children, Joe was panicking.
"What do we do?! What do we do?!"
"Etemons here with more?! This is so unfair!" Mimi yelled in fear and anger,
"Guys calm down!" Matt shouted, trying to regain order. "We're supposed to be buying time for the others remember? We don't have to win, just survive!" Matt cupped his hand around his mouth,
"Garurumon! Come pick us up! Plan B!" He screamed as loud as he could. The wolf digimon paused and nodded. He turned to Togemon,
"Ok fall back a bit. We have to buy time for the others." He then ran off towards the children who climbed on his back then set off in the opposite direction to Etemon. Ikkakumon laying down covering fire as the retreated. Etemon growled,
"You think you can just run away?!" He yelled, blinded by anger. He hopped onto a nearby Tyrannomon, "After them!" He ordered, "Don't let them get away! I need to be closer to use my Dark Network!" The digimon obliged and ran off in pursuit of the children.
On Garurumon Matt dared to look back, 'Good he's taking the bait' Matt thought triumphantly, 'I'm buying you guys as much time as possible, you'd better use it!'
The constant stone passageways soon emerged into a larger room with a black metal fence across it stretching from the ceiling to the floor.
"What's this Izzy? A dead end?" Tentomon asked curiously gazing up at the fence.
"It appears to be some sort of guard. There's electricity running through it; so don't move until I figure out a way through it." Izzy said matter-of-factly typing in his laptop. Tai and Sora looked surprised,
"Electricity!?" Sora questioned nervously, "We could die if we touched it!"
"Just be careful. There should be a hidden path through it. Just be patient and let me find it." Tai folded his arms,
"We don't know how much time the others can buy us. We need to be as quick as possible" he stated. Izzy gritted his teeth,
"I'm working on it...there!" He suddenly yelled pointing, the hidden pathway should be right there.
"Are you sure?" Sora asked nervously, "I don't want to die."
"I'm positive" Izzy said looking at her.
"Right here?" Tai asked, hand held out nervously, Izzy nodded at him. He slowly put his hand out, which instead of touching the black metal harmlessly sunk right through. Tai's face lit up with relief.
"Yep it's through here!" He said happily, walking through the fence.
The others let out their collective breaths and slowly followed Tai through. It wasn't long after that, that the stone passageway widened out into a vast metal room. In the centre stood a small podium with a much smaller clear blue pyramid sitting on top. Inside the pyramid was a small robot like creature. Biyomon gasped,
"It's Datamon!" She realised as they got closer.
"The one who gave Piximon the Dark Network plans?" Sora clarified, staring at the little digimon. Biyomon nodded,
"Etemon must have kept him trapped in here" she said as they approached him.
"You are correct" a grinding mechanical voice spoke, startling them all. Looking carefully into the miniature pyramid revealed that Datmon's robotic eye was glowing a soft red colour, staring straight at them.
"Were you the one sending me emails?" Izzy asked curiously, still holding his laptop.
"Indeed I was. A long time ago Etemon defeated me, destroying many of my memory banks and imprisoned me here. I led you all here in order to free me; so that we can defeat Etemon for good." He explained looking at them all hopefully.
"Sounds good" Agumon stated looking at the others who seemed neither excited nor thrilled. They looked doubtful, being betrayed and tricked so many times in the past month could lead to a reasonable amount of paranoia.
"If you free me, I'll lead you to the crest that you need. It lies deeper in this pyramid" Datamon declared quickly.
"We do need my crest guys" Sora pointed out. The two boys nodded at one another.
"Alright" Tai said finally, "Just tell us how and we'll do it." Datamon nodded,
"Just attack my prison, it's indestructible from the inside, but from the outside it'll shatter like glass"
"Ok. Agumon!" Tai commanded, as his partner walked forward eagerly,
"Finally! Pepper Breath!" The fireball shot out of his mouth like a cannonball, impacting on the Datamons pyramid prison, smashing it to pieces. The little machine leapt off the podium to stand right in front of them, stretching his retractable arms happily.
"Yes I'm free! Finally!" He yelled out with relief. His celebrations were interrupted however as the room flashed red and an alarm sounded.
"Etemon boobytrapped it!" Sora realised.
