Reunion
The night sky was lit ablaze when WarGreymon and BlackWarGreymon clashed and unleashed their attacks. The light was blinding in the darkness that was the night in Crater Forest. All of the Digimon in the forest were panicking and running for cover. MetalGarurumon watched from the cave atop the rock formation, "I guess he found him. This should be interesting. It's a real clash of the titans."
Renee watched as well, a concerned look on her face, "I sure hope he'll be ok… And I hope none of their attacks hit any of my friends."
"WarGreymon is careful. He won't present any of the inhabitants of the forest with any danger, nor will he allow BlackWarGreymon to do so."
WarGreymon and his dark counterpart clashed and clashed, ramming into each other and slashing with their Dramon destroyers, making sparks fly into the night. WarGreymon called to him, "You know, this isn't the way to settle things. We can do this civilly."
BlackWarGreymon laughed mockingly, "Civilly? I think not!"
"Would you allow yourself to become the monster you were created to be?"
"What?!"
"I have memories… vague ones. Memories of fighting you before. Memories of you turning from a monster with no purpose but to destroy all in your path, into the savior of humanity. I know not where these memories came from, but I do know they are true! You were created out of the once cursed Digimon Emperor's Control Spires, but you still found a way to open your heart and help someone!"
BlackWarGreymon growled and charged energy into his hands, "Shut up! War Blaster!"
WarGreymon dodged the green energy projectiles and started to spin around rapidly. His speed increased dramatically, blurring out his image and causing a great wind to blow. He hurled himself at BlackWarGreymon, "Great Tornado!"
BlackWarGreymon held out his Dramon destroyers out to block him, and was pushed back by the attack. He snarled and started to gather energy in his hands. When he had gathered enough, he fired it into WarGreymon, sending him flying toward the side of the crater. He gathered more energy and hurled it at him, "Terra Destroyer!"
WarGreymon stood himself up and saw a large lake not too far from him. He concentrated, pulling energy from the water and gathering it into his hands. He quickly threw it at the oncoming attack, "Poseidon Force!"
The two energy balls collided. The energies that they were composed of twisted around each other, resulting in a large explosion. Water rained down from the sky, and in the middle of it WarGreymon and BlackWarGreymon clashed again, their Dramon destroyers locked and sparks flying everywhere. BlackWarGreymon let out a feral snarl, "You will die today!"
"Why are you doing this anyway," WarGreymon asked through grit teeth, "What would you gain out of killing those children?!"
"Revenge for the embarrassment they have brought upon me!"
"Only you can be responsible for your own failure," WarGreymon pushed him back and tackled him into the side of the crater. He went to deliver a death-blow with his Dramon destroyer, but BlackWarGreymon blocked and countered with his own. WarGreymon blocked as well, once again bring them into a deadlock. WarGreymon growled, "You lost to them because you're fighting for the wrong cause, and you know it!"
BlackWarGreymon gasped, but he did not let his realization get to him. He pushed it to the back of his mind and kicked WarGreymon away, "I know what cause is right for me!"
He swooped after WarGreymon and pounded him into the ground. WarGreymon grunted and held back his foe's weapons as best as he could. They both tore through trees and rocks as the battle went on. BlackWarGreymon had him pinned. He drew his arm back and laughed, "Die!"
Up in the cave, Renee and MetalGarurumon watched, though they could not see exactly what was happening. However, Tokomon was starting to act strangely. He started whining and watching the fight intently. Renee turned to him with a concerned look, "Hey, what's wrong?"
Tokomon shut his eyes tightly and became enveloped in a bright light. His body started to reshape itself. He was Digivolving. MetalGarurumon took his eyes off of the battle for a moment, "What is this..?"
The light vanished, and where Tokomon once was, now stood Patamon: A small four legged Digimon with an orange upper body and an orange lower, and two wing-like ears that protruded from his head. Renee gasped, "He… Digivolved?"
Patamon quickly leapt into the air and flew out of the cave, "WarGreymon!"
Renee shouted, "Hey, it's dangerous! Don't go!"
MetalGarurumon put his hand on her shoulder, "You can still absorb data, correct?"
"Huh? I don't know… I could only do a little bit before I became an Administrator."
"Copy my thrusters and follow him."
