-1"Rathjen, would you quit staring at that computer screen?" asked Desiree, walking into the main room of the scientists' lair and leaning against the wall. In the dim light given off by the glow of the monitor she could see Rathjen's face. "It's two in the morning."
"The wise conqueror must know all he can about his foes before he attempts to conquer."
"Uh-huh," she yawned. "You still answer to me, buddy."
"Whatever you say, Desiree. I will hit these children where it hurts the most before I kill them..."
"Do what you want. Just don't fail like Green," she told him, turning and leaving the room. He nodded and continued to glare through the focus of his glasses at the different profiles on his computer screen. He grinned widely.
"Let it commence..."
b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Twenty-Four: Rathjen's Victory /u /b
Christmas Day was over, and the hype had ended. Two figures opened the door to Lee's house and stepped inside.
Meanwhile, upstairs, someone was in Lee's bedroom, rummaging through his various belongings. A few shirts were tossed onto the floor as Alison herself was going through his things. She glanced over at his clock to see what time it was.
"Geez... three AM already?" she asked, mainly speaking to herself. "I've got to be able to find something! I know Lee loves me... but while I was gone, I don't know if he did anything with Amara. It's possible."
She rested her hand on his bedside table and sighed, wiping her hair out of her face.
"Or maybe I'm just paranoid," she sighed. "But after she gave Lee that horrible nightmare I'm not sure what she's capable of doing. Hopefully she kept her hands off."
Ali glanced down at the drawer and shrugged, figuring it was the only thing she hadn't checked. She may as well do it on her way out. She felt around inside and she didn't find any bras or panties. But her hand did rest on a velvet box. Her eyes widened.
"What the hell--" she began, but suddenly she heard a voice shout at her.
"Freeze!" yelled Ace from the other side of the room in the dark. "Nathan! Someone IS up here! DemiTyrannomon, get ready to roast him!"
"Wait--"
"DEMI BLAST!!!" she heard him yell. She dove over Lee's bed and the fireball collided into the wall, lighting the wall on fire! Ace screamed in shock.
"Ace! What the hell did you do?!" exclaimed Nathan, running into the room. "Put it out!"
"Uh..." began Ace. He picked up DemiTyrannomon and threw him into the wall, snuffing the flames out upon his impact. Nathan switched the light on and Ali, half on Lee's bed with her upper body hanging over the edge, smiled innocently.
"Why hello boys," she said, trying to sound seductive. "I was just here to... uh... oh god... make love to you...?"
"You don't deceive me with your lies!" yelled Ace, pointing an accusing finger at her. "You came to steal our hamburgers! You're hamburglar!"
"What the hell is he talking about?"
"I have no idea," replied Nathan, sweat-dropping. "We were coming back from Ace's parents' ski cabin and heard noises up here. Naturally, we thought it was a break-in."
"And then DemiTyrannomon lit the wall on fire," added Kotemon.
"Hey, shut up!"
"Well, I was just kinda... here..." began Ali, hoping she wouldn't actually have to tell them why as she stood up. "And look what I found!"
She held out the velvet box and Nathan, Ace and Kotemon all stared at it. Ace snatched it out of her hand.
"Oh my god!" he exclaimed. "It's a..."
He popped it open and they all gazed upon the hefty piece of jewelry inside. All their jaws dropped.
"... ENGAGEMENT RING!!!"
"Yeah... that's nice... someone wanna help me up...?" groaned DemiTyrannomon, unenthusiastically. They all sweat-dropped.
- - -
The next day at RTC, Ace, Nathan, and Arik were heading down to the cafeteria to buy some lunch before their third period classes. Arik was fairly stunned by the news Ace and Nathan were relaying to him.
"Can you believe Lee was going to propose to Ali?" asked Ace. "He's crazy! Why would you want to tie yourself down like that?!"
"Well she IS having HIS baby..." suggested Arik. The thoughtful boy glanced around at the myriad of people in the cafeteria and pointed at an empty spot in the line-up. The three of them headed over to it.