"We need to hurry!" Tai yelled over the alarm. "Etemon's probably on his way!"
"Then in that case..." Datamon muttered an evil glint in his organic eye.
Meanwhile out in the desert,
"Got you now! Dark Network!" Etemon sang triumphantly into his microphone. Garurumon, Ikkakumon and Togemon glowed and instantly reverted back to their rookie forms.
"Uh oh" Gomamon said as they all stared up helplessly at the monkey digimon who was grinning triumphantly.
"Oh I've been waiting for this for a while. You've killed my pet, destroyed my army and really pissed me off!"
"This isn't good" Joe said nervously.
"Now I'm going to... wait weren't there more of you?"
"Lord Etemon!" Screeched a Gazimon into his earpiece.
"What!? I'm in the middle of something here!" He yelled back angrily,
"There are intruders in the base and Datamon had escaped!" Etemon was so shocked his sunglasses nearly fell off.
"WHAT?! Damn it! It was a distraction!" He realised, then quickly turned around and ran off back towards the pyramid at breakneck pace.
'If they let out Datamon, then everything will be ruined!' He thought desperately, completely forgetting about the Digidestined he'd just fought. They group sighed in relief from behind the sand dune they'd retreated to when Etemon was distracted.
"Looks like their cover's blown" Matt said,
"And in the nick of time too" Mimi sighed with relief. Joe collapsed onto his knees,
"That was too close" he stated.
"I hope the others are alright" Tk said among them. In the distance they could see smoke coming out of the pyramid. "Things look rough"
It was a stand off. Datamon had knocked out Biyomon, who had been the closest to him when they were distracted, then grabbed her and Sora. Agumon and Tentomon had digivolved and now stood protectively in front of their partners as Datamon held the girl in front of him.
"You coward!" Tai yelled angrily at the little digimon, "Give Sora and Biyomon back!"
"We freed you! Why are you attacking us?" Izzy asked incredulously.
"Simple, I just used you idiots to help me escape. Now I have all I need to unlock the power of the crest." Datamon grinned and his fingertips opened up, "Data Bomb!" Small little bombs shot forward right at Greymon and Kabuterimon. They scooped up their partners and leapt to the sides, barely dodging the bombs. Which then impacted into the wall exploding and throwing dirt and dust everywhere. When the boys finally gained their bearings Datamon was gone, along with Sora and Biyomon.
"Shit!" Tai yelled angrily, punching the floor. "Why did we trust him?!" Izzy meanwhile typed furiously on his laptop.
"Don't worry, I think I know where he's headed. He's going to regret giving me access to this facility." His teeth were gritted together and sweat was on his brow. Tai could tell that Izzy was just as angry about being duped as he was.
'Don't worry Sora. I'm coming' Tai clenched his fists, 'I won't lose anyone else'
"Got it!" Yelled Izzy, "Follow me!" He ran towards one of the passages Tai right behind him. Greymon and Kabuterimon dedigivolved and ran after them. It wasn't long before they came across another electric fence.
"Hold it!" Izzy yelled, panic in his voice as he stopped. Tai and the digimon piled in behind him. He typed furiously, "This is impossible! There shouldn't be a fence here. It should be clear!"
"Well clearly it's here!" Tai yelled back angrily. He looked forward, eyes wide, as a high pitched scream echoed from beyond the fence. "SORA!" Tai darted forward, Tentomon and Agumon barely catching and holding him back.
"Tai calm down!" Agumon shouted in his ear,
"You can't help Sora if you're dead!" Tentomon pleaded holding onto his legs. Rational thought again seeped back into Tai's brain and he calmed down. Panting he said,
"Y-you're right, I need to focus. Izzy where's the weak point?"
"I can't find it! There should be nothing there!" He yelled hopelessness in his voice. Tai gritted his teeth and stared forward into the fence. Arcs of electricity crackled along the fence every now and then, Tai's eyes following them nervously. He swallowed,
"I'm going to have to guess" he realised out loud.
