My name is Gabe Barton, and I am a Chosen Child-a member of DATS, I am the son of Michael and Mimi Barton. My partner is Kotemon, who almost evolved to his Fully Evolved form on his own, which is better then that brat, Kasumi Yagami. She thinks that just 'cause she's the daughter of Taichi Yagami, she's better then me, well, I'll show her, my family's just as strong as hers!

Anyway, I met Joey Hogan and he gave me the Gauntlets of Water. And Kasumi wanted the Claymore of Wind, but Aleksey Trepov gave it to Asami instead, heh…heh…

Digimon Magog

Embodiment of Fire

Chapter 2

Sora poked her head into the living room, where Piyomon and Yuki Agumon were watching television. "Have you seen Kasumi?"

Yuki Agumon did not answer. Piyomon assumed that she had not heard, so she answered instead, "I think she's in her room."

"Still?" It was Saturday, and they were used to Kasumi sleeping late, but it was past noon, and she had not even eaten breakfast yet. She might not be feeling well, but her daughter would never let that stop her on a weekend, especially not when then weather was so perfect. Kasumi would be playing soccer even with a stomach virus.

Sora walked to the door to her daughter's room and knocked. "Kasumi, are you feeling okay?"

"I'm fine," was the response, but her voice was muffled and…quivering? She was crying?

Sora was stunned for a moment, then walked back to the living room. "What's wrong with Kasumi?"

Yuki Agumon hesitated, "She didn't want me to say…"

"What?"

She frowned, "She called Asami to hang out, but she's gonna be with Shiro and Gabe."

Sora nodded. "And she's left out because she doesn't have a weapon?"

The white dinosaur nodded. Sora walked back to her daughter's room and opened the door. Kasumi was lying on her bed, her face buried in her pillows. The middle-aged woman sat down and began to rub her daughter's shoulders. "Honey, do you want to talk about it?"

"Talk about what?" she cried into the pillow, "About how everyone hates me?"

"They don't hate you…"

'They why are they having fun without me?!"

Her mother sighed and continued rubbing her shoulder. "Sweetie, they're practicing with their weapons, they're not ditching you purposely."

"Then how come I don't get one?"

"I don't know why Aleksey or Joey didn't give you a weapon, but it was up to them, right?"

"I guess…but it's still not fair…."

Sora frowned and she sighed once more. "Ojousan, you remember us telling you about when the X-Antibody was unleashed, right?"

"Yes…"

"Well, I was the only one from the original Odaiba Team that wasn't modified…who survived the Second Black Death, I should say. Anyway, your father, Mr. Ishida, Dr. Kido and Mrs. Barton were all modified, but I wasn't. I just watched them get stronger because of the X-Antibody, and I was left behind. I tried to pretend that it didn't bother me, but I just kept wondering why I wasn't modified, what was wrong with me? I still don't know…maybe it had something to do with the Fire Powers, but….once I realized I had those powers, then I knew I had something different to offer. Just because you don't have a weapon, doesn't mean you're useless."

"Yeah, and what good am I, huh? I'm not smart like Shiro, I'm not strong like Gabe, I can't heal people like Kenji, I don't have powers like Akira or Yasu….and apparently even Asami's stronger then me! What good am I?!"

"Honey," Sora replied, "Everyone's got something that makes them special." She smiled, even though Kasumi could not see, "And what makes you special, is your determination, you never give up, you keep on trying. It's not like you to get this depressed."

She rubbed her daughter's back some more, "Akira's going to be with Yasu all day, and I was going to see your father, do you want to come?"

Kasumi's sobs slowed, "Just the two of us?"

"Well, with Piyomon and Yuki Agumon. I know you didn't eat breakfast, so we can stop for lunch too…and maybe get some dessert afterwards…?"

"Dessert?"

"Yeah, I thought a hot fudge sundae?"

Kasumi stopped crying. "Really?"

Sora grinned. No matter how much a tomboy, a girl was still a girl, and she would know.

Her daughter sat up in her bed and used her pajama sleeve to wipe her face. "Y…yeah, okay, just let me get dressed…"

111

The Karatsuki Numemon hid as best he could in the sea of the tall stalks of grain and corn stretching to the sky. It was decent cover, as long as one stood in place, which meant that tracking was impossible. Luckily, there were plenty of the shelled digimon scattered within the stalks, positioned around the main path, they were able to watch as Tsuragi and Ami entered the field, making no attempted to hide their presence.

The Karatsuki Numemon nearest to the edge of the field was able to climb back into the grassland without giving any indication. "It's time to tell DATS…"

111

Akira sighed in annoyance as he followed Yasu and Eliane through the mall, his arms full of shopping bags. "How come I got stuck doing this?" he wondered as he followed the two girls into another clothing store.