"Still, I wouldn't propose until after," protested Ace. "But Lee can rest assured that I will keep the ring safe and away from Alison."
Ace held the open velvet box in his open palm and Nathan almost screamed. He snatched the ring right out of Ace's hand.
"Are you mad?! You brought it to school?!" exclaimed Nathan. "Besides, I get to hold it until Lee gets back from Trinity Server!"
"Why do you get to hold it?" asked Ace and Arik at the same time.
"Because..." began Nathan, striking a heroic pose. "We all know that I'll be Lee's best man!"
Ace and Arik fell over.
"Yeah right, Nathan!" argued Ace. "Lee will make ME his best man!"
"You can even hold your coffee without spilling it! How will you hold a ring?!"
"You're never on time! You'll probably end up missing the whole wedding!"
"How do you know I won't be his best man?" asked Arik.
"Shut up, Arik!" they both shouted, practically right in his face. The three of them froze for a moment, trying to remember what they were arguing about.
"For the fifth time..." began an unimpressed cafeteria lady. "Would you like to order something?"
The three of them did, and returned to a table with their trays of food. Tori happened to be walking by and sat down between Ace and Nathan.
"Hey boys."
"Ah! Dark Chosen!" exclaimed Ace, falling backwards out of his chair. They all looked at him. "Heh heh... oh yeah, that's over now."
"Yeeeaah..." replied Tori, eating some of Nathan's fries. "So what are you guys being so loud about?"
"Engagement."
"Coffee."
"Boobs."
Tori glanced around, wondering which answer was right. She shrugged and got up from the table.
"If any of you guys ever get engaged, remind me to slap your wife..." she told them, walking away. Nathan, Arik and Ace looked on after her.
"Ah... there she goes..." sighed Ace, still on the floor. "The woman of my dreams..."
"I thought you hated her," said Arik.
"Whatever gave you that idea?!"
"Uh... you used to say you hated her all time," began Arik. "That's somewhat a clue."
"Screw that!" shouted Ace. "I should ask her out... but I don't know..."
"But we do," said Nathan, grabbing Arik and darting off after Tori.
"No, guys! Wait-- oh well," sighed Ace, looking at all the uneaten lunches on the table. "More food for me."
Arik and Nathan caught up with Tori, each taking one of her arms in theirs and walking with her. She looked back and forth between them frantically.
"What do you guys want?" asked the brunette with blonde highlights. Both boys grinned.
"Someone likes you," said Arik.
"Who? Oh god... is it Ray?" groaned Tori, slumping forward and allowing Arik and Nathan to drag her along as they watched.
"No, it's a much better three-letter word," replied Nathan. Tori's head looked up in shock.
"Ace?"
"Bingo," said Arik. "He'd like to know if you'd want to go out with him."
"When did this happen!?" exclaimed Tori. i Well it's about damn time he came around! /i
"We don't know, but you should meet him at Central Park around three o'clock," Arik told her.
"Three o'clock. Yes. Then," added Nathan. "Don't be late."
Nathan and Arik shoved her off before she could even get another word out and looked at each other. They both giggled like idiots.
"So, should we tell Ace about this meeting?" asked Arik.
"I think that would be wise."
Nathan and Arik strolled off back to the cafeteria, while Dean Rathjen looked on from a dark corner. He'd heard everything.
"Hmmm..."
- - -
In another world... two more Chosen were walking as well. But instead of through school hallways, they were walking through raging snow and on thick sleets of ice. Amara and Lee were literally freezing their asses off as they attempted to trudge through the impassable terrain of Epsilon Sector.
"Lee... I'm freezing..." whined Amara, dropping to her knees. Her black jacket wasn't near enough to cover her up and she was almost turning blue. Lee was taking it better than she was, since he had already been wearing a heavy jacket when they were back in Tamur.
"Amara, will you be alright?" asked Emeraldmon. "I'd offer you shelter, but I'm not wearing much myself."
