The train thundered its way towards Rose Morning Star, and the Legendary Warriors sat inside alongside their Digimon guides. They had gotten lucky. After the battle against Duskmon and the Beast Digimon army, the group retreated to the train station for one final chance to recuperate before the final battle. A Trailmon, one of very few monsters who still dared to roam the Continent of Darkness, arrived by chance, and the group hopped aboard to make their journey to Rose Morning Star a bit shorter. They hadn't seen any Trailmon since first arriving in the Continent of Darkness, and they were more than happy to take this as luck as a sign of potential good fortune to come.
Koji had been sitting in the far corner of the train car ever since first settling down. He had been hoping silently that Koichi would elect to join him, and much to his relief, his brother decided to take a seat at his side. Koji watched Koichi with a careful gaze, not wanting to say anything that could possibly rub the other boy in the wrong way. He could tell just how much Koichi was hurting beneath the surface, and Koji wanted nothing more than to lessen that pain.
"Are you okay?" Koji questioned as his eyes met with Koichi's matching pair. "I know that fighting against Duskmon like that must have been a lot for you." That sure was an understatement. Koji didn't know what else to say about it though, so he let the simple sentence speak for itself.
Koichi nodded in response, and a light smile graced his features. "Don't worry about me," he assured Koji. "I'm going to be alright. It caught me by surprise, but... I'm not going to let him bother me anymore. I was responsible for terrible things while I was under Cherubimon's influence, but I'm not going to let that drag me down for the rest of my life. He exploited my worst emotions and turned me into a monster. I want to show the world that I've changed, and I'm going to fight by your side to defeat him once and for all as proof."
"You don't need to prove to us that you're different from Duskmon," Koji pointed out. "We already know." Koji had known from the moment that Koichi was purified that he was far from being the same monstrous creature that Duskmon had been. Hell, he had even known before then when he saw the panicked eyes of Koichi's hazy outline. He had been aware of such when he heard just how terrified Koichi was beneath Malkakomon's terrifying layered voice.
Koichi rubbed at his eyes, seeming to realize that he wouldn't be able to hide his tears no matter how hard he tried. "Thank you," he murmured, choking the words out around the lump that had appeared in his throat. Despite his attempts to hold back the torrent of emotions, tears began to stream down his cheeks, but Koichi didn't bother to wipe them away.
Koji surprised even himself with what he did in the moment that followed. He closed the distance between himself and his brother by throwing his arms around Koichi's body, pulling him into a tight embrace. Koichi was still at first, shocked into being a statue by Koji's sudden forward behavior. Even so, it didn't take long for Koichi to relax into the hug, and he returned it a moment later. Koichi's head rested gently against Koji's shoulder, and the reverse was true as well.
Koji had never been a particularly affectionate person. He suspected that he would have been different if he had the influence of a mother in his life rather than only living with his father, but because Kousei was the only one around throughout his childhood, Koji had no way of testing his theory. He had detested physical contact under most circumstances because it reminded him in a twisted way of what he didn't have. He lacked the love of a family, and the only connection that he was familiar involved burning enmity and endless bitterness.
But none of that mattered as he sat on the train in another world beside his brother. Kousei was the last person on his mind, and Koji was more than happy to keep it that way. All that he cared about was the fact that he could leave his grief in the past. He still had a bone to pick with Kousei, to put it simply, but he was willing to set it aside for a short while. Koichi was more important than his rage towards Kousei ever could have been.
"Thank you," Koji whispered to Koichi gently. He didn't elaborate on what he was thanking Koichi for mostly because he wasn't entirely sure himself. There were a dozen solutions that would work, so he simply allowed Koichi to put the pieces together for himself and find the answer that he liked best.
Deep down, the reason for the sudden words involved the melting of a darkened heart. Years of living in darkness to combat the horrors of loneliness had left Koji hardened, but coming to the Digital World had finally allowed him to embrace the light. Even if Koji was the Warrior of Light, his brother had brought hope to his life, acting as the sun in his own special way. The rest of the Legendary Warriors were much the same, and Koji knew that he would never forget their contribution to his life. His hate of the world was finally beginning to dull, replaced instead by a passionate love for his friends.
No.
His family.
Koichi nodded in response to Koji's words. "Thank you," he echoed. The silence closed around the brothers as they held one another tightly. The world seemed to disappear around them, and all that mattered for that fleeting moment was the fact that they were together. Light and Darkness had come to find unity at long last, and it was beautiful in a splendid way nothing else could ever hope to be.
Bokomon, Neemon, and Patamon had been staring out the window ever since the Trailmon started moving. The Continent of Darkness rolled on around them, and they watched as the blank scenery turned to a blur on all sides. Patamon was perched on Neemon's head, and Bokomon was holding the book from Seraphimon tightly against his chest.
Bokomon stole a brief glance up at Patamon, and a fond smile appeared on his face. He could tell that Neemon was looking more up at the young orange Digimon than he appeared on the surface, and Bokomon was sure that they were thinking of something similar. Bokomon knew that he would never forget the thoughts that had come to cross his mind when he looked at Patamon.
They were making history. All three of the monsters were involved in the creation of a new future at the hands of the Legendary Warriors. They were saving innocent creatures from the reach of Cherubimon, and they were continuing to uphold the legacy left behind by Seraphimon's memory. Ophanimon was counting on them, and Bokomon was more than happy to do this for her.