"And this place sells really cools skirts," the Ishida daughter grinned.

The French girl frowned, "I…"

Yasu grabbed her hand and dragged her into the store. Akira stared inside; mannequins wearing bras, panties and other frilly undergarments. Pink mini skirts hung from hangers, flower-embroidered hip-hugger jeans were on shelves. The walls contained posters of super-models, and white-lacy clothes covered counters that proudly displayed fruity shampoos and perfume, along with giant, silver, girly earrings. The place reeked of femininity; any male who stepped inside would never be seen again…at least, not as he was before…"Um, I'm…uh… just gonna wait out here…"

The two girls took no notice, so he sat on one of the benches, dropping the bags onto the floor. An elderly woman walked past, with her husband trailing behind, carrying a large bag in his arms. When he saw Akira, he paused for a moment, and when he saw the pink and white bags he was carrying, he chuckled. "Trust me, kid, you're going to be doing that for the rest of your life."

"Jirobi!" the woman snapped.

"Right dear, I'm coming," he sighed.

Akira blinked as he watched the old man walk away. "W…what?"

Inside the store, Yasu dragged Eliane to a display of miniskirt. The Ishida daughter grabbed a denim one with a slight frilly bottom. "Here, isn't this one just so cute? Of course my Mom'd never let me wear it," she pouted, "Don't you hate it when your mom doesn't let you wear what you want?"

Eliane opened her moth to speak, but Yasu interrupted. "Oh!" she squealed in girlish delight, "Isn't this so cute!" She grabbed a short pink skirt and trusted it into Eliane's hands, "Here, this is perfect for you! Go head, try it on!"

The French girl sighed deeply, "I do not really wear zese…"

Yasu frowned, staring at her long-sleeved shirt and her jeans. "You're not a tomboy, are you?"

She blinked. "W…what is a 'tomboy?"

The Ishida daughter sighed, "It means you like to act like a boy."

Eliane shook her head, "No, it…it iz not like zat, it…it…" She sighed and pulled up her sleeve, revealing the red spots on her arm where her skin was vanishing.

Yasu gasped, "Oh, um, well, it's not that bad." She pushed her into a dressing room. Defeated, the French girl slowly changed into the skirt. The Ishida daughter threw a tank top over the top of the door. "Here, change into that too."

"But…"

"Come on!" Yasu pressed. She waited patiently until the door opened and Eliane emerged, dressed in the tank top and skirt, which left her arms and most of her legs bare, along with the large red splotches from the BD-2 infection. Yasu flinched slightly. "Um…heh, uh, no problem." She disappeared for a moment, then ran back with a pair of knee-high boots and a pink sweater. "Here." Eliane put on the clothes and looked at her reflection. The sweater covered up her arms and shoulders, and the boots helped to hide her legs. For the first time in a long time, she actually felt attractive. "Wow…"

Yasu grinned, "See?"

The French girl happily paid for her new outfit and once they exited the store, Akira stared for a moment. "Wow…"

Yasu stared at Akira, then threw the bags into his arms. "Here!"

"What's your problem?" he asked.

"Nothing!" she snapped, storming away.

"Girls…" he thought.

111

In the area of Neodigital known as Clotho, that is the area dominated by the power of Light, the three DATS agents were busy practicing with their new weapons. Asami was all smiles as she was staring at the other two. "Wow, this is pretty cool."

Gabe nodded. "Yeah, or it would be if we had the slightest clue how to use them."

"My Dad said that his weapon just worked when he needed it to," Shiro explained, "But maybe if we get used to them now, when we need them, we'll be able to use them properly."

Their partners were resting beneath a tall tree that cast a large shadow onto the ground. "Asami's pretty excited, "Psychemon commented.

"She didn't sleep at all last night," Leormon yawned.

Kotemon only nodded, "I never saw Gabe like that before."

The coat-wearing lizard digimon turned to him, "Didn't you almost reach the Fully Evolved level before?"

He shrugged, "Kinda, I never really evolved or anything like that…"

He was cut off by a burst of energy as their partners called for their weapons: Gabe's Gauntlets in a burst of water, Shiro's Lance in an explosion of darkness, and Asami's Claymore in a whirl of wind. However, the heavy broadsword weighed more then the teenage girl did, and she stumbled about. She gave an embarrassed giggle and struggled to lift the weapon. She was forced to use two hands before she was even able to lift it, but she could not for long and needed to rest it against the ground.

"Okay," she panted, "What are we supposed to do?"

Gabe glanced to Shiro, who, in turn, looked down to the Lance in his hand. "Um..why don't we try to draw up our energy, the kind that they gave to us?"

"You mean the Wind that Aleksey gave me?" Asami questioned.