Emeraldmon was only decked out in a chest plate a shoulder pads, along with a skirt. She was using her four emerald wings to protect her own body from the cold. Lee looked up at Machinedramon, who was trudging along behind them at his own pace. Machinedramon nodded silently, already knowing what Lee was going to ask him.
"Here Amara... you can have my coat," said Lee, taking it off and tossing it on the ground in front of her. Her eyes widened as she glanced at it an threw it on hastily. Emeraldmon helped her stand up and she weakly looked at Lee.
"Thank you..."
"D-don't mention it..." groaned Lee, covering his now exposed arms with his hands. "Let's press on. I don't want to remain in this frozen wasteland any longer than we have to..."
Lee allowed Amara and Emeraldmon to walk ahead of himself and Machinedramon as they tried to find the portal to the next sector. Lee went and sat on Machinedramon's foot as he walked.
i It's so damn cold here... /i he thought, glancing through the vast land of ice. i But what's really surprising is that I suddenly care enough about Amara to give her my coat... /i
Amara, hearing his thoughts, smiled. But she had thoughts of her own.
i Lee is very sweet... but right now I'm more worried about what I did earlier. Last I remember, I only had powers of ESP... not telekinesis as well. What is with me...? I'm really scared of what Irvine really wanted with me. He must've known this all along... /i
"Amara! Everyone!" shouted Emeraldmon to get their attention. The three of them glanced at Crystalmon's Ultimate stage as she tensed up. "I'm sensing... an enemy!"
"It's a worm hole!" yelled Machinedramon. "I can see it from way up here! Something's coming out!"
Emeraldmon flew upwards to see what Machinedramon was looking at... and a rather large Digimon had emerged from the worm hole! It hadn't seen them yet, but it bellowed out anyway.
"I am Vikemon!!! I sense trespassers on my territory! Trespassers, when we meet you'll be sorry!!!"
"Oh great..." groaned Lee. "Just what we need..."
- - -
After much pushing and shoving, Arik and Nathan finally convinced Ace to go to Central Park and meet Tori. Arik drove there in Earnest's truck and stopped outside the bridge leading into the park.
"Go on, Romeo!" Nathan told him, throwing Ace outta the truck. "Don't come back until you score!"
"Pigs," commented Ali, who was in the passengers side of the truck. Arik sweat-dropped and drove off, leaving Ace sitting on the sidewalk by himself. He rubbed his ass and stood up.
"Thanks for nothing, Nathan," he mumbled to himself. He turned and crossed the bridge into Central Park. i Well the damage caused by our last fights here is fixed. The bridge is repaired from when Jeska turned me into MagnaAngemon; also the wreckage from mine and Tori's fight seems to be gone as well. Jolly good. Now where is she? /i
"Ace!" he heard a female voice yell. It was most definitely Tori. He glanced over to see her sitting on a bench, waiting for him. She was dressed fairly nice for once, she was actually wearing a pink dress! And what a dress! Let's just say it didn't leave much to the imagination.
i Holy craaaap! She's so hot! And what did I wear? And army t-shirt and a pear of jeans I don't think have ever been washed. Stay cool, stay calm, stay collective. Don't stare down her dress, /i he told himself. He inched his way over to her. "Why hello, milady. Word is you wanted to see me."
"I was told you wanted to see me," Tori said to him, confused. They both stared at each other in realization, then glanced off in the direction Arik and the others drove up. "Nathan and Arik set us up!"
"Those bastards!" exclaimed Ace, pretending it actually mattered to him. i Well, they might be bastards for not letting me hold the ring, but they aren't for doing this for me! I must remember to set Nathan up with Tammy when she stops being a psycho-possessed-Shadow-zombie. /i
"So, uhm, nice day isn't it?" asked Tori. Ace nodded in agreement. The snow had all melted and unusual warm weather had set in. It probably wouldn't last for long, but Ace was glad for it. It set an awesome scene for the day.
"Uh... yes. So... would you like to grab a bite?"
"Sure!" she answered, smiling. "I'd love that!"
Ace took her hand and lifted her from the bench. They turned to leave... but were faced with a very unpleasant sight. Both of them gasped.