"Tai no! You could die!" Izzy yelled in panic, Tai looked back,
"I'm not going to let him take Sora!" He shouted back, effectively cowing Izzy. Tai turned back to the wall. "I won't lose anyone. Not again" he muttered. He looked at Agumon who nodded,
"If you think it's for the best, then I'm with ya Tai!" The dinosaur said confidently. Tai smiled slightly then turned back to the fence. He slowly stretched out his arm. Tai swallowed,
'If I guess wrong. I'll die here and Sora might not get rescued' he thought with trepidation.
His hand stopped moving forward for an instance, Tai gritted his teeth. 'But if I don't try, I'll be going against everything I believe in! I won't give up!' He curled his fingers into a fist and closing his eyes he shoved it into the fence. His chest felt warm...
His hand went through! Tai slowly opened his eyes.
"It's fake!" He suddenly realised. Izzy's eyes opened in shock,
"Of course! The whole fence is a fake! That's why it's not on the map!" An explosion from behind cut short their joy. Back in the large metal room they could hear a familiar voice yelling,
"Come on out Datamon you glorified pile of scrap!"
"Oh no! It's Etemon!" Tentomon yelled in realisation. Thinking quickly Izzy said,
"Tai, you and Agumon go on ahead. Tentomon and I will hold him off"
"What but he's an ultimat-"
"Trust me, we'll be fine!" Izzy yelled, "Just go!" Tai nodded.
"Lets go Agumon!"
"Right!" The two ran through the fence and down the corridor; deeper into the pyramid and towards Datamon. A flash of light beside Izzy and Kabuterimon stood next to him. Izzy climbed into his hands.
"Come on. We'll fight him in that large room. There'll be more space to manoeuvre"
"Good idea Izzy" his partner complimented as they flew into the room.
Tai and Agumon ran through more stone passageways; all identical to the ones from earlier.
'We're going deeper underground' Tai realised as the passages sloped ever so slightly downwards. 'How deep does this pyramid go?' They continued to run as the passageway widened until they found themselves in another large room. This room was different to the previous one in that it had a huge computer screen covering a wall hooked up to the most advanced and large computer system Tai had ever seen. Standing on top of the computer was,
"Datamon!" Tai yelled angrily at the small mechanoid. Startled the little digimon whipped around.
"How did you find me so quickly?!" He shouted in surprise.
"Give back Sora and Biyomon!" Tai demanded ignoring his question.
"Tai!" Yelled Biyomon from the side. She was stuck to the wall by large metal clasps, so that she couldn't move at all. Sora lay unconscious on a table, to which she had been strapped too.
"What the hell are you doing?!"
"If you must know. I'm attempting to use this girl in order to control the crest I found" As Datamon said this a slot in the computer opened up to reveal a pink crest with a heart-like symbol on it.
"That must be Soras crest!" Agumon realised. Datamon smirked,
"You see with this crest I'm going to take revenge on that fool Etemon, for defeating me and stealing away my precious Dark Network!"
"Your Dark Network?!" Tai looked on in shock.
"Of course. Did you really think Etemon was smart enough to build this? Of course not! He stole it from me!" Datamon screamed his voice becoming more mechanical as his rage grew. "I won't let you stop me!" He hopped down from the computer and advanced towards them. Tais digivice glowed and suddenly Greymon stood in front of him ready to fight.
Tai growled threateningly,
"Get him Greymon!"
"Arrogant child! A mere champion can't defeat me! I'm an ultimate. Taste my Data Bombs!" Datamon's fingertips opened up and launched a groups of small bombs right at Greymon. The large dinosaur ducked to avoid them but they exploded right where his face would have been. The shockwave knocked him to the ground.
"Greymon move!" Tai desperately yelled as Datamon shot another round of bombs at the orange dinosaur. Greymon darted to the side this time but the bombs still exploded sending him flying into one of the walls. Cracks appeared along the wall but it held. Greymon unsteadily got to his feet.
'He's still an ultimate' Tai remembered, 'His bombs might be small but they're powerful. How can we win?' Tai cupped his chin with his hand as he analysed the battle. Greymon let loose a Nova blast at Datamon who simply leapt out of the way, letting the fireball explode against the wall behind him harmlessly.
Another round of bombs was sent Greymons way. He dived forward onto the floor as the bombs passed over him. Datamon smirked as the bombs hit against the wall but didn't explode and instead bounced back towards him.