The blond teen nodded. "Right."

The trio each attempted to draw out the energy they had been infused with. Gabe's Gauntlets began to glow a light blue, while Shiro Lance emanated a black light. Asami's Claymore, however, remained un-illuminated. She gripped the weapon tighter and closed her eyes, struggling and straining, attempting to call upon the Wind power that she knew was there, yet nothing happened.

"Darn," she frowned.

"Hey, no problem," Gabe smiled, "That's why we're doing this, right? You just need some practice, that's all. No worries."

The teenage girl smiled sweetly at him, then looked back to her weapon.

Suddenly, their D-terminals began to sound. Each teenager flipped open the top to study the screen. "Trouble?" Leormon asked, running over.

"It's from Dad," Asami gasped.

Shiro looked to Psychemon, "Tsuragi and Ami and near here."

His partner nodded. "Then let's go, Neodevimon's gonna wish he was never born!"

Kotemon gave a quick laugh, "You sound like Yuki Agumon."

Psychemon just shrugged, "Yeah, well…"

111

When Kasumi and Sora arrived at the hospital, they were disappointed to find out that Taichi was busy with Jyou in an examining room. They needed to make certain that the synthetic artery that Dr. Kido had to use was not being rejected by Taichi's body, as transplants often are. Sora suggested visiting Yamato, but Kasumi did not want to; however, he and Gabumon X were sleeping. So, Sora, her daughter and their digimon partners were waiting in Taichi's hospital room. Piyomon and Agumon X were in the lounge area, enjoying the view of the sun setting behind the Tokyo skyline.

Kasumi was seated in one of the chairs, lazily flipping through the television. Sora glanced up from the book she was reading. "Honey, are you still upset?"

She shrugged, still keeping her attention on the television.

Sora smiled slightly and walked over. "Oh cheer up. Didn't Aleksey say that you already had the powers that your father absorbed in other to form Omegamon X?"

She just nodded.

"So, when we find the Spear of Earth, that will be yours."

Kasumi just nodded again. Sora sighed and walked back to her seat.

"What was she like?"

Sora glanced back up. "Who?"

"Maria Silvano, she had Earth, right?"

Her mother nodded. "Yes." She closed her eyes, "What was she like?" She thought for a moment, "I guess a lot like your Aunt Hikari." She chuckled slightly and closed her eyes as her mind drifted back fifteen years ago, when she and Maria were with Taichi in the former digital city of Nightsun…

Sora limped into the sitting room of the capital building of Nightsun. She sighed in annoyance as she fell into one of the chairs and she threw her crutches to the ground. "Damn it!"

"Sora?" Piyomon asked.

The redhead clenched her fists. "I hate those damn crutches!" She sighed, running her hands through her hair, "And I'm gonna be using them for the rest of my life…if the BD-2 doesn't spread further…"

The door opened and Yuri stepped inside with Maria on his back. When the redhead young woman saw the Latino woman, her heart dropped. She still had on leg left, Maria had none, she would be bound to a wheelchair. And she thought of Anna, who had lost both of her eyes and would be blind forever. How could she be so selfish?

Yuri placed Maria onto the couch and her Patamon fluttered to her lap. "There," the Russian man said, "I shall see you soon, Taichi and I are still working."

"Okay, thank you," she smiled.

Sora gave Yuri a smile as well before he left. She limped to Maria's side, "How are you feeling? Do you need anything?"

The younger woman shook her head. "No thank you."

"You were with Taichi and Yuri right?"

Maria nodded.

"Is there any hope? Or is Digitalatri going to win?"

She hesitated for a moment. "I…I was never really good at that kind of thing, but Taichi said that we shouldn't give up."

Sora smiled, "Yeah, that's sounds like him." Her smile faded, "I hope we do win, then we can get rid of those religious fanatics."

"You shouldn't talk about them like that," Maria said.

Sora stared at her, "W..what? Maria, Miayag took your friends away from you!"

"I know," she frowned, "But, she did heal Tatum and Sam, maybe she was hurting inside too. She can't be completely evil, no one can."

"Wait a second," Kasumi said, "Miayag is Dad's cousin, right?"

Sora nodded. "Yes."

"How come I've never seen her?"

"Because she just disappeared," her mother replied, "We have no idea where she is. I know Aunt Hikari has tried to find her, but…"

"What was she like?"

Sora smiled, "Like your father and aunt put together."

She chuckled too. "Oh…"

The door opened and Kenji Kido stepped inside. "Kenji, hi," Sora smiled.

"Hi, Mrs. Yagami," he said, "My father sent me to tell you that he's sorry he forgot to tell you that Mr. Yagami has a physical therapy session with my mother right now."

"Oh, um, how long is he going to be?"