"Can't you go?"
"I said I would not interfere. I gave him my word."
"Alright," Renee said, putting her hand on MetalGarurumon's thrusters and concentrating. The data started to copy itself into Renee's digital body. The copy completed, and Renee materialized the thrusters on her back, "Ok, thanks!"
"No problem. Now, go get him," MetalGarurumon said, pointing out of the cave.
Renee did not need any convincing. She jumped out and followed Patamon, turning on the thrusters and flying toward him, "Hey, wait up!"
"This will determine if she's ready," MetalGarurumon said, watching her go. He opened a compartment in his arm and took out a Digivice, "Fate has brought them together. Now she must tie the knot to keep it that way."
Patamon and Renee flew toward the battle site. WarGreymon was barely holding BlackWarGreymon's fist at bay. The blades on the dark Digimon's Dramon destroyers were dangerously close to his face. Patamon went up behind BlackWarGreymon and sucked in a full breath of air. He then released it violently in the form of a projectile attack, "Boom Bubble!"
BlackWarGreymon barely even felt it, but it still annoyed him. He turned around and batted the tiny Digimon away, "Pest!"
Renee intercepted and caught Patamon, "Hey, are you ok?"
Patamon shook his head quickly and regained his balance, "I'm fine… But we have to do something!"
"Yeah, but… what?"
WarGreymon spotted them and called to them, "Renee… Patamon… Go! Get out of here! He'll kill you both when he's done with me..!"
Renee shook her head briskly, "No! We'll save you, WarGreymon! Just like you saved me, and Patamon! I have to repent for the terrible things I've done… We'll save you!"
BlackWarGreymon laughed and pressed his huge reptilian foot on WarGreymon, pinning him. He turned to Renee and Patamon, "Do you honestly think so? Maybe I'll destroy you two first, just so he can suffer more!"
Patamon freed himself from Renee's arms and sucked in more air, firing it at BlackWarGreymon, "Boom Bubble!"
Renee went to grab him again, "Stop! You're gonna get yourself killed that way!"
BlackWarGreymon held out his arms and fired his War Blaster at them. One of the projectiles hit Patamon, sending him flying backward. Renee caught him and dodged the others. However, one of them was coming right at her. She turned around, letting the thrusters on her back take the shot. The thrusters exploded, sending her plummeting toward the ground. She held Patamon close and shut her eyes tight, "Don't worry, Patamon… I'll keep you safe, if it costs me my life!"
Patamon looked up at her, "Why though? We barely know each other…"
"Because, I've done many horrible things to this world… At least if I die protecting you, I'll have repented for one of my sins!"
A bright light came from the cave, flying down toward Renee. It formed into a ball of light and forced its way into Renee's hand, taking the form of a Digivice. Renee gaped at it for a moment, "Wha..?"
Patamon started to shine along with the Digivice, "Hold on tight!"
BlackWarGreymon watched their descent, "What is…"
Patamon's body started to reshape itself into a more humanoid shape. Six white feathered wings appeared on his back, and a metal face guard appeared on his head. The light disappeared, revealing Patamon's new form: "Patamon Digivolves to… Angemon!"
Angemon spread his wings, catching the wind and stopping their fall. He held onto Renee and faced BlackWarGreymon, "Alright. I'll distract him. You copy my wings and get out of here."
"No," Renee said, "I won't leave you. I'll copy your wings, sure, but only so we can fight together!"
Angemon thought for a moment, and then said, "Alright. Just make sure you're careful."
Renee copied the wings and materialized them, taking position next to Angemon, "Alright… Now, let's take him down!"
BlackWarGreymon laughed mockingly, "You think you can defeat me? A Champion level goody-good and a human brat? You're dumber than I thought!"
Angemon drew his fist back, gathering light energy into it, "I don't care what level I am. I will not allow you to kill WarGreymon!"
BlackWarGreymon turned his attention toward Renee, "And you? What do you expect to do? You don't even have a weapon."
Renee grinned, "Then I'll just take yours."
"I'll distract him. You go in and get yourself a weapon," Angemon instructed. He thrust his hand outward, releasing the energy he was building in it, "Hand of Fate!"