'They don't explode on contact' Tai realised. Greymon in panic rolled over but was still hit by the blast knocking him to the side towards Tai. He roared in pain at the burns all over his body.
'I've got it!' Tai thought with excitement. Greymon got to his feet once more,
"I've got a plan Greymon!" Tai said to Greymon,
"'bout time" he growled back.
"Listen, next time he fires, run towards the bombs as fast as you can"
"W-what?!"
"Then spin just before they hit you. Trust me, it will work." Tai tried to say reassuringly. Greymon was silent for a second before nodding.
"You know I'll trust you Tai-" he growled,
"-through tick and thin" Tai finished. "Lets get him buddy!"
"Are you done whispering over there?!" Datamon cried out, thoroughly enjoying himself. "How about a few more Data Bombs!" He once again let loose the bombs from his fingertips. Instead of running Greymon charged towards them,
"What are you doing? Run!" Biyomon yelled out in horror. Tai smirked,
"Now!" He yelled as Greymon spun, his tail smacking into the bombs sending them right back at an even faster speed to Datamon. Who had a brief moment for his smile to vanish before they exploded directly in front of him. Datamon screamed as he was catapulted into the wall behind him smoke coming off of him.
"Nova Blast!" Greymon roared with finality. As Datamon slowly stood up he looked forwards right into the giant fireball about to consume him.
"Shi-aRgHRGHH!" He screamed as the ball exploded against the far wall sending red hot chunks of bricks and metal flying. Greymon stood there panting in exhaustion as the smoke cleared showing Datamon, in pieces. Only one of his arms was still attached and there were small bits of metal everywhere.
"We won Greymon!" Tai yelled happily as he ran towards his partner hugging as much of him as he could reach. Greymon bent down to nuzzle Tai,
"Thanks Tai. Couldn't have cut it closer could ya?" Tai smiled at him and together they walked towards the computer, which had a small amount of damage from the battle. Tai grabbed Soras crest and digivice and walked over to the table where she was strapped in.
"Err Greymon could you-?" Tai began as he looked at the thick metal restraints.
"oh, sure." Ever so carefully Greymon lightly hooked his claws around each restraint and pulled them off one by one; being very careful to not harm Sora in the process. Once it was done Tai put her digivice and crest into her hand.
"Sora, Sora? Are you alright?" He asked, his voice suddenly tender. Sora's eyes fluttered slightly as she regained consciousness.
"Tai?" She wondered. She blinked a couple of times as she woke up, "oooh I've got such a headache" she moaned as she sat up and put a hand to her head.
"Sora! You're ok!" Biyomon cried from her position still restrained.
"Biyomon!" Sora cried out happily as her digivice began to glow. In seconds Birdramon was free and standing amongst them. "You found my crest?" She realised as the red crest slid into her empty tag. Tai nodded
"Lets grab Izzy and get out of here!" Tai said. Sora nodded and got off of the table. As if on cue, suddenly a part of the roof collapsed inwards. Kabuterimon came flying down slamming into the floor with a singed Etemon on top of him, twisting two of his arms painfully behind his back.
"Damn it! Why won't you just die already you overgrown cockroach!?" He yelled callously at the groaning insect.
"Meteor Wing!" The well-aimed blasts of fire knocked the surprised Etemon clear off Kabuterimon and into the air. Etemon back-flipped in midair and landed on his feet without much trouble. He growled at the other champions,
"So this is where you've been hiding! Where's Datamon?!" His suit was ruffled, burnt and had sustained a surprising amount of damage. The others must have given him hell, he was already at the end of his noticeably short temper.
A great rumble occurred before anyone could answer, and the floor began to retract into the walls! Revealing underneath the floor a vast ball of pulsating wires, all varying in thickness. As Sora and Tai watched in horror a sense of utter wrongness seemed to emanate from the wires, preventing them from moving. Like it shouldn't even exist...
"Move!" Izzy yelled at the edge of the hole from above. "Get out of there!" His shouting woke them up from their strange trance. Tai and Sora quickly hopped onto Birdramons talons as she flew off, while Kabuterimon did his best to lift Greymon up to the ceiling.