"Well, they want to take it slow, so probably just an hour…"

Kasumi took that moment to sneak out of the room. She found Yuki Agumon in the lounge area. "Where are Piyomon and Agumon?"

"I think they wanted to be alone…"

"Oh," she replied. She fell into the chair next to her partner.

"You still bummed?"

She nodded and sighed deeply, "Yeah. Damn it, my father and aunt are both so strong, and my father's cousin was really powerful too, how come I don't get any of that? They were the grandchildren of Yuushi, but I'm the great-granddaughter of Yuushi…and Hidokoro too. How come I'm so weak?" She sighed, running her hands through her hair, "I'm sorry you got stuck with such a lousy partner."

Yuki Agumon sighed, "I didn't really get a choice."

"Thanks," she muttered. She took a deep breath and lend back to her seat, "Oh, this sucks…"

She sat back up in the chair, and as she did, she noticed a female nurse walk past. She was pushing a cart of supplies…yet why was she dressed in a white jacket like the doctors wore…?

Kasumi eyed her suspiciously. Something about her seemed familiar, where had she seen her face before…

She suddenly gasped and jumped to her feet. "What the hell's your problem?" Yuki Agumon exclaimed.

Kasumi grabbed her paw and ran down the hall. "Shut up and just follow me!"

They ran through the halls until they returned to Taichi's room. The mysterious nurse was slowly approaching the door. "Heh, I was right."

"What are you talking about?" her partner asked.

"Just get ready to attack."

The nurse slid open the door and addressed Sora and Kenji. "Hello, I am here to…" She was abruptly cut off when Yuki Agumon's Frozen Wind struck her in the back, throwing her in to the floor. Sora ran into the hall and stared at her daughter and her partner.

"What the hell is the matter with you?!" she screamed.

"It's her!" Kasumi protested, "The one that tried to kill Dad!"

Sora blinked. Her head twisted back to the mysterious nurse. She was slowly rising to her feet. "Not bad, ya' remembered my face after only seeing me once." She twisted around and it was indeed the assassin Artemis.

Sora sighed. "So, you remember that but you can't remember to do your homework?"

Kasumi flinched, "Mom, you're embarrassing me!"

The Hunter chuckled, "Family squabbles, heh heh…"

"What the hell do you want now?" Kasumi snapped, "You're back to kill Dad?"

Artemis smirked, "Ya not as stupid as I first thought."

Kasumi chuckled, "But you're not that clever either! You didn't know Dad was in his therapy session!" Her smile grew, "And you didn't know that Mr. Ishida was going to be with Dad and Uncle Mitsuo when you attacked them!" She pointed her finger at her, "Some hunter you are, you don't know anything!"

Artemis ripped off her nurse's disguise, "Yeah, I remember that, Ishida could've had me, but you screwed that up, didn't you?"

Kasumi clenched her fists. "You bitch!" She charged, but in a quick motion she grabbed the two crossbows from her waist and fired. The pony-tailed girl could only stare as the deadly projectiles flew towards her. Yuki Agumon could not move fast enough.

"Kasumi!"

"Magical Flame!"

A spiral of glowing flame enveloped the arrows, disintegrating them instantly. Kasumi blinked, "Wha-? Piyomon?" She turned and saw Piyomon and Agumon X standing in the elevator. They jumped into the hall and Agumon X readied himself to attack.

"Spitfire!"

Artemis used her arm to block the flame. The X-digimon prepared for another attack, but he suddenly winced in pain. He grabbed his side and fell to his knee. Piyomon ran to his side. "You're still not recovered yet!"

"No, I'm fine!" he protested, trying to stand.

She sighed, "Agumon, you're still hurt!"

The Hunter chuckled and pointed her crossbows at the digital couple. She was about to pull the trigger.

"Hold on, help's on the way!" Kenji shouted as he and Otamamon ran down the hall. Unfortunatly, they slipped on the slick floor and crashed onto their noses.

Kasumi sighed, "What a dork."

Artemis's eye danced from left to right, more Chosen and digimon were entering the halls. "This ain't goin' well. This was supposed ta be a silent kill, there are way too many of 'em now. This is a DATS hospital, the patients and staff are probably all Chosen. I doubt any of 'em are able to get higher then Adult, but what they lack in power they make up for in sheer numbers. Even I can't handle a hundred Adult digimon." Her cybernetic eye focused on Sora, "But Yagami has Garudamon…" She glanced to Kenji, "And if he gets his father, I don't want to handle a Fully Evolved X-digimon. Any there're aren't any shadows for me to make a quick escape. Damn, gonna have to do this the hard way…"

She began to chuckle, "Well, it's been enlightening, but, time ta be headin' out." She quickly fired a barrage of arrows in all directions, while Artemis dove into the empty hospital room. Piyomon and Otamamon shielded their partners with their attacks, but Kasumi and Yuki Agumon followed them. The Hunter dove out the window.