But was it really just for Ophanimon? Bokomon knew that such had been the case in the beginning, but times had shifted since then, and he was positive that this journey was as much for Bokomon himself as it was for the rest of the Digital World. The war had left his life in a state of upheaval, and the damage was irreparable. Even so, he had managed to find a place where he could be happy among the wreckage.
Patamon truly was the embodiment of their own willpower. In the aftermath of Evergreen Dawn, Seraphimon died, and all that was left behind was an egg. Bokomon had been too afraid to tell the humans in the party that Seraphimon wasn't going to remember them when the egg finally hatched. He had been dreading the point where Seraphimon was reborn and didn't remember all that he had done for the Legendary Warriors. He hated to imagine his role model, his idol, as not even remembering his face.
But Bokomon didn't mind it as much anymore. He knew that Patamon was happy, and he was as well. His memories of Seraphimon would always remain in his mind regardless of if the Celestial Digimon was in his life or not. Bokomon wasn't going to allow his grief to get the better of him. Instead, he was simply going to keep pressing onwards in the name of the history that he was working to create. He would continue for the sake of those who had perished in the war alongside Seraphimon. He was going to bring the suffering to an end because of how much he cared.
As the Continent of Darkness rolled by, there was only sensation inside of Bokomon: pride. He knew that Neemon and Patamon felt the same way, so he chose not to say anything. There was no need to discuss the journey when words were ultimately ineffective when compared to the magnitude of their emotions regarding the quest.
They had come a long way, and Bokomon wouldn't have had it any other way.
Mayumi counted things.
Her attention span had been short from the beginning, but when she needed to ground herself against the tempest living in her mind, she started counting. Math was difficult to her, but counting one by one was simple. She counted her steps in clusters of five before sealing them away in the back of her head. She counted the rocks that blurred past the train. She counted the times that she tapped her knee using her pointer finger.
But most of all, Mayumi counted people.
She didn't know how many times she had counted the members of the group since first arriving in the Digital World, but she was sure that the number was incredibly high. At first, the number had been only two, one for her and one for Haroi. However, the count had done a sudden leap when the pair met up with the rest of the purified Legendary Warriors. Two had jumped up to eleven and an egg. Eleven grew to twelve, and the number kept climbing until they arrived at where they were at present.
There were fifteen living creatures in the train, and Mayumi kept on counting them just to make sure that they were all still there. She had seen people come and go throughout her life, such as when her family of three shrunk to two before going up to four. Her friends had appeared and subsequently vanished when she dissatisfied them, and her perpetual habit of counting continued to mystify those she encountered.
And yet, even after all this time, the number that continued to rise sat steadily in her mind. Nobody had left. The count only grew, never diminishing with the passage of time. Mayumi, who had grown so used to counting backwards, suddenly forgot how, too wrapped up in the jubilation that came with companionship to bother remembering.
Haroi was aware of her habits, and he could always tell when she was counting people. Her lips always began to move in the silence, miming the words of rising and falling numbers. He usually gave her a light quirk of a grin, not caring if she noticed him or not. It was a language of love between them, a silent back and forth that came with the shift of counting.
It was because of Haroi's quiet awareness that he wasn't surprised when Mayumi suddenly spoke. "Fifteen," Mayumi said into the quiet. The rest of the train was alive with other activity, such as conversations permeating the air around the other clusters, but their corner of the car was silent until she spoke.
Haroi glanced over at Mayumi when he heard her speak, and another smile spread across his face, the edges of his lips rising to match the single word. "Yeah," he affirmed. "Fifteen."
Mayumi had never made it up to double digits before. It was foreign territory to her in this game of counting, this game of giving and taking. She had dreamed of getting close enough to touch something so splendid, but it always managed to evade her grasp. However, that was not the case anymore. There were fifteen of them, and Mayumi didn't think that the number was going to be falling anytime soon.
When Mayumi began to count the rocks that flew past the train, she decided to divide them into clusters of fifteen rather than her typical five. When she hit her quota, she'd grin just a little bit wider before starting over again.
Fifteen friends we've made. Fifteen members of a family. Fifteen souls changing the world. Fifteen, fifteen, fifteen.
Chihiro knew how much life could change in a short span of time. They had always been aware of the power that every moment held, and they understood that anything could go wrong or right within just a few seconds. It took only a moment to be hurt, healed, or happy.
Cherubimon's influence had sunk in within just a few seconds. As soon as Chihiro stepped off the Trailmon into the Digital World, they heard his voice ringing in their ears, and their body began to change shape. Becoming Aeoelmon for the first time had only taken an instant, and the downward spiral that followed took place all because of that moment.
Chihiro was a stranger to consistency, always living on the edge of agony and terror. Their parents had never given them the chance to enjoy themselves that way, and they grew used to the truth that their chances of truly enjoying security were slim. Even after they ran from home, abandoning the people who had ruthlessly manipulated them out of a silent sense of malice, Chihiro continued to feel as if they weren't allowed to be happy. Happiness was a distant joy that they weren't sure they would ever have the chance to fully embrace.
Everything had changed after they were purified. The process was slow, but they began to open up to the rest of the team. Even if Chihiro didn't explain the depth of their emotions, they allowed their guard to slip, and they showed weakness to those outside of the Kanbara family for the first time in over a decade.