"Damn tubby, you could lose some weight!" He complained, obviously straining,
"I'll try dieting" Greymon responded sarcastically as they rose up through the ceiling.
Etemon made a leap for them but couldn't jump high enough landing on the control panel for the computer, dangling over the edge. The monkey digimon looked up and saw he was right next to his enemy.
"Datamon! What the hell are you doing?!" What was left of Datamon, had dragged itself over and onto to the computer console. It rotated its head to stare at Etemon, its robot eye glowing with malice,
"iF I cAn'T HaVE iT, nO-ONE cAn!" he roared his voice shifting randomly in tone due to the damage he'd sustained.
With his one remaining arm, Datamon grabbed onto Etemons face and threw them both off the console and into the tangled mess of wire beneath them. The core of the dark network pulsed with crackling red lightning as Etemon screamed. Datamon was deleted and integrated into the network instantly, but Etemon remained.
"NO! Not like this! Not like this! I'm your master! I control the network! You can't kill me!" He continued to scream as he was slowly consumed.
A low roar seemed to emanate from the tangled mass of wires. It began to draw in other things as well. The computer it was hooked too was ripped apart and eaten, as well as the walls of the room they were in.
It grew and it hungered.
The side of the already quite battered inverted pyramid exploded, revealing the infiltration team mostly unharmed. They flew, or ran in Greymons case, away from the pyramid towards the others. Matt, Joe, Mimi, Tk and their partners were all waving and cheering as the whole group reunited again.
"We did it! We got the crest!" Tai yelled cheerfully, waving back.
"We all made it!" Sora pointed out happily, as they landed next to the others.
"We held him off for as long as we could" Matt said to them,
"It worked out fantastically!" Izzy complimented,
"Good work everyone!" Tai agreed.
"Look!" Mimi yelled pointing behind them, "It's collapsing!" The others all turned to look where they could see what was left of the pyramid shudder before collapsing in on itself, leaving the skyline of the desert bare.
"So did we win?" Joe asked, "Is Etemon gone?"
"Looks like it..." Sora said tempting fate. Back at the remains of the pyramid, the ground shook and the sand collapsed, flowing downwards. A large unholy ball of pulsating black wires rose from the ruins.
"WOOOOO! I'm the KING BABY!" Screamed the top half of Etemon who was poking out of the ball like an orange pimple.
"He just doesn't give up!" Matt stated in horror.
"He looks like he's on steroids!" Sora noted on Etemons new physique. His muscles were now bulging and veins were bulging out on his suit. Many of the wires were now attached to him, feeding him power. The chosen watched in horror as space seemed to bend around the ball, the surroundings twisted unnaturally around him, before being swallowed up.
"You just CAN'T KEEP ME DOWN!" He roared, high on his newfound power. Birdramon and Kabuterimon took back to the air, ready to face him.
"I don't think SO!" A ball of black and green energy shot from his hand, rocketing towards the two champions. They moved out of the way and the energy ball shot by them. The backlash of the attack still hit somehow. Knocking both digimon back into the ground dedigivolving them back into their rookie forms. Biyomon and Tentomon lay groaning futiley in the sand.
"No! Biyomon!"
"Tentomon!" Izzy and Sora yelled in worry. Tai stared up at Etemons new power, terror-filled recognition flowing through him.
'It's just like before, with Deathmon!' When Neo had showed off the power of the mega level, the barriers between the worlds began to collapse. Reality had begun to warp and twist. He and Zero had been helpless. Attack after desperate attack had just bounced off the megas armour.
Until Neo became bored, all Tai remembered was an explosion. Dangling over the edge, tear-filled gazes,
"Find a better partner! Defeat Daemon together. Forget about me!" Then Tai was falling and everything was over.
"Tai get up, we have to get out of here!" Sora screamed at him. Suddenly he was on his knees, terrified sweat dripping down from his forehead.
"Come on Tai, lets get out of here!" Greymon urged desperately, standing in front of the children in case another attack came their way.