"Come on, Yuki!" Kasumi shouted, running to the window, "We've got her on the run!"

"I'm right behind ya!"

Both girls leapt through the window and sailed towards the ground. Sora and the others were following, but stopped short of jumping through the opening. "Kasumi!"

As they fell, Kasumi positioned her partner so that she was directly beneath her. "Yuki Agumon evolve to Allomon!" Now much larger, the dinosaur was able to withstand the fall, landing perfectly on her two feet. Kasumi was safe upon her back, and pointed forward. "All right, let's move!"

"Kasumi Yagami!" Sora shouted from the window, "Get back here right now!"

"Sorry Mom!" she shouted back as Allomon charged through the street. "She's gonna pay for what she did to Dad, and I'll shut that fucking mouth of her's too!"

Sora screamed in frustration and pulled a fistful of hair from her head. When she realized what she had done, she stared at hand, where a tangled mess of white hair seemed to be staring back at her. "Oh that's just great! First I've got to dye my hair 'cause it's turning gray, and now I'm losing it!"

Kenji was standing beside her, "Actually, Mrs. Yagami, it's perfectly natural for an older woman to start losing their hair. It's actually more common then…"

She growled at him and the boy fell silent. She clenched her digivice so tightly that she could shatter it, "When I catch the two of them, they're gonna be so grounded! Piyomon!"

Her partner flew through the window as her body began to glow. "Piyomon evolve to Birdramon!"

Sora climbed through the window and onto her partner's back. "Wait a minute!" Kenji shouted, "You can't go alone!"

"All right, climb on," the redhead shouted. Kenji and Otamamon crawled onto the bird's back. Birdramon gave a flap of her wings before taking off.

111

Gabe, Shiro and Asami arrived in the Land of First Grain and began to wade through the sea of thick stalks. The American teenager was singing softly to himself. "The corn is as high as an elephant's eye…"

"What?" Shiro asked.

"Nothing," he replied, "Just singing to myself."

Asami giggled sweetly. "You've got a nice voice."

He blushed, nervously scratching the back of his head. "Uh, I…um…"

Shiro did not hear the conversation, as he was too focused on his destination-a tall obelisk which they were fast approaching. "Tsuragi," he thought, "I won't you let you get away this time."

Psychemon began to sniff the air. "Shiro, they're close."

The blond teenager stopped and peered through his binoculars. Through a space between the tall stalks, he was able to see two figures standing at the base of the stone column. The others had caught up to him, and were about to pass, but he held out his arms.

"What?" Kotemon asked.

Shiro pointed to the obelisk, "They're up there. We've got to walk slowly and carefully."

They nodded and slowly moved closer. Tsuragi and Ami were standing side-by-side while their partners circled the towering stone structure. The Demon Chosen crossed his arms. "Any time you're ready!"

Neodevimon stared at him for a moment, then turned back to the obelisk. Through the binoculars, he was able to see that the devil digimon was wearing the mystical Megingjoro around his waist. He crackled his knuckles, then knelt down to grab the base of the structure. He heaved, then lifted the entire stone obelisk.

Shiro narrowed his eyes. "That's what they needed the belt for…"

Neodevimon held the obelisk within his arms, but it proved too heavy for even the mystic Megingjoro. He grunted and flung the structure over his shoulder where it twisted in the air before gravity began to pull it directly over the hidden DATS agents.

"Run!" Gabe shouted. The agents dove to safety as the obelisk smashed into the ground, and due to its weight, dug deep into the surface before coming to a stop. The agents and their partners were panting heavily, still in shock from what had just occurred.

Ami's Astamon chuckled, "Looks like you missed."

Neodevimon snarled at her, "You try hittin a target like that!"

"Oh no!" Leormon gasped, "They knew we were here all along!"

"Of course we did," Ami smirked, "Did ya think we were stupid enough not to leave traps?"

Shiro frowned, "I should have thought of that, instead of just marching through the field. Out of curiosity, what was it?"

Ami mentioned to the ground, where strands of wire were attached to stalks, attached to every twentieth or so stalk, stretching from the edge of the field to the Demons' location. "Damn it," the blond teenager sighed, "Sorry guys."

"Don't beat yourself up over it," Gabe shrugged, "We didn't think of it either…"

Shiro sighed, then mentioned to the area where the obelisk once stood. There was a massive hole in the surface, leading to a dark pit beneath the ground. "I take it the Giallarhorn is under there?"

Tsuragi shrugged. "What difference is it gonna make now? Yeah, the horn's down there."

Shiro whispered to the others. "All right, we need to get down there."