"Dean Rathjen...?!" exclaimed Ace.
- - -
"So who's this Vikemon anyway!?" exclaimed Amara, somewhat frightened. She ran back to join Lee and Machinedramon.
"Well, he's an Ultimate!" Machinedramon told them. "That's good enough reason to panic, no?!"
"I'll take care of him!" shouted Emeraldmon, soaring down in his direction.
The shaggy, large and bulky Digimon glanced at her when he saw her coming into range. He opened his arms, about to swat her!
"SUFFOCATION VINE!!!" yelled Emeraldmon, raising her left arm into the air. Huge vines sprouted from the ground, wrapping themselves around Vikemon and immobilizing him! He growled and thrashed in an attempt to get them off of him.
"Fight me fair!" he growled.
"Not likely, you overgrown shag carpet," said Emeraldmon, lowering herself in front of his head.
"ARCTIC BLIZZARD!!!" he bellowed, blasting her with a stream of ice! She was flung backward and landed in the snow! Machinedramon stepped over Lee and Amara and began stomping towards Vikemon, who freed himself from the vines finally. "You not scare Vikemon!!!"
"Well I will! GIGA CANNON!!!"
The attack hit Vikemon, throwing him back. He then detached two spiked clubs from his back and charged at Machinedramon!
"Machinedramon! Look out!" screamed Lee.
"VIKING AXE!!!" he screamed, smashing Machinedramon with both clubs. Machinedramon staggered backwards and fell onto his back.
"He's too powerful in his element!" screamed Emeraldmon. "We need a way to keep him steady!"
"Well it worked before..." said Amara. "Hiya!"
Amara extended her hands, attempting to hold Vikemon still. He suddenly couldn't move his arms anymore and was unable to attack Emeraldmon or Machinedramon with his clubs!
"That did it!" shouted Lee. "And I see the portal!!!"
Lee pointed to their right and there was a portal atop a small pedestal. It was hard to see in the snow, but it was there. Emeraldmon nodded and flew downwards, picking up Kokuwamon. She flew over and snatched up Lee and Amara as well. Amara's telekinetic grip on Vikemon had broke and he began to charge after them!
"Come back here!!!" he bellowed.
"No!!!" shouted Amara back. Emeraldmon flew all of them into the portal and they disappeared. Vikemon was confused and he glanced around, wondering where they went.
"Ugh... Vikemon seeing things..." he groaned before wandering off back into the snow.
- - -
"How did you know we were here?" growled Ace, stepping in front of the dressed up Tori. Rathjen simply sneered in Ace's direction, making both him and Tori uncomfortable. i Great! This guy is one of those nut jobs working for Desiree! If he so much as lays a hand on Tori-- /i
"Oh Ace... you make me sound like some sort of villain with your tone of voice. I'm not. I simply want to help you..."
"Help us do what?"
"Use your partners to their full extent. To rejoin Desiree as part of the Shadow! Tori, this offer is for you and extended to Ace as well..." he told them. "You see, I know all about you two... both of your parents neglect you, you search for other sources to release your emotions."
Ace and Tori remained silent.
"Tori used to try to go to you, Ace, for comfort, but you pushed her away and drove her to the Shadow. Isn't that gratifying to know?"
"I've heard enough of your crap!" yelled Ace, pulling out his D-Volver. "Tori, stand back, I don't want you to get hurt."
"Oh shut up," Tori told him, pulling out her D-Volver and showing it to him. "I might have forgotten to mention this, but my partner is back."
"Oh, well then..." he began, turning his attention back to Rathjen. "You better get out of here, old man. Or we'll sic our partners on you."
"On the contrary..." said Rathjen with a confident tone. "You'll be LUCKY if your partners aren't bits of data scattered in the sky!!!"
"We'll see!" shouted Ace, thrusting his D-Volver forward. "Come out DemiTyrannomon!"
DemiTyrannomon appeared on the park walkway in front of Ace. He looked like he had been sleeping before Ace called him there.
"Huh? Five more minutes mommy..."