BlackWarGreymon simply let the attack hit him. It put a scratch on his armor, but that was all. He watched Renee swoop in and batted her to the side, "Pathetic!"
WarGreymon took the opportunity to his advantage. He grabbed BlackWarGreymon's leg and pulled it, knocking him on his side. He activated his thrusters, flew up about fifty feet, and then gathered all of the energy he could muster, hurling it at BlackWarGreymon in a massive Gaia Force. Before the energy ball hit, WarGreymon grabbed onto Renee and Angemon and flew a safe distance away. Then the explosion came. It was massive, destroying anything that was unlucky enough to be caught within it. When the smoke finally cleared, BlackWarGreymon was gone. Renee surveyed the site, "Do you think…"
"Probably," WarGreymon said. He let her and Angemon go, "If he had survived, he'd still be here. As fast as he is, I would have noticed him."
Angemon nodded, "Indeed. I think he was destroyed this time."
MetalGarurumon joined them, "Let us hope. Oh, and congratulations, Renee."
"For what," Renee asked.
"For taking your first step toward repenting for your actions against the Digital World, and for gaining a partner."
"Partner..? You mean," she looked at Angemon, "Him?"
"Yes. Your Digivice allowed Patamon to Digivolve, so therefore he is your partner."
Angemon smiled, "Then I am glad to be your partner, Renee. I will go where you lead."
Renee was shocked beyond belief. How could someone who had been so cruel be worthy of a Digimon partner? She shook her head, "No…"
"What?"
"Don't follow where I lead… Walk with me instead," Renee said, smiling.
Angemon nodded, "I will."
WarGreymon started to rise into the air, "Now, weren't there some friends of yours stuck in the forest?"
"Oh! That's right," Renee said, "Can we look for them?"
"Of course we can. After all, you two undoubtedly saved my life."
Wizardmon awoke with what felt like something wrapped around his waist. His first instinct was to free himself, however he realized that what was trapping him was simply Eri's arms. He heard her say, "Morning, sleepy head… You don't know how much I missed you."
Wizardmon smiled, "The feeling is mutual. I was so worried about you."
"Aww, you were?"
"Yes."
Eri hugged him and nuzzled the side of his face, "Oh, Wizardmon, I love you!"
Gatomon had already woken up and was clung onto Sora like he was her only lifeline, "I swear, I worried my lives away while you were gone, Sora…"
"And my fingers cramped trying to adjust that radar to find you," Sora joked, holding onto her tightly.
"I got to beat up a Kuwagamon!"
"I shot a Gizamon!"
"Awesome!"
"Awesome awesome!"
Eri and Sora's Digivices beeped, and the radar showed that there was another Digivice approaching them quickly. Wizardmon heard something up above them, so he floated up for a better look. He saw WarGreymon and waved, "Hey! Over here!"
WarGreymon stopped and landed near them, "Hello there everyone. Are you, perchance, friends of this girl?"
Renee hopped off of WarGreymon with Patamon in her arms, "Sora! Eri! Thank god you're all ok!"
Sora smiled, "Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes!"
Eri shared his relief, "Yeah, really… We didn't know what happened to you."
Gatomon looked up at WarGreymon and squinted, "Hey… The data's a bit different, but you're… the same WarGreymon I fought alongside of. Right?"
WarGreymon studied her carefully, "I don't know… I have faint memories. You are familiar, I'll say that much."
"Well, it's good to see you're alive."
MetalGarurumon landed next to him, "To answer your question, yes, he is the same. As am I."
"MetalGarurumon… But you look so different. Both of you do."
"This is the effect of the X-Antibody. It is the remnant of the Digital World's defense against an old threat, before the Digital World's new main program was instated."
Patamon watched Gatomon for a few moments, "You look familiar to me, too…"
Sora scratched the back of his head, "Everyone knows each other…"
Gatomon turned to Patamon, "You're the same, too… Wow, there were more people brought back than I thought."
WarGreymon laughed, "It is the will of the Digital World that we are all reunited like this, I guess. Now, let us go and find the rest of your friends."
"Come on, let's go already! We're not going to find Renamon or Katsu if you don't wake up," Vincent complained. He started poking at Lupimon, who was sleeping soundly. Vincent growled and crossed his arms, "UP! Wake the fuck up! God dammit!"