"What is that horn for?" Asami asked.

He shook his head, "I don't know, but if they want it, it can't be anything good."

The Demon male, meanwhile, was speaking to his own team. "All right, listen up. Me and Neodevimon'll go down and get the horn, you take care of them."

"Three against one?" Astamon asked, "I don't know, doesn't seem too fair, they'll need a lot more before they could beat me."

"Shove your attitude, and just get the job done," Tsuragi sneered, "Neodevimon, let's go." His partner lifted him onto his back and they descended into the hole.

"Where's he going?" Kotemon asked.

Astamon grinned wildly "Don't worry about him, you gotta get past me first." He whipped out his gun and began to fire. The three digimon pushed their partners to safety before evolving to their Adult levels.

"Leormon evolve to Raiamon!"

"Kotemon evolve to Gladimon!"

"Psychemon evolve to Gururumon!"

Leormon and Gururumon charged at Astamon from either side. The Demon Man leapt into the air, grabbing each digimon by their head and smashing them into each other before throwing them into the ground. He completed his back-flip slamming his foot into the on-coming Gladimon. While the Warrior digimon rolled onto his back, Astamon landed perfectly on the ground.

The Demon Man took out his knife and used it to pick his fingernails. "Anytime you're ready…"

Gladimon held his sword out and began to spin around on his feet. "Sword Dancer!"

Astamon jumped into the air again, but this time shot a stream of fire from his palm which would have enveloped the Warrior digimon if he had not been spinning. His twisting sword blades cut through the flame and continued towards the Demon Man. Astamon used his knife to catch one of the blades, stopping Gladimon's spinning attack. The Demon Man executed a roundhouse, kicking the Warrior digimon four times before finishing his combo with a powerful kick that sent him rolling backwards. He crashed into a row of stalks, flattening them.

"Ten stalks!" Astamon laughed, "I just got a strike!"

"Gladimon!" Gabe shouted, "Are you okay?"

Astamon was laughing. "It's that body ya got. How do you expect to be taken seriously if you look like a balloon that's ready to pop?"

"Astamon!" Ami screamed, "Behind you!"

The Demon Man spun around just in time as Gururumon charged him. "Chaos Fire!"

Astamon swung his arms up, but it was not fast enough, as the wolf's attack ripped across the Demon Man's face. This was followed by Raiamon's Thunder of King attack, which shot a bolt of intense electricity into Astamon's back, flinging him forward, where he crashed into the ground.

"And you need to learn to shut up!" Gururumon snapped, "You're in the middle of a battle!"

Shiro grinned. "Nice job, getting him while he's distracted. Now hurry up and attack before he recovers!"

Gururumon and Raiamon charged at Astamon, who was still lying on the ground. The Demon Man suddenly leapt back to his feet, pointing his gun, "Maverick!"

An explosion of bullets erupted from his weapon, ripping across Raiamon's body. He regressed to Leormon and tumbled backwards, resting at Asami's feet. The girl gave a scream and dropped down to her partner's side. "Leormon!"

Gururumon continued with his attack, Astamon executed another Hellfire technique, but the wolf's Chaos Fire was enough to hold back the force of the attack. Gladimon ran up behind the Demon and prepared to strike, but Astamon leapt into the air, and Gururumon's attack blasted into the Warrior digimon.

"Ah!" Gabe shouted, "What are you doing?"

Galdimon stumbled, but still managed to slice with his sword, cutting a deep wound into Astamon's arm. The Demon Man yelled in anger and fired a barrage of bullets directly into his chest. He rolled back once again, but managed to bring himself back to a standing position. He was panting heavily, but he had not regressed to a previous form.

"Still an Adult, eh?" Astamon chuckled, "You're stronger then ya look, but not strong enough! Hellfire!"

"Gladimon!" Gabe shouted.

"No problem," the Warrior digimon shouted back. He began to spin around once again. "Sword Dancer!" He began to spin faster and faster, moving closer to his opponent. The flames were deflected across the spinning body.

Astamon grinned. "Ya never learn do ya? That didn't work the last time!" He took out his knife and was about to block the swords like he did before.

"Chaos Fire!"

He twisted his head to the side just as Gururumon's energy blast struck him. The force sent him stumbling backwards, directly into the path of Gladimon's attack. The blades ripped across the Demon Man, tearing his suit to ribbons. The Fully Evolved digimon clenched his fists in rage.

"Killer Bite!"

Gururumon's sharp teeth dug deeply in Astamon's side, tearing a section of skin. The Demon Man gritted in pain and held his injured side.

Asami grinned, holding Leormon in her arms. "He actually hurt him!"

Ami stared in horror. "A…Astamon? How did he…?"