"DemiTyrannomon! Blast Rathjen!" ordered Ace. DemiTyrannomon nodded, wondering why he had to shoot a human. He didn't really care though.
"DEMI BLAST!!!" he shouted, sending fire in Rathjen's direction. Rathjen stood there, and it appeared he was going to take a beating.
But apparently not. The fireball blast fizzled out right before it touched the RTC dean. Rathjen then began to swirl with Shadow data, sending a fierce wind in the direction of Ace, Tori, DemiTyrannomon, and Salamon. They all took a few steps back as it began to form into a Digimon.
"This is like what Green did!" exclaimed Tori.
"Yeah... but look how much BIGGER this guy is!" added Ace.
And he was right. Rathjen's new form was big enough to just tower over the trees in the park. He looked like a huge quadruped dinosaur. His head was completely mechanic though and tubes ran back from it, attaching to two long-barreled cannons mounted on his back. Another cannons was mounted on the armor covering his upper chest. He slammed a huge tail on the ground behind him.
"Meet my better half: Cannondramon!!!" bellowed Rathjen/Cannondramon. "The last Digimon you'll ever see! So take a good look!"
"That's the most awesome Digimon I've ever seen..." gasped Ace.
"Hey!" exclaimed DemiTyrannomon.
"Err, except for you, of course."
"I'm betting he's an Ultimate..." guessed Tori. She glanced around at the cars being parked outside of the park where people were trying to get a good look. "We're attracting attention, anyway."
"Good! Then everyone will see that Lee isn't the only one capable of taking down one of these psychos!" shouted Ace. "DemiTyrannomon, let's see some wings!"
"Right! DemiTyrannomon Shinka... DRAGONMON!!! Dragonmon Shinka... METALDRAGONMON!!!"
"Alright! You too, Salamon!" agreed Tori.
"Salamon Shinka... KAZEMON!!! Kazemon Shinka... ZEPHYRMON!!!"
MetalDragonmon stood on the park walkway across from Rathjen, while Zephyrmon floated next to his head. Ace and Tori backed away from them.
"You know Ace, this'll be the first time we've fought together..."
"Yeah, and if we do a good job here! Then it's off to a hotel room!" he shouted.
"Uh... in your dreams."
Rathjen laughed in MetalDragonmon and Zephyrmon's general direction. Both Perfects scowled at him.
"Oh this should be rich..." began the robotic dinosaur. "Hit me with your best shot, data creatures!"
"With pleasure!!! DRAGON MISSILES!!!" bellowed MetalDragonmon, opening his chest plates and launching two missiles at him. The missiles hit him directly in the head, knocking his neck back. Zephyrmon appeared right in front of his exposed chin.
"HURRICANE KICK!!!" she yelled, kicking him right in the head! He fell backwards and looked up to see MetalDragonmon hovering above him now.
"AERIAL INFERNO!!!"
Rathjen was pelted with fire and rolled across the park, knocking trees over and crushing benches as he did. He came to stop and pulled himself back onto his feet.
"Are you having fun?" he asked.
"Oh hell yes!" answered Ace.
"Good... because now it will be that much more shocking..." he began, locking his back cannons into place. "... when I crush you!!! GRENADE STORM!!!"
He launched three grenades from the cannons on his back! MetalDragonmon barely had time to move before he was hit by all three of them! He screamed and collapsed onto the ground, groaning and burnt.
"Grr... PHOTON ORBS!!!" screamed Zephyrmon, launching the two orb bombs at Rathjen! They both exploded on him, but appeared to have no effect whatsoever. Zephyrmon gasped.
"That was fun... let me try! DINO CANNON!!!"
He aimed the much smaller cannon on his chest at Zephyrmon and fired it! The missile exploded on impact with her and sent her screaming to the ground. She groaned and tried to get up, but collapsed with a thud.
"No, Zephyrmon!" cried Tori. "Ace, we just got our asses handed to us!"
"Bwahaha! You thought you were winning, didn't you? Oh how exhilarating a battle that was. Pity it ends so soon..."