The rest of the Fallen Warriors slowly joined the team, and Chihiro couldn't help but notice just how different they were to their corrupted counterparts. When their jagged emotions and the beasts within were finally laid to rest, the former Warriors of Cherubimon showed themselves to be friends to all the same way the Risen Warriors had. Humanity blossomed inside the purified Warriors, creating a web of young fighters who held to each other not out of desperation or necessity, but care and familiarity. The faraway sensation of love suddenly didn't feel as daunting or uncomfortable to Chihiro as it once had.
"Times sure have changed, huh?" Chihiro found themselves muttering without any specification of their actions. A thousand things had evolved compared to how the group had come to know the Digital World, and each other, in the beginning. At first, Chihiro, Yumiko, Hinoka, and Saki had all been working for the enemy alongside Koichi. The former quartet sat together on the train, and Chihiro found themselves feeling oddly at home.
Their relationship with Saki was complicated in a way they didn't exactly know how to explain. When Chihiro was Aeoelmon, they had endured far more than they would have liked under the influence of Lyramon. The Warrior of Steel was placed as the authority figure among the Fallen Warriors, and Aeoelmon had hated it. Chihiro had always felt uncomfortable with people in power who weren't completely transparent with their motives. It reminded them a terrifyingly large amount of their parents, and Chihiro wanted to leave them in the past as soon as possible. Lyramon had fallen into the category due to their distant, unreadable nature, and it bothered Aeoelmon more than they could ever hope to describe.
And yet, despite their past issues with Lyramon, Chihiro didn't mind Saki quite as much. Perhaps it was because they realized that Saki was just like them at the end of the day. They were both mere children who had been used as pawns in Cherubimon's grand war game, and they had since escaped his grasp. Cherubimon's selective manipulation of Aeoelmon's memories had left them bitter and angry at the world, and Lyramon was the perfect target for their animosity. It left Aeoelmon as an unpredictable wild card, and that was easier to deal with than actually giving them a motive to fight in Cherubimon's convoluted chess scheme.
When Chihiro looked over at Saki, they didn't see the outline of the one that they had hated so much in the past. Instead, they simply saw another person their age, someone who had hopes, dreams, and struggles just like they did. It was a humbling experience as far as Chihiro was concerned, and they were glad to have the chance to look at Saki in such a way after hating them for so long.
In a stroke of coincidence, Saki was the one who first responded to Chihiro's words. "Yeah, I suppose so," they remarked, their voice a soft mutter. Their gaze was just as distant and impossible to read as it always was, but Chihiro didn't mind it anywhere near as much as they had once thought they would.
"I'm happy here," Hinoka concluded suddenly. Her eyes were surprisingly honest given how fearful she had once been. As Oceaniamon, she was a shell of her true self, too terrified to give anyone the chance to get close. She was fighting solely because she was scared of Cherubimon, and it was clear that she had been weighed down by burdens far larger than anyone deserved to bear. The purification process had clearly changed her, and she seemed so open even after all that she had been through.
"You're not the only one," Yumiko confessed, a light smile gracing her features. She was the same as Hinoka, once so closed away from the world out of her own terror and radiant sense of justice. Her sudden change of attitude had once caught Chihiro by surprise as he saw just how vulnerable she was. Fioremon had fought because she feared what would happen if she stepped out of line the same way that Oceaniamon did. However, she seemed perfectly truthful as she sat there in the train, looking at her former allies from when she was on the side of the enemy with pure grace and elegance.
As Chihiro looked at the rest of the group, they couldn't help but think about how much they had changed in the respect of personality. All of them had grown stronger because they allowed themselves to be vulnerable. Cherubimon had told them that their own emotions were weakness, and yet, there the quartet was, fighting for what they believed to be right thanks to their powerful moral compasses.
Chihiro had always detested the idea of weakness, but they were starting to believe that perhaps it wasn't as awful as they had once assumed. Chihiro didn't want to be seen as weak or an easy target, believing that if they put up a mask of endless strength, nobody would dare to hurt them. It hadn't saved Chihiro from the abuse of their parents, but they put up the shield anyways, hoping it would block out the issues that the rest of the world had the potential to bring them.
Thanks to the rest of the group though, Chihiro realized just how incredible being vulnerable was. In allowing themselves to be open with their emotions, to show the weaknesses they regularly hid, they had become stronger. All of them had. Yumiko had overcome her sense of internalized fragility, learning to take a stand for herself rather than simply following the directions of those around her. Hinoka embraced her issues rather than blocking them out, allowing herself to understand that she was far from being weak simply because she grieved for lost time. Saki seemed less guarded than before as well. The change was subtle, but Chihiro could see the way that their lips perked up a bit more at the corners than they had before.
Chihiro took a deep breath before turning their attention to the outside of the train car. They loved this far more than they were willing to admit at first. Chihiro had once thought that they were destined to spend the rest of their life alone, constantly in a state of suffering due to a past that they couldn't escape. They had only opened up to a select few people, and Takuya was the most notable of the bunch. However, the trip to the Digital World had changed all of that, and Chihiro wouldn't have had it any other way.
They turned their attention briefly down to the palms of their hands. Chihiro closed their eyes for a moment, and they let out a gentle sigh. Times had changed, but they weren't complaining in the slightest. In fact, they believed that their life had only gotten better thanks to their adventures in another world. Strength or weakness, something that had once worried Chihiro to the point of obsession, didn't matter anymore. All that they cared about was the honest fact that they were no longer alone, and they never would be again.
Once upon a time, four teenagers boarded a train to the Digital World.
Junpei could still remember the way that he, Takuya, Tomoki, and Izumi had poised themselves throughout the space. They had all been silent for a few agonizing minutes, unsure of how to break through the heavy veil of quiet that had settled upon them. When they finally introduced themselves, they remained distant, not yet certain of how to close the metaphorical and physical distance between them. It was the start of something beautiful, but none of them were yet aware of it.
However, such a truth was clear as could be as Junpei sat in the train. He was sitting on the far left of the bench that he was sharing with Izumi, Takuya, and Tomoki. He glanced down at the other three with a small smile of fondness on his face. When he first boarded the train, he never imagined that this would be the outcome, and he wasn't talking about the world of monsters, magic, and mystery.
Junpei had never been given the privilege of friendship before. He was used to spending his days alone, watching as others enjoyed themselves alongside their companions. He had grown bitter and enraged at the rest of the world, not understanding what he had done to deserve such isolation. He constantly vied for the attention of others, his comprehension of friendship distorted when he realized that nobody wanted to spend time with him. It was an unfortunate conclusion for him to come to, and it caused him to slip into a downward spiral of incredible magnitude and tragedy.
The anger was still familiar to him, but he hadn't experienced it in quite some time. Junpei was happy with the rest of the team, and he didn't think that he would be without them ever again. Even if they were apart, Junpei would still remember the sensation that came with camaraderie and companionship. They cared about him, and he felt the same way in return. Junpei's bitter fury towards the world had begun to fade as soon as he realized that he didn't need to stand for the terrible way that he had been treated in the past. There were people who loved him despite all of his evens, odds, and jagged flaws, and it was more incredible than he had ever imagined.
The Digital World was an incredible place, but it had brought Junpei more than simply war and transformation. The new universe had given birth to love and care that he couldn't even begin to describe. Izumi had been the first to reach out to Junpei, but she was not the only one that he cared for. The rest of the team was his family as well, and he wanted them to remain in his life forever. They had done more for him than he could ever possibly hope to explain. He was a bumbling mess emotionally, lacking in intelligence when it came to describing the depth of his feelings, but he still hoped that the rest of the group could understand his care even without words.
In fact, he was sure that they understood. When he had first traveled to the Digital World with Takuya, Tomoki, and Izumi, they had all sat on their benches in the train car, never daring to get much closer to one another than they had to. However, that had changed, and they were sharing a space on the way to Rose Morning Star. The rest of the car was alive with quiet activity from the rest of their team. The Legendary Warriors were united, and the group had tripled in size since its original incarnation. The space between them had shrunk, and there were far more people in the area than Junpei ever would have imagined. He had grown used to the idea that he would be alone forever, and the sudden comfort that such was not true meant a lot to him.
Junpei felt something poking at his hand, and he looked down to see Izumi's fingers attempting to slide into his. He hesitated at first before accepting her grasp, a light smile appearing on his face. He looked over and saw that Izumi was holding Takuya's hand as well. Tomoki was gripping Takuya's hand at the end of the row. None of them were looking down at the places where their hands met, instead simply choosing to allow the quiet to say everything they were thinking.
Junpei shifted his gaze away from his hand after his fingers were wrapped around Izumi's knuckles. He watched the window on the opposite side of the car, staring as the Continent of Darkness passed them by. They were getting closer to Rose Morning Star, and Junpei could tell. He could see the gentle glow of pink light out of his peripheral vision, and he swallowed nervously at the sight of it. Defeating Cherubimon wasn't going to be easy in the slightest.
Still, something told him that they would be able to handle it. Cherubimon was going to be their most difficult foe to defeat yet, but they had come incredibly far. Between first discovering their Spirits and controlling their Beast Spirits and uncovering their Hybrid forms, they had grown stronger than they ever could have imagined. If Cherubimon was going to be a challenge, Junpei was sure that they would be able to face him.
Suddenly, the Trailmon began slowly easing to a stop, and Junpei took in another heavy breath. This was it. They must have gotten closer to Rose Morning Star while he was lost in thought. He rose to his feet carefully, and the rest of the group did the same, understanding what the slowing of the Trailmon meant. Izumi hesitantly released his hand, but he cherished the warmth that she had brought long after they had let go of the physical contact.
The Legendary Warriors and their guides slowly made their way out of the train, and Junpei heard the Trailmon in question speak. "This is as far as I can take you," the Trailmon declared. "Be careful in there."
"Thank you for everything," Izumi told the Trailmon with a smile and a bow of her head, a simple gesture that she had been using since the very beginning. However, this time, Izumi seemed to be filled with integrity rather than simply putting up the illusion of stability. There was a dimension of reality to her actions that Junpei admired far more than he would ever admit aloud.
The Trailmon grunted in response, clearly unwilling to vocalize his concern for the Legendary Warriors, before starting to roll his way back from the area. Junpei and the rest of the group watched as the outline of the Trailmon disappeared on the horizon, leaving them alone in the vast emptiness of the Continent of Darkness.
Junpei hadn't turned around to face Rose Morning Star itself, but he could still see the ominous glow of pink out of the corner of his vision. He knew that he was going to have to brace himself for what was to come, so he focused on the lingering sensation of calmness and peace that remained on his palm from the place where he and Izumi had held hands. He took in one final careful breath before turning around.
Rose Morning Star was a massive building, but Junpei barely even noticed it at first. The most notable fact about the space was the outline of illumination that pierced the sky above it. Deep hues of pink created the outline of a rose. It looked like an aurora, and it stood out as the only source of notable light in the dreary Continent of Darkness. It was a beacon in more ways than one, and Junpei found himself admiring the sight even though he was fully aware of the twisted evils that lived just below.
The palace just below the light was made of gray stone tinted gently with purple. It had countless spires, and everything about the building was jagged and seemed almost broken, a clear contrast from the beauty of Evergreen Dawn that Junpei had seen before. The entrance was hidden beneath a shaded archway, beckoning for the Legendary Warriors to come closer. Junpei could feel the darkness that lived inside before he even took a step towards Rose Morning Star. He knew without a doubt that Cherubimon was there. This truly was the end of their journey.
Junpei gave a glance to either side, and he saw that the rest of the Legendary Warriors were staring at Rose Morning Star with the same determination that he was. Their hands drifted to their D-Tectors silently, a show of ambition that could never be denied.
Takuya reached up to his goggles, and he pulled them down over his eyes. "Let's do this," he murmured before his finger collided easily with the activation button of his D-Tector. Data enveloped his fingers, and he was coated in Fractal Code soon afterwards.
The rest of the group followed suit, leaving Bokomon, Neemon, and Patamon to watch them in silence. As the illumination fully faded, Thundramon was left in the place of Junpei, and he looked out over the rest of the Legendary Warriors. They were all just as prepared for this as he was, and he could feel the anticipation buzzing in the air despite the silence.
Vritramon, Zephyrmon, Cygnusmon, and Calanthemon were the first ones to take to the sky. Daipenmon gripped tightly to his axe, and Beowolfmon poised his blade for the battle at hand. Onyxmon stood at the rear of the group to their massive size, and Cybelemon was at their size. Sheyumon stood a few feet away from Thundramon. Rhihimon and Ceruleamon allowed themselves to fly above the ground soon afterwards, both of them holding tightly to their weapons.
Bokomon, Neemon, and Patamon all moved over to Onyxmon before scurrying up their back. As soon as they were in position, Onyxmon closed their eyes. They were waiting for the first step to be taken, and Thundramon knew exactly who was going to take it.
Sure enough, Vritramon started diving through the air a moment later, his hands above his head as he started to navigate his way towards Rose Morning Star. The reaction from the rest of the group was instantaneous, and they all trailed after him towards the giant palace. They had been fighting for so long to reach this point, and at long last, the end of the war was in sight. Their journey was reaching its conclusion, and peace was bound to come with it.
Cherubimon could sense their arrival.
As one of the Celestial Three, Cherubimon had heightened senses when it came to the stability of the Digital World. His abilities to sense the Legendary Warriors had come to him when he first turned his back on Seraphimon and Ophanimon, but after spending so much time with that power, he couldn't imagine his life without it. He needed it in the name of the war. Without his increase in power, he wasn't going to be able to fully lay siege to the Digital World.
Rose Morning Star was filled to the brim with Beast Digimon from Cherubimon's army. They hadn't done much since the arrival of the Fallen Warriors, but since all five of them had been removed from the equation, that left Cherubimon's guard to take center stage once again. He glanced out over them all, understanding the bloodlust that waited just beneath the surface. As soon as they were given the chance to lash out, they were going to assert their full strength, and the Legendary Warriors weren't going to stand a chance.
Then again, Cherubimon had been sure that his enemies wouldn't be able to defeat his armies led by Duskmon. He had been confident that none of his Fallen Warriors would fall, but they still did. Time and time again, the Legendary Warriors had somehow managed to come out on top, and Cherubimon wasn't going to tolerate another failure. He had to get rid of them in one fell swoop, and he knew that there was only way for him to accomplish something of that magnitude.
The Beast Digimon all watched Cherubimon with eager eyes, ready to listen to his every command as soon as they were spoken. They were rattling underneath the image of flesh, and they were waiting for the chance to pounce when the order was given. None of them would be holding back, and Cherubimon was sure of it.
However, he didn't need them anymore. Cherubimon himself was the only one who he could rely on. Everyone else only disappointed him. Seraphimon and Ophanimon had let him down when they refused to allow him to establish his own sense of peace and justice in the Digital World. The Fallen Warriors had let him down when they fell to the fighters that were chosen by the remaining Spirits of the Legendary Warriors. His own soldiers had let him down when they were unable to do any damage to the enemies that he had come to despise so much. If he wanted something to be done, he would have to do it himself.
Cherubimon's lips twisted into a cruel grin, and he raised one arm. All it took was a single sweeping motion for nearly half of the Digimon inside of Rose Morning Star to be defeated. Screams rang out as Fractal Code spiraled into the skies. The remaining Digimon attempted to make a hasty retreat, but none of them were fast enough, and when Cherubimon slashed with his other arm, the room was left empty. Cherubimon let a cackle free as he spread his arms wide. Data began to flow into his body as the Fractal Code of the his army joined with his flesh.
Cherubimon began to grow as the data was fully absorbed. He was forced to hunch over as he became too large for the room to contain. Even after that, he continued to grow, and the ceiling began to cave in on itself. Rose Morning Star began to tremble, and there was nothing that could even hope to stabilize it.
When the transformation was completed, Cherubimon was larger than the building once had been. His wild laughter rang into the darkened sky for miles, but he didn't care in the slightest. All that mattered to him was the victory that he knew was coming soon. The Legendary Warriors weren't going to stand a chance against him. If he wanted something done, he was going to have to do it himself, and he wasn't going to be holding back.
The Legendary Warriors hadn't been in Rose Morning Star for very long when the ground began to shake. Vritramon let out a gasp and frantically looked around for the source of the trembling. He was cut off by a sharp cry from Onyxmon calling for all of the Legendary Warriors to come close around them. Vritramon complied silently, unsure of what else he would be able to do. His wing graced Zephyrmon's arm, but he didn't look over to see how she was doing, too distracted with finding the cause behind the sudden earthquake.
A shield of purple energy suddenly appeared over his head, and Vritramon looked over his shoulder to see Onyxmon's eyes glowing violet. Their wings were raised above their body as well, and it became clear as could be that they were the one responsible for the barricade. The ceiling was beginning to give in, and the rocks from above slammed ineffectively against the barrier. Vritramon instinctively flinched when a particularly large chunk of debris flew in his direction even though he knew that there was no way for it to get to him through Onyxmon's shield of power.
To Vritramon, the short moment where the ground shook stretched on for an eternity, and he didn't know if he would ever be able to banish the sound of crumbling stone from his mind after such an event. It reminded him an uncomfortable amount of what had happened back at Evergreen Dawn, but he wasn't going to admit that aloud. There was too much for him to focus on to give an event of the past much thought.
It wasn't until the shadowed sky came into view that Vritramon realized what had happened. He looked up and saw the outline of Cherubimon standing above him and the rest of the Legendary Warriors. He was facing away from them, but a moment later, he swiveled around slowly, a twisted grin on his lips.
"What happened to him?!" Zephyrmon suddenly yelped as the barrier fell away. "He's so much larger than he was before!" Her body went tense at the sight of him, and Vritramon couldn't help but think about how much sharper her claws seemed all of a sudden.
"He's gathered more power," Onyxmon murmured. "If a particularly powerful Digimon is defeated, the one responsible can absorb their energy and grow stronger in the process. The memory data strengthens them. If he took in a large amount of data all at once, his power levels would skyrocket. I think that we can all put the pieces together regarding what he just did."
Vritramon held back another comment involving Evergreen Dawn as they realized that Seraphimon's power was likely one cause of Lyramon's prolonged strength when they were on the side of the energy. They had taken in his memory data, and it had made them far more powerful than they were before. If Lyramon had been terrifying to deal with then, he could only imagine how much scarier Cherubimon was going to be after absorbing far more energy than Seraphimon ever had.
"We can't hold back now," Beowolfmon declared, and a white aura began to dance across the surface of his armor. "We came here to defeat him, and we aren't going to leave until after he's been finished off. The suffering that he has visited upon the Digital World will be tolerated no longer. Come on, everyone!"
Vritramon nodded in response. He knew that Beowolfmon was right, and the sooner that they could defeat Cherubimon, the better. They had incredible strength on their side, and if they fought hard enough, they would be able to defeat him. There were no other options than for the Legendary Warriors to charge into battle and end the war once and for all.
Vritramon allowed himself to fly higher into the air as fire began to spark between his fingertips. If it was a fight Cherubimon wanted, it was a fight he was going to get. The Legendary Warriors weren't going to let him get away with his sins of the past. They were standing at the apex of fate, and they wouldn't be relenting until after the battle had been won.
Ophanimon knew that something was wrong the instant that the palace began to shake. She had been sitting on the floor of her cage of light, bitterly thinking about how cruel it was for Cherubimon to continue using her primary element to keep her sealed away from the rest of the world. Still, there was little she could do about it, so she simply allowed time to pass around her as she fell into a void of silence.
The quaking of the ground snapped her out of her trance, and Ophanimon had been on her feet in the blink of an eye. She held tightly to her golden spear as she rose to her full height, and she continued to examine her surroundings in an attempt to remain logical against the terrifying force of the trembling that surrounded her.
It wasn't long before the ceiling began to fall down in chunks. Ophanimon threw her spear out to her right to keep from being hit by a rock cascading from above. The fragments were sent flying every which way, and another chunk of the castle fell directly behind her. The force sent Ophanimon stumbling forward a step, but when she turned around, shock spread across her expression.
The rock had completely destroyed a chunk of the bars of her cage. The power of light that Cherubimon had forcefully harnessed to trap her meant little when placed before the dissipation of Rose Morning Star. There was a clear hole for her to travel through. After spending weeks upon weeks waiting in the quiet of the star cage, she had her chance to escape.
Ophanimon didn't hesitate after she saw the gap in the bars. The rest of the cage flickered out of existence as soon as she flew free, and the room of light seemed to grow dimmer as soon as they disappeared. Ophanimon allowed a relieved smile to paint her lips for a brief moment, but she knew that she couldn't be caught up in the adrenaline rush that came with her salvation. Something must have happened to cause the sudden earthquake, and Ophanimon had no doubt that whatever was responsible was far from being good. She would simply have to go and investigate.
Ophanimon allowed her golden wings to take her from the room, but she let out a hiss of pain as she made her way through the rest of the crumbling palace. She stopped for a few fleeting seconds before pressing herself onward once again. She had used more energy than she thought to grant a blessing of power to her three Legendary Warriors, and she didn't know how much strength she had left. Her prolonged imprisonment had left her weakened, and then she had pushed herself too far on top of that.
Still, she couldn't allow her weakness to get the better of her. Ophanimon had a chance to get away from Rose Morning Star, and she had to take it. She didn't know what Cherubimon had done to cause such sudden destruction, but she was going to find out. She wove between pieces of falling debris despite the exhaustion that was slowly creeping up on her. Her eyes were growing heavy from behind her helmet, but she didn't give them the chance to close. She couldn't give up. The end of her captivity was finally in view, and she fully intended to embrace it fully.
Onyxmon knew that they were going to need more power to defeat Cherubimon.
In all honesty, they had been aware of such long before they saw the Celestial Digimon grow to such an impressive size. They knew how strong Cherubimon was, and Onyxmon was going to do whatever they had to in order to defeat him. They had made a vow to themselves and others that Cherubimon would fall that day, and they had no plans on going back on such a promise when the conclusion of their journey was so close.
The ultimate twist of cruel fate rested inside of Onyxmon, Ceruleamon, and Rhihimon. They had been granted the power of Hybrid evolution, and they were going to use it against the one who had given them such strength. Cherubimon was going to see that he had made a mistake of hubris and folly in granting them his blessing to reach the Hybrid level. The other two had already achieved such power, and Onyxmon knew that they had to follow suit. All it was going to take was determination and ambition, and Onyxmon had more than enough of both.
Onyxmon closed their eyes, and they allowed the familiar sensation of Spirit Evolution to overcome them. They had possessed this ability for quite some time; all they needed to do was utilize it, and they knew that the time had come. Blue and purple melted together in a beautiful glow, completely masking them from sight.
The first and most notable change involved their shape. They shrunk down to be the same size as Lyramon once had been, but their draconic wings from their time as Onyxmon remained attached to their back. The silver scales from their Beast Spirit form created gauntlets on both hands to guard their lower arms from attack. A matching set of scales crawled up their legs to form boots with purple segments at the toe.
Their helmet from their time as Lyramon slipped over their head easily. Red braids framed their face while the rest of their hair fell into the same long pattern of being mostly free with a small amount braided at the edge. Their armor from their Human Spirit form slid into view soon afterwards, covering up the strong bulk of their body effortlessly. The Hybrid form, however, gained a transparent purple cape that flowed behind them majestically.
The final shift to take place involved the lower half of their body. Their legs were covered in bold purple fabric, but rather than having segments of fabric in front of and behind their thighs, dragon scale material appeared. A rapier manifested in their right hand, and they gripped it tightly as the Fractal Code around them finally began to disappear. The transformation was complete moments later.
"Aerismon!"
The Hybrid Warrior of Steel came into view fully soon afterwards, and Aerismon smirked to themselves when the rest of the group looked over at them in surprise. They could tell that the rest of the Legendary Warriors were staring, but they didn't care in the slightest. Instead, they turned their full attention to where Cherubimon was waiting for them.
"We can't lose now," Aerismon said simply, doing their best to get the rest of the group on track once again. "Cherubimon won't be holding back, so we can't either. Come on. We have to be ready in case something else happens."
There was minimal hesitation after Aerismon spoke. The flying Warriors took to the skies in full and flew as far away from the pile of rubble below as possible. Those who lacked the power to fly began to climb up so that they were standing on the uneven debris from the collapsed castle. The air was still thick and heavy, and Aerismon was sure that they could have slashed at the tension with their rapier. Still, they didn't bother giving too much thought to it, knowing that there were far more important matters at hand.
Aerismon raised their blade as it began to glow with a gentle purple energy. They were preparing to unleash a set of violet lasers in Cherubimon's direction as soon as they had the chance. Around them, the other Legendary Warriors poised themselves for the battle ahead as well, understanding that they had no choice but to succeed. Attacks were prepared for fire, and the determination shared by the Legendary Warriors was almost enough to be grasped.
"Stop!"
Aerismon was on the verge of unleashing the strike when a voice rang through the air, and they were forced to halt. They recognized the voice, but they were sure that it didn't come from Cherubimon. It was far too high in pitch to belong to him. The words at a melodic quality to them that Aerismon didn't quite know how to describe until they realized who it was that had been responsible for the cry.
There was a woman poised in the air. She was wearing turquoise armor highlighted with gold that covered her chest and upper legs. There were plates of metal on either shoulder with large spikes that stuck out to the side. White fabric flowed from the bottom of her armor to cover up part of her gold and turquoise shoes. She wore turquoise gauntlets that possessed wing patterns. Six golden wings fanned out behind the woman in a show of elegance.
Aerismon shifted their attention to the woman's face, seeing that it was halfway covered by a turquoise mask, seamlessly concealing her eyes from view. Golden wings protruded from the sides of her helmet to match the aesthetic of the rest of her armor. A turquoise shield lined in gold rested on one arm, and a golden pattern of an animal could be seen on its surface. Her other hand held a golden spear with a ring around the spot that she held to. Small wings stuck out from the ring in question. Feathers of gold fell around her lower half, and white feathers were layered just beneath them.
As soon as Aerismon saw the woman, they realized just who she was. Aerismon had crossed path with the woman in question quite a few times in the past during their time working as a Fallen Warrior. Granted, their time together had been minimal, but it was more than enough for the motif of turquoise and gold to stick out in their mind forever.
Ophanimon.
"Lady Ophanimon!" Bokomon and Neemon yelped in sync, earning them the eyes of the rest of the group. The Legendary Warriors seemed just as surprised as Bokomon and Neemon were. After all, for the most part, none of them had seen Ophanimon before, and those who had witnessed her endless grace hadn't expected her to appear so suddenly.
The woman looked down to the Legendary Warriors, and her red hair swished at the motion. Her expression was painted with shock as she saw the Legendary Warriors, but she refused to comment on their arrival. Instead, she looked up to Cherubimon as she had regained her composure. "Cherubimon, please, don't do this!" she cried out.
Aerismon's mind rushed with surprise as they tried to rationalize how Ophanimon had broken free. They kicked themselves a moment later for not realizing that the crumbling of Rose Morning Star had undoubtedly been responsible. It seemed so obvious in hindsight. Cherubimon had been too reckless, and it gave her the perfect chance to escape and leave behind the place that she had been imprisoned in for so long.
Cherubimon snarled at the sight of Ophanimon, and he reached one hand out towards her. "Ophanimon, what are you doing here?" he questioned. His voice was filled with rage, but he was still attempting to keep it hidden. He was doing a poor job, and in a way, that was even more terrifying than him simply yelling angrily at the Legendary Warriors.
Ophanimon's grip on her spear tightened. "I don't want you to fight against them," she explained firmly. "It will only bring all of us further grief. We have suffered immensely as a result of the war, but there is still time for you to make amends. Please, step away from the battlefield. Call off your troops. Allow for peace to return to the Digital World."
Cherubimon glared down at her before firmly shaking his head. "You and Seraphimon betrayed me. The Human Digimon turned their backs on my Beast brethren, and the only suitable punishment for such is death. The Digital World's destruction is merely a side effect. I care not for what happens to it. As long as my goal is achieved, nothing matters," he told Ophanimon.
The other Celestial Digimon looked up at him with a bitter frown on her features. "You've changed," she commented simply. "Once upon a time, we worked together with Seraphimon to defend the Digital World, and all of the Digimon living under our shared rule were happy... But you turned away from us. You began to grow darker, and... We could tell that something was wrong. I only met with Seraphimon without you because I was concerned for your safety!"
"Your concerns mean little to me now!" Cherubimon roared. "You betrayed me, and I detest you both for it! I should have killed you when I had the chance, but I thought that you would change your heart to believe in my cause! If you will continue to oppose me, I will have no choice but to end your pathetic life right here and now!"
Cherubimon raised one hand above his head, and a sphere of dark energy appeared in his palm. He threw it towards Ophanimon with as much force as he could muster, but she managed to evade it by swooping out of the way at the last moment. Instead, the attack struck a pile of debris from Rose Morning Star below her. The rocks were sent flying in every direction. Aerismon threw up another shield to keep the Legendary Warriors from sustaining damage as a result of the attack before turning their attention back to Cherubimon.
"Please... Help me to defeat him!" Ophanimon declared, looking over to the Legendary Warriors. "Do what you are destined to do, and save the Digital World from his corrupted tyranny!"
There was no hesitation when the Legendary Warriors began to strike back at Cherubimon. Aerismon allowed their sword to be consumed by the glow of purple light once again, and they stabbed at the air before lasers burst forth from the tip of the blade. As the light spiraled towards Cherubimon, it grew more intense before raining down against his left arm. He didn't even seem to notice it, and Aerismon's eyes went wide from behind their mask.
Rhihimon and Ceruleamon glanced over to each other before holding their weapons high above their head. Both staves began to glow with black and turquoise light respectively, and shadows and water began to curl forth from the edges. Rhihimon made a grab for Cherubimon's left arm while Ceruleamon sent her water towards his right wrist. The shadows and fluid curled around the Celestial Digimon's body, but all it took was a single flicking motion for both attacks to be destroyed without a moment of hesitation.
Beowolfmon raised his sword as he charged towards Cherubimon. He stabbed the blades downwards when he was in range, striking at Cherubimon's foot. However, the sword simply bounced off Cherubimon's skin, and the white light that had coated Beowolfmon's body dispersed a second later. Daipenmon jumped into action to try and lash out at Cherubimon next, but the strikes from his axe didn't do much damage either.
Vritramon consumed himself with an attack of fire before sending it flying. Zephyrmon raised her hands, creating a series of thin tornadoes. The twisters merged with the flames, creating a flashy display of swirling red and pink that danced through the air towards Cherubimon. The Celestial Digimon was struck on the shoulder, but he didn't notice them attacking him. He swiped with one hand to shoo them away as soon as they were in his line of sight, and Vritramon and Zephyrmon were both forced to duck downwards sharply to keep from being hit.
Thundramon unleashed a shot from the cannon atop his head before following up with a punch at the air with his gauntlet. Both attacks flew towards Cherubimon, but just like with the previous strikes, they did little damage. Cygnusmon and Sheyumon both joined in attacking alongside Thundramon, but their stars and energy blasts were both just as ineffective.
"How are we supposed to defeat someone like this?!" Cybelemon cried out. They were punching at the ground in an attempt to cause an earthquake, but they weren't able to shake the ground beneath Cherubimon enough