The Demon Man screamed in rage. He whipped his gun around and pointed it directly at the wolf's forehead. "Maverick!"

The blast sent Gururumon skidding backwards. He tumbled along the ground before jumping back onto his feet. He stared at the Demon Man, growling, saliva dripping from his teeth. "Do it now!" Shiro shouted, "We've got him, go!"

"Astamon!" Ami snapped, "Don't let that Adult take you down!"

Gururumon and Astamon charged at one another, the Demon Man swung his fist, but the Wolf rolled to the side. "Killer Bite!" He slammed his jaw down on the left arm, biting as hard as he could. Astamon swung his other fist around, but Gladimon grabbed it and pulled.

"Yeah!" Gabe shouted, "Kick ass!"

"We've got him now!" Shiro shouted, "Don't let go!"

"Rip his arms out of his sockets!" Gabe shouted.

Astamon gritted his teeth as Gururumon and Gladimon pulled as hard as they could. "What's going on?" the Demon Man thought, "Why can't I break free?" His eyes drifted to Shiro and Gabe, specifically, the Lance and the Gauntlets, "Of course! Those damn weapons are powering them! If they evolve again, this is gonna get real messy."

"Stun Claw!"

Gladimon screamed as electricity ripped across his body, the force sent him crashing into Gururumon and both tumbled along the ground before coming to a stop, with the Warrior digimon on top.

Ami twisted around and saw Neodevimon standing beside the giant hole. Tsuragi was on his back, his arm clenching to the digimon's shoulder. "Did you..?"

The Demon Chosen held up his hand to display a golden horn, one that was adorned with jewels and elegant designs. "Yes, the Giallarhorn! Come on, let's get out of here."

She turned to the DATS agents, "What about…?"

He smirked. "Forget them! There's a bigger prize ta get."

She just nodded. Neodevimon grabbed both her and Astamon and flew to the sky.

"They're getting away!" Gururumon shouted, "Gladimon, get off!"

"I…can't…move…" he muttered.

Gabe ran to his partner and tried to push him off of the wolf digimon, Asami and Leormon tried to help. Shiro narrowed his eyes as he watched the them disappear in the sky. "We've got to go after them, we can't let them get away now."

111

Artemis had been jumping along the rooftops since escaping from the hospital. She dropped to the street level and glanced around. The area was a neighborhood area, the streets were deserted. She grinned and wrapped her cloak around her frame.

"Dino Burst!"

She easily leapt to the side as Allomon's attack exploded into the ground. She chuckled as the dinosaur stomped down the street. "Ya should 'ave just stayed behind. Ya got a death wish or sometin?"

Kasumi gritted her teeth while she rode on her partner's back. "Yeah, I wish to see you dead! Allomon, attack again!"

Her partner pulled her head back before whipping it forward, "Dino Burst!"

Artemis spied a shadow to her right, being cast by one of the houses. She dove headfirst, vanishing into the shadow. "What the hell?" the pony-tailed girl gasped.

"Meteor Wing!"

Kasumi ducked as Birdramon's attack flew over her head. She twisted around and yelled at her mother as she rode her partner in the sky. "Mom! What the hell?"

"You almost got attacked by her arrows!" Sora shouted.

Kasumi blinked. "Huh?" She glanced around behind her, but there was nothing but houses stretching towards the horizon. "Where?"

"I don't know, they just came out of no where."

Kenji and Otamamon had been riding with Sora on Birdramon's back, and the Kido son saw the next assault of arrows. "Duck!"

Both digimon dropped taking their partners with them. The arrows sailed over their heads. "What the hell?" Kasumi shouted. She looked spun her head around, but did not see the Hunter anywhere. "Where the hell is she?"

Sora twisted her head around as well, trying not to panic. How could they defeat someone they could not even see?

Another shot of arrows, this time coming up from the ground. Birdramon was able to fly to safety, but Allomon was struck across her body. "Allomon!" Kasumi shouted, "Are you okay?"

The dinosaur roared as loud as she could and began to thrash about, her tail smashing into street lights. "Kasumi, Allomon!" Sora snapped, "Calm down!"

Another wave of arrows, this time striking Birdramon in the wing, sending her into a tail spin. Sora, Kenji and Otamamon held on as tight as they could, and the giant bird was able to regain control. "Damn it," Sora growled.

"I saw it!" Kenji exclaimed.

"What?"

"The shadows! She's using the shadows!"

Artemis's laugh began to echo through the small neighborhood. "So, ya managed ta spot me, but it doesn't matter."

"Where is she?" Kasumi exclaimed.

"There!" Birdramon replied, mentioning with her wing. One of the houses had a pointed chimney, which was casting a long, large shadow on the house adjacent to it. From that shadow, Artemis slowly appeared; like stepping through the surface of a lake, her head and torso quickly appeared. Her waist was still submerged in the shadow, and she was defying gravity as she was standing perfectly perpendicular to the side of the building. She pointed her crossbows at Kasumi.