Cannondramon began stomping towards the fallen Zephyrmon, who was closest to him. The female Digimon was laying motionless and had no way to defend herself!
"No! He's going to squash her!" screamed Tori. "I can't watch! I don't want to lose here again!"
"MetalDragonmon, do something!!!" yelled Ace, single-mindedly wanting to protect Tori and her partner. He D-Volver began to glow, and they all knew what that meant. "Go to Ultimate!!!"
"MetalDragonmon Shinka..."
MetalTyrannomon turned into a more humanoid warrior form, although he was still all black. His two wings looked smooth, like shields coming out of his back. He still looked somewhat like a dragon, though.
"... WARDRAGONMON!!!"
WarDragonmon leapt in front of Zephyrmon and body-checked Rathjen, knocking him away! Rathjen staggered to remain on all four feet and glanced at WarDragonmon.
"Excellent. An Ultimate will be a much more worthy foe than a Perfect..."
"Awesome! He evolved!" shouted Tori. "And you guys did that just to save my partner! Thank you!"
"Don't sweat it, Tori..." replied Ace, smiling. "With WarDragonmon on our side we can't lose now!"
"Oh you'd like to think that!" yelled Rathjen, threateningly. He aimed his chest cannon at WarDragonmon. "DINO CANNON!!!"
WarDragonmon kicked the missile harmlessly into the air and leapt forward at Rathjen! Rathjen used his long neck to successfully bash WarDragonmon away with his head! He then charged at the woozy WarDragonmon and tackled him! WarDragonmon was sent flying backwards through a tree, but remained in the air.
"You're stronger than I thought," said Rathjen.
"I'm even stronger than that," said WarDragonmon, leaping into the air. "ICE DRAGON CLAW!!!"
He smashed Rathjen with his claw, freezing him on contact. Rathjen was encased in a solid block of ice! Ace and Tori cheered.
"Looks like that's it for him..."
"Not quite!" yelled Rathjen, shattering the ice and startling them all. "You insult me! I am not so easily defeated!"
"You will be!" shouted WarDragonmon. He flew upwards and looked down at Rathjen, then opened his mouth wide. A huge energy bal began to form in front of it and it was getting bigger.
"What the--?!" exclaimed Rathjen.
"Awesome! That's his Terra Inferno!" Ace told Tori. "He'll charge that thing up until it's like twice his size and then blast it down at Rathjen!"
"There's no way he'll survive!" cheered Tori, happily.
The Terra Inferno ball of energy was now the size of WarDragonmon and still pulsating as it grew bigger. Rathjen gasped in terror.
i No! If he launches that thing I'm guaranteed to be destroyed! And my Digimon form is too big to avoid his attack quickly! I'm doomed! ... or am I? /i he thought to himself, getting an idea. He aimed his back cannons at WarDragonmon. "GRENADE STORM!!!"
Rathjen launched three more grenade bombs right into the heart of WarDragonmon's charging attack... and they exploded setting his own Terra Inferno off right in his face!!! WarDragonmon screamed in agony as he shot backwards and smashed right through the cement of the street, knocked clear out of the park!
"No!" screamed Ace. "He's--"
"Finished," said Rathjen, stomping towards Ace and Tori. "Just like you two."
Rathjen slammed his dinosaur foot down onto the ground in front of them, knocking them backwards. They both hit their heads on the pavement and fell unconscious. He grinned, satisfied with his work.
"Excellent. Now I have two prisoners with which to lure the others to me... and then I'll kill them all at once. WarDragonmon's own attack was his undoing! Ahahahaha!!!"
Rathjen turned back into his human form and picked up Ace and Tori. They then disappeared in a portal of Shadow data created by Desiree. Zephyrmon groaned and crawled onto her hands and knees.
"I have to... tell the others..." she groaned. She weakly flew over to where WarDragonmon had crashed and picked up DemiTyrannomon. Policemen began to accost her.
"Freeze, monster!" they screamed. Zephyrmon simply flapped her wings in their direction, knocking them over. She then took off to find help...