Lupimon yawned and stretched her arms in the air. She opened one eye and rubbed the other, "You know, you're obnoxiously loud…"
"And you're lazy as hell."
"I was up all night protecting you."
"I was up all night worrying about whether BlackWarGreymon was dead or not."
"Fair enough," Lupimon said, sitting up and jumping down from the tree, "Let's go then."
Vincent followed and started to walk ahead, "Let's go to that clearing they made. Maybe we'll get a signal there."
They made their way to the large crater WarGreymon had made, and Vincent's heart skipped a beat when he saw the huge imprint in the ground, "Lupimon…"
"Eh?"
"Do any huge Digimon have BlackWarGreymon-shaped feet, or is that all that's left of him?"
All that remained where BlackWarGreymon fell was the large crater bent in his shape. Lupimon looked at the imprint and blinked a few times, "Oh yeah… He's dead. Not even dust left."
"WarGreymon's powerful… I wouldn't like to be on the other side of that."
Vincent's Digivice started to beep, and Lupimon's ears perked up, "Radar working?"
Vincent checked it and saw that there were three Digivices closing in on them, "Wow… Looks like they've found us."
As if on cue, WarGreymon landed in front of them, letting his passengers off. Eri tackle-hugged Vincent, knocking him to the ground, "Vincent, you're safe!"
Vincent groaned as his back cracked, "Ow… Glad to see you, too…"
Renee went over to him, too, "Vincent… You ok?"
"I was."
Eri got up and snickered, "Estrogen wins again!"
"Estrogen makes you a pansy."
"Too much testosterone makes you a meat sack."
WarGreymon sighed, "Alright, enough about hormones, please."
Vincent looked back and forth, "Renamon?"
"No luck yet," Sora said, "We'll find her. Don't worry."
Renamon stood on the top of a tree, calling down to Katsu, "I see a big crater. It's where WarGreymon and BlackWarGreymon fought. I see something out there…"
"Probably WarGreymon," Katsu said. He started to walk toward the crater, "Better than nothing. Let's go."
Renamon jumped from tree to tree, not bothering to go back to the ground. All that mattered to her right now was finding Vincent. They finally reached the site where the battle had taken place. Renamon spotted Vincent and immediately called out his name and running to him. Vincent heard her and turned around just in time to be whisked up into her arms and pulled into a tight embrace. Lupimon leapt at Katsu and tackled him to the ground, "Katsuuuuuuuuuuu! I missed you so much!"
Katsu put his arms around her and smiled, "I missed you, too, Lupimon… More than you know."
Renamon held Vincent close and nuzzled the side of his face, "Vincent… My god, I thought you were dead… The very thought of it was tearing my heart to pieces…"
Vincent shook his head, "I couldn't stand just sitting around waiting, but that stupid mutt wouldn't let me look for you last night."
"Well, you needed to save your energy. She did the right thing."
"I guess you're right…"
Sora sighed with relief, "Thank god… Now all we have to do is get the hell out of here."
"Yeah," Eri said, leaning her arm on Sora's shoulder, "We can manage our own way out, I think… Now that we're together, anyway."
Gatomon nodded and hopped onto Sora's head, "Yep! So, we ready to go?"
Katsu finally got back on his feet and said, "Almost. Not quite."
"Eh?"
He pointed an accusing finger at Renee, "You didn't give me all your data. In fact, the bulk of what you gave me was stupid Digimon data, not Administrator!"
Renee snickered, "Ya noticed, huh?"
"Give me the goddamn data!"
"Fine, fine, sheesh… I don't need it. Hell, Deus is probably tracking me with it," Renee said. She released the data from her body and Katsu absorbed it. She put her hands behind her head, "So what do you need it for, anyway?"
"That's for me to know, and for you to find out. Tell me when you're going after the last Administrator. I'll be there to help out," Katsu said, walking away.
Lupimon waved to Vincent, "See ya. It was fun being able to hang out with you for a while."
"I guess so," Vincent said, waving back, "But you really need to learn to cut back on your promiscuousness…"
Lupimon laughed and narrowed her eyes, her lips curling into a seductive smile, "Ooh, Vincent… Let's play again sometime…"
Renamon's entire body seemed to twitch, "What?!"