"How the hell are we supposed to run from that?!" Matt screamed almost hysterical. Overhead more balls of energy were being thrown. One hit of the other monuments some distance away. Instead of an explosion reality simply warped. It sunk into itself twisting into smaller and smaller circles until the mammoth building vanished utterly.
"Come on! To the sphinx! It's our only shot!" Izzy yelled above the roaring sands and Etemons laugh.
Another energy ball shot over their heads and impacted into the sphinx directly behind sunk into itself, its face twisting into grotesque unsightly forms for an instant. Before vanishing completely, accompanied by an ungodly roar as air rushed into the spot it had formerly occupied. They all screamed, being sucked forward onto the ground by the force of the wind. It was only Greymons huge presence which prevented them from being swept away.
"It's hopeless!" Mimi screamed nearly in tears.
"We're gonna die! We're gonna die!" Joe muttered to himself in sheer terror.
"Matt! Matt! Help me!" Tk yelled, his voice full of terrified despair.
"I've got you Tk! We'll be fine, don't worry!" Matt shouted over the roar, covering Tk with his body, trying to reassure him.
Tai was shielded by Greymon, the ghosts of his past overwhelming him. Some small rational part of him knew he was lying down in the sand, the rest was convinced he was falling. Falling further and further away from that unholy monster that could kill with but a thought, and towards his death.
'This is it. It's over' He remembered thinking, 'Goodbye everyone' he closed his eyes. When suddenly strong arms enveloped him.
"I've got you!" Greymon yelled, "I won't let you die! We can win! Remember Tai? Throught thick and thin? We can do this!" Desperation clear in his voice as he screamed at his near catatonic partner, over the howl of the wind.
"I won't let you die!" Those words stirred something within Tai,
"If only I was stronger..."
"Tai!" His partner screamed at him in concern looking directly at his face. Tai saw an orange dinosaur with a black horned-helmet, then a smaller blue one with a white V-shape. The two images overlapped one another both staring at him. Pleading with him.
The winds died down revealing the chosen, half covered with sand.
Tai slowly stood up under Greymon.
"Tai, are you alright?" He asked carefully, not taking his eyes off of Etemon.
"I'm fine Zero" Tai replied calmly. The dinosaur blinked confused for a second. The others all slowly got up as well, in varying states of panic or shock.
"Greymon!" Tai called out suddenly, waking him from his trance.
"Huh?" Tai smirked at him.
"Lets go get him!" Greymon started in surprise, but recovered magnificently. He grinned wildly,
"Alright!" They began to run towards Etemon.
"Tai!" Sora called out after him, "What are you doing? You can't win!"
"Don't be a hero!" Joe yelled out in alarm. Tai ignored all the calls of his friends and continued to run.
"I'm scared" he said to himself glancing up at Etemons new form. A flash of memory, it was replaced by a giant demon with an eye in its chest, a bright red light coming from the eye. Tai nearly flinched, blinded by the memory, but just ran harder.
He ran through the demon of the past and into the present, "But that won't stop me for an instant!" He cried out.
Etemon was back, baring down on him from on high.
"What are you STUPID?! You can't even reach me up here!" He roared, noticing the human and digimon running towards him.
'What's that light?' Etemon wondered, an orange light was coming off of the human. Tai's chest felt like it was on fire, he could barely breathe but he still ran forward, ready to face his enemy, Greymon by his side.
"We're going to win Etemon! We won't ever give up!" Tai cried out, one hand on his chest, holding his digivice. The other keeping his goggles firmly on his head, despite the now howling winds rushing past him. 'It's just like before!' He thought grinning,
"Always remember Tai,that courage..."
'And it will end the same way!'
"...will give you wings to fly"
"I feel POWER!" Greymon roared, exploding with orange light, blinding Etemon and the others behind them. "Greymon digivolve too...MetalGreymon!"
A proud new digimon stood in front of Etemon. A larger version of Greymon with large purple purple wings sprouting forth from his back, a large metal claw instead of a left arm. Along with a metal chestpiece and helmet with red hair peaking out from under the helmet.
He stood staring fearsomely at Etemon. Behind them the others stared in shock.
"That's MetalGreymon!" Tentomon yelled happily, "He's an ultimate level digimon! We might stand a chance now!"