"I won't miss this time!"

"I don't think so," Kenji whispered to himself. "Otamamon!"

His partner leapt from Birdramon's back and evolved to his Adult form, Shellmon. The aquatic digimon fired his tendrils at the Hunter. She began to sink back into the shadow, but she was not fast enough. Shellmon grabbed her by the arm and flung her into the air. Birdramon began to flap her wings and fired a Meteor Wing attack into the Hunter. Artemis flipped around in the air and began her descent to the ground, but she was too focused on Shellmon and Birdramon, and did not see Allomon rushing up behind her. The giant dinosaur clamped her jaw around the Hunter; only her torso was visible.

"Nice catch!" Shellmon grinned.

"Crush her!" Kasumi ordered. "They'll never think I'm weak again. Who needs a fucking weapon? I'm strong enough as it is!"

Artemis managed to free her arm and began to pound into Allomon's jaw. The dinosaur was able to hold out for four punches, but the fifth was too much, and she was forced to release her grip. Artemis fell to the ground, but as she did, her other arm twisted behind her back. The dinosaur chomped down on the limb, and the Hunter screamed in pain. Allomon opened her jaw again and Artemis fell to the ground. Her arm was hanging limply at her side blood and a black substance were dripping to the ground, and bone was jutting through the skin, along with…

"Wires?" Kenji gasped, raising an eyebrow.

Artemis reached for an object on her belt, a ball the size of an apple. She threw it into the ground, where it exploded in a blast of smoke. The DATS team had to shield their eyes, but when it cleared, the Hunter was gone.

"No worries," Allomon chuckled, "She's not far, at this range, I've got her scent."

"Then go!" Kasumi ordered.

111

Only a few bocks away, Artemis ran down the sidewalk, clutching her injured arm. "Damn her, how the fuck did she hurt me like that? It's impossible!" An image of Kasumi's face shot through her mind, "Those eyes of hers…when's she pissed…just like a demon…."

NAME: Akira Yagami

GENDER: Male

AGE: 10

ETHNICITY: Japanese

OCCUPATION: Student

PLACE OF BIRTH: Tokyo, Japan

DATE OF BIRTH: November 14, 2018

KNOWN RELATIVES: Taichi-father, Sora-mother, Kasumi-sister, Mitsuo-uncle, Hikari-aunt, Asami-cousin, Susumu-paternal grandfather, Yuuko-paternal grandmother, Haruki "Yuushi" Makato, paternal great-grandfather, (deceased) Haruhiko-maternal grandfather, Toshiko-material grandmother, Jiro "Hidokoro" Kaji-maternal great-grandfather (deceased)

GROUP AFFILIATION: DATS

SUB-GROUP: Sons of the First

EDUCATION: Elementary school

HEIGHT: 4' 2"

WEIGHT: 89 lbs.

EYES: Hazel

HAIR: Red

POWER: Fire

DIGIMON: Piyomon-Diatrymon-Yatagaramon

WEAPON: None

DEGREE OF INFECTION: Missing right leg beneath the knees

BIO: The only son of Taichi and Sora, he had inherited his mother's BD-2 infection, as well as her Fire Powers. He is a more perfect union of Taichi and Sora, having their bad and good qualities. He does have a temper, and can jump into things without thinking, but he mostly stays calm and tries to think situation through.

1

NAME: Yasu Ishida

GENDER: Female

AGE: 11

ETHNICITY: Japanese/Chinese

OCCUPATION: Student

PLACE OF BIRTH: Tokyo, Japan

DATE OF BIRTH: July 20, 2017

KNOWN RELATIVES: Yamto-father, Noriko-mother, Takeru-uncle(deceased), Shiro-brother Hiroaki Ishida-paternal grandfather, Natsuko Takashi paternal grandmother Shiguen-maternal grandfather, Jia Li-maternal grandmother, Fai "Daiyu" Shan, great-grandmother (deceased)

GROUP AFFILIATION: DATS

SUB-GROUP: Sons of the First

EDUCATION: Elementary

HEIGHT: 4' 1"

WEIGHT: 88 lbs

EYES: Brown

HAIR: Brown

POWER: Darkness

DIGIMON: Labramon-Dobermon-Tankdramon

WEAPON: None

DEGREE OF INFECTION: Missing right hand and most of right arm.

BIO: The daughter of Yamato and Noriko, from her mother, she inherited the Darkness power as well as the BD-2 infection. She is hyperactive and is easily distracted, while other times she can be moody and spoiled. However, she adores her older brother and tries her hardest to follow in the footsteps