"Buh-bye, handsome," Lupimon cooed, walking after Katsu, intentionally exaggerating the swaying of her hips.
Vincent's face was redder than ever. His eye twitched and he breathed in deep, "I hate that woman…"
Renamon walked over to Vincent and leaned her arm on his head, "So… What was that all about. Hmmmm?"
"She's just the most perverted female ever to exist, that's all…"
"And you're just the easiest male ever to exist, I assume?"
"What?! No! Nothing happened! She's just being a bitch!"
Renamon put her arm around his shoulders, "I hope so. I'd hate to see you get stuck in a relationship like that without-- I mean, with someone like her, because it'd be hard for you to get out of."
"What were you going to say," Vincent asked, his head tilted to the side.
"Huh? I said what I was going to say."
"No you didn't…"
"Yes I did!"
Sora sighed, "Well, they're back to normal…"
"Aww, no 'two lovers reunited kiss'," Eri asked in a playfully sad voice.
Vincent growled, "Get off that already!"
"Why? It's so obvious!"
"No it's not! There's nothing there to be obvious, so I don't know what kinda shit you're high on! What's popular in Japan these days, huh?!"
Eri scowled, "The same shit that's in America."
Renee sighed, "Hey, how 'bout we go and get some rest? I'm sure I can fix the wiring on that teleporter."
"Good idea. All this running around is taking its toll on everyone here," Wizardmon said.
After a quick flight out of the crater, and an equally quick repair of the teleporter's wiring, they were brought back to Datamon's lab. Datamon met them in the teleport room, "Oh, you're all ok! Splendid! I don't know what I would have done had you all been killed!"
"You'd have blown a circuit, ya little microwave," Vincent snickered.
"I swear, you'll run out of electronic appliances to call me one day… Then who will be the wiser?!"
"I'll just recycle them, that's all."
"Oh for the love of--"
"Just like someone could recycle you."
"Oh for the love of..!"
Renamon hit Vincent in the head, "Stop it, will you?"
"Fine," he sighed, "Sorry, Datamon."
"Oh, don't worry about it," Datamon said, waving it off, "I'm just glad to see you're all alright."
"It just seems to be one thing after another," Sora sighed.
Renee shifted from one foot to the other, "Um… Is it ok that I'm with you guys?"
"Why wouldn't it be?"
"Well… I've done some pretty bad stuff in my time here. I don't want to make it worse by being a burden."
"You're not a burden," Eri said with a comforting smile, "I'm sure you'll be a great help to us."
Renee smiled, "Thanks, Eri. I needed that."
Datamon addressed her, "Now then, Renee, I heard you, over the Digivices, say that you are not the last Administrator?"
"That's right. Deus is. He doesn't operate in a Focus Tower like the others do. He's on a man-made island in the middle of the Virus Sea."
"I see… Sort of a treacherous journey overseas, but flying there would make you all too obvious."
Vincent grinned, "Guess it's time for some good old grand theft Administrator boat."
"Ah, yes! Splendid! I will spend this night checking my sources for Administrator harbors. You all should take the night off. You really need it."
Everyone agreed. They were all about ready to pass out from fatigue. However, regardless of how tired he was, Vincent lay awake on his bed, staring at his ceiling. He sighed and turned on his side, toward Renamon. When they were face-to-face he realized she was awake as well. She blinked, "Can I help you?"
"Can't sleep," Vincent said, shrugging.
Renamon put her arms around him and held him close, "Nervous about tomorrow?"
"That's probably it. We're fighting the last Administrator… It's hard to believe. Then the human world will be restored, and the Digital World will be safe."
Renamon smiled, "You know… No matter where you go, I'm going with you."
"Huh?"
"I know you said you wanted to stay here, but… If you ever decide to go back to your world, I will go with you. Promise."
Vincent snuggled into her, "I'll hold you to that."
Renamon pulled him closer and tighter, "And you'd better promise to stay with me, too, or else I'll torture you into it!"
Vincent laughed, "Ok, ok, I promise!"
They both decided to go to sleep, for tomorrow their greatest test yet would commence. Deus, the last Administrator, waited for them on his island. The battle with him would determine the fate of the Digital World, and the human world as well. The balance of life and death was in their hands.