"Tai did it..." Izzy muttered in awe,
"...he figured out how to use the crest" Matt finished also gazing at the new digimon.
"Wow, last to reach champion, first to reach ultimate" Gabumon summarised astonished,
"Agumon sure has grown" Biyomon said happily. Tai smiled widely,
"Alright MetalGreymon! Let him have it!"
"With pleasure!"
"You think that'll be enough to STOP ME!? I was an ultimate before and now I'm even stronger!" Etemon screamed, he tossed another energy ball towards the ultimate.
MetalGreymon, using his chrome-digizoid arm simply swiped it out of existence, it not even slowing him down.
"W-what?" Etemon stood astonished. MetalGreymon roared and continued to charge towards the black ball of wires. He was almost as big as it now.
"I have other attacks!" Two large wires, as thick as tree trunks, broke free from the ball and swiped at MetalGreymon, striking him across the face. He lurched to the side a little in pain.
Tai fell to one knee, clutching his cheek. 'What? I-I felt that...' His crest and digivice were glowing and vibrating, sharing his strength with that of his partners.
The wires came again striking MetalGreymon from the other side, he was knocked over to the left this time. Tai lurched over, feeling the pain as well.
He gritted his teeth, 'We didn't come this far just to fall now!'
"MetalGreymon! We can win!" The metal dinosaur lurched for a second before regaining his balance,
"You're making me mad!" He yelled, his left arm striking out, ripping the wires apart like tissue paper. Etemon screamed in pain.
"Damn it NO!" He yelled futiley. MetalGreymon charged again, slamming into the ball of wires and pushing.
Tai held his arms out, as well. 'I can feel it! It feels like there's something right in front of me!' Tai screamed, "This is nothing!" Pushing forwards with all their strength Etemon was forced back away from MetalGreymon.
"Lets finish him!" Tai yelled, as MetalGreymons metal chest opened up.
"NO, NO, PLEASE!" Etemon pleaded,
"Shows over Etemon!" MetalGreymon taunted, gathering so much power he began to glow.
"GIGA...DESTROYER!" Both human and digimon yelled together. Two grinning missile surged forward from his chest and into the ball of wires.
The explosion was spectacular, the entire ball was covered by it. It flew outwards stopping just short of the pair. Sand turned to glass, low hanging clouds were blown away and the other Digidestined were almost knocked over from the force. If Tai wasn't standing behind MetalGreymon he definitely would have been bowled over by the shockwave. As he was however,
"WOOOHOOO!" Tai yelled in sheer triumphant ecstasy, arms wide open, over the roar of the explosion, as Etemon vanished from the world. He could barely hear himself think over the noise.
Soon the roar of the explosion died away to reveal a different noise. Something was pulling at his clothes, Tai noticed. Pulling him forward. He lost his balance and began to slide forward along the sand.
"MetalGreymon help!" A giant metal claw struck the sand in front of him and Tai slid into it unharmed, protected from the pulling force. "Thanks" he said relieved, then peaked through his partners claws to see what was happening. Where the missile had struck, there was no sign of Etemon or the dark network. Instead reality itself seemed twisted, as sand was being sucked up into the sky then vanishing into nothing.
Tai, with horror, felt himself shift. Even MetalGreymon, exhausted from the fight, was being overcome by the force. A light encompassed the dinosaur and he shrunk back into Koromon as they were lifted into the air. Tai managed to grab onto his partner by one of his ears reeling him in.
"I've got you buddy, don't worry" Before either of them knew it they were up in the sky. Darkness fell as Tai passed out. Soon after they had vanished the disturbance simply stopped. All the sand that was in the air fell back onto the ground leaving no trace of either Tai or Koromon.
From further back the other Digidestined stood having watched helplessly in horror at what had occurred.
"Tai..." Sora murmured in shock, tears in her eyes "He's...gone..."
A/N: That's the end of Etemons arc. Now that he's out of the way, things will start to progress. Tai's slip up with Zero's name might cost him. Find out in the next chapter. This is the tenth chapter, not counting the prologue, which is a milestone. I'm really happy so many people like this fic.
I hope you all enjoyed. Please feel free to leave a review or a pm.
Updates every Monday.