Chapter 11: The Prophecy Keeper
Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon
The children stared at Shakkoumon with confused looks on their faces. His bizarre appearance had caused them a fair amount of shock. They had been expecting his form to be more similar to that of Seraphimon or the other angels, based on how he was revered by the other Digimon. Nonetheless, Wizardmon walked over to him and knelt before him.
"I have returned Lord Shakkoumon," he said. "I have retrieved the Children of Virtue as you asked."
The white wizard walked over to Wizardmon and patted him on the back; "Welcome back brother," he said warmly.
"I would ask you kindly not to address me as such while we are in Lord Shakkoumon's presence, Sorcerymon."
"Sorry Wizardmon, I was just worried that you might have gotten into trouble."
"They look like twins," muttered Seiichi to Ayame.
"More so than us anyways," she replied with a snicker. "They don't seem to be on very good terms though."
Shakkoumon looked down on Wizardmon as he chastised his brother. The children could not discern an expression on his face, but Wizardmon seemed to understand something they didn't. He then stood up and took his place on Shakkoumon's side opposite Sorcerymon. Shakkoumon hovered half a foot off the floor, and inched closer to the children and their Digimon.
"Welcome, Children of Virtue, to my home," he said in a metallic voice.
"Um… thanks for having us," said Daichi, attempting to be polite.
"If you don't mind my asking, Mister Shakkoumon," began Hanae, "How come you look like a big teapot."
The other children looked at Hanae, horrified at what she had just said. Catching their glances, Hanae placed her hands over her mouth as though it would retract what she had just said. To the group's surprise, Shakkoumon chuckled. It was somewhat strange, since his laughter was in the same metallic fashion as his speech.
"I am not sure of the exact reasons behind the form I currently take," he said. "However; I believe it, like many things here, holds its origins in the folklore of your world."
The children breathed a collective sigh of relief that they hadn't offended Shakkoumon. They took a moment to stand up and brush some of the sand off themselves. The Prophecy Keeper waited for them to finish before addressing them again.
"Now, I know there are many things you would like to ask me," he said. "This time you shall have the opportunity to ask them all, as there will be no interruptions here."
"Where do you think we should start?" asked Evan.
"How about at the beginning," suggested Seiichi.
"Where exactly is the beginning?" asked Ren in response. Seiichi shrugged.
"What I want to know," said Daichi bluntly, "is why we got clobbered so easily in that last battle."
"Very well," said Shakkoumon, "we shall start there. Please be seated, you needn't tire yourselves by standing."
The children nodded and seated themselves back on the floor.
"Digimon are both very similar to and very different from creatures of your world. Like you, we possess the ability to grow, evolve and change to adapt to new circumstances. However; our evolution is not gradual, unlike the natural adaptation process of creatures of your world. We evolve through a series of distinct levels."
"Yeah, we noticed that when our partners evolve from their current forms to bigger ones. It's anything but subtle," commented Ayame.
"When a Digimon is first born, it takes on an infant form. As its evolution progresses, it goes through the In-Training, Rookie, Champion, Ultimate and Mega stages. There are limits to how fast and how far Digimon can evolve, which makes it progressively harder to evolve farther. As such, the higher levels of evolution hold fewer Digimon."
"But in that last fight the enemy was only one level higher than us and we had him out numbered six to one," said Ren. "Why is it that we were unable to even faze him?"
"The difference in power between the subsequent levels of evolution becomes exponential. There are some exceptions, but typically six Digimon of one level isn't enough to defeat a Digimon of one level higher."
"Then what about us? How are we supposed to defeat opponents of higher levels?"
"The answer is simple, yet perhaps not all that obvious to you. Your partners must evolve to a higher level of evolution themselves."
"You just said that there are limits to how fast Digimon can evolve," said Seiichi. "So how are we supposed to reach those higher levels?"
"That is the primary reason why you humans were called here. The devices you were given, the Digivices, are a means with which to break the limits of a Digimon's evolution. However they will not function on their own and Digimon cannot use them."
"So, we're just here to make the Digimon evolve until they're strong enough to defeat the Demon Lords?"
"No, that is not all. Evolution alone will not provide the power needed to defeat the Demon Lords. You humans possess a power that Digimon do not. Even I do not fully understand it, but I know that it is necessary. Humans working together with Digimon will unleash this power, and it is that power which is needed to defeat the Demon Lords."
"Alright then, how do we get our partners to evolve to those higher levels?"
"I am afraid that is something I cannot tell you, as you must discover it for yourselves. All I can tell you is that before you can obtain the next level of power, you must master the power you already have."
"I wonder which power that is."
"I have a question now," said Evan. "Last time Betamon tried to evolve he was not able to. Do you know why?"
"I believe I have an answer for you. Fellangemon attacked you at the lake when Betamon evolved for the first time, did he not?"
"Yes he did, but how did you know that?"
"Remember," cut in Daichi, "this guy knows all and sees all, or something like that."
Shakkoumon continued; "While he was attacking, did you see him take anything from Seadramon?"
"Yes I did, now that you mention it. When Fellangemon pulled his scythe out of Seadramon, some kind of glowing strand was attached to it."
"Then it seems that I my thoughts on the matter were correct. I believe that strand you saw was a portion of Seadramon's data. With a fragment of his data absent, Betamon is incomplete and incapable of achieving his potential."
"So that's what was missing," commented Wizardmon.
"How can we get the data back for him?"
"I'm afraid that is another thing you must accomplish on your own. It is my purpose to point you children in the right direction, but I cannot hand you the answers."
"There's another thing currently unanswered," piped in D'arcmon. "Why did I not revert to my rookie form like the others after I evolved?"
"I can only answer that question in part. It is related to Kioko, and her status as a Child of Virtue. Each of the seven of you represents a distinct virtue."
"Do you mean like the Seven Cardinal Virtues?" asked Kioko.
"I am pleased to see that you are so well learned, young Kioko. You represent the virtue of Humility. However, on the negative side, you sometimes doubted your own capabilities. Once you were able to rid yourself of that doubt, you unveiled the true nature of your virtue."
"What about the rest of us?" asked Ren.
"I'm afraid that I cannot answer that part of the question. I was able to tell you of Kioko because she had already unleashed her virtue."
"Maybe that's what he meant about mastering the power we already had."
Shakkoumon simply nodded in response.
"So then in order to move to the next level of evolution we have to discover which virtue we represent, and overcome the flaw associated with that virtue," summarized Seiichi. Shakkoumon nodded again.
"A word of caution; even if you obtain the next level of power, it may not be enough. Even within the same stage of evolution, there are varied levels of power from one Digimon to the next."
"Can you tell us anything more about the Demon Lords themselves?"
"Yes, but again not much. As you know they are the most powerful evil Digimon to ever exist. They are: Barbamon; the Greedy Sage, Beelzemon; the Gluttonous Bandit, Belphemon; the Slothful Giant, Daemon; the Wrathful Specter, Leviamon; the Envious Serpent, Lilithmon; the Lustful Vampiress and Lucemon; the Vain Ruler.
"Is that all you can tell us?"
"The only things I know about the Demon Lords that I have not told you are too horrific to speak of. You must face the Demon Lords, but you need not torment yourself with knowledge of their past atrocities."
"That kind of statement is really only good for prompting further curiosity."
"Not from me," said Hanae. "I don't wanna know the nasty things they've done before, it's probably really scary."
"Curiosity or not, I would still choose not to divulge those details. As young Hanae said, they are quite frightening."
"I actually have one last question," said Daichi. "Why do you always add 'mon' to the end of your names? Is it some kind of honorific?"
The other children stared at Daichi for the irrelevant nature of his question, but Shakkoumon merely chuckled again.
"It is not an honorific," he replied, "its just part of our names. It has always been that way here. Now; since all of your questions have been answered, I suggest that you take some time to rest. I'm sure the last battle took quite a toll on you and your partners."
"We have prepared a meal for you in one of the adjacent halls," said Sorcerymon. "In addition we have lodgings that should suffice for the night."
"While you are resting, we shall prepare some provisions for the next stage of your journey," added Wizardmon, who then gathered the bags of Evan, Daichi and Kioko. The children and their partners then followed Sorcerymon into the next room.
The land here was barren, with demolished buildings and a few dead trees dotting the landscape. The scenery here was identical to that in the Dark Area. However; the Moon was visible in the sky, indicating that it was not within the confines of the Dark Area. Here, Fellangemon stood with his scythe planted firmly in the ground.
The ground beneath Fellangemon was marked with an intricate drawing; a magic seal of some sort. Large amounts of dark energy streamed from his body and filled the markings of the seal. The seal glowed with a pale grey light and from it an orb expanded, consuming Fellangemon.
Outside the orb, time and space both seemed to start moving faster. The purpose of this orb was to synchronize Fellangemon's time with that of the Human World. Fellangemon acted as quickly as he could once the orb was erected. He picked up his scythe and used it to tear a hole in the air in front of him. On the other side of this hole, the Human World was visible. He stepped through the tear, which then closed quickly behind him.
Looking around, Fellangemon could see that it was late in the afternoon here where it had been night when he had left. He could see a large white building nearby that was marked with a red cross. He also saw a young boy sitting on a bench, crying.
The boy noticed Fellangemon and was startled. He stood up from the bench and backed away from Fellangemon, but tripped and fell backwards. Fellangemon looked at the boy and, using the sight he had taken from Holyangemon, gazed into his heart. The aura surrounding the boy indicated a virtuous heart, but one that was also in desperation. Fellangemon smiled and held out his hand to the boy…
Authors Notes: I knew that this chapter would be mostly if not entirely a Q&A session with Shakkoumon, but I also wanted to reveal what Fellangemon was up to. Since the chapter was a bit short I decided to add that on to the end. Who is the boy and what will Fellangemon do with him? You'll find out in a later chapter. Enjoy the suspense.
Revision Notes: This chapter was another one that seemed to dislike using commas, even when they're appropriate or necessary. I also added some new dialogue to the conversation with Shakkoumon, in order to address some question cut offs that were a little too abrupt. Thanks for continuing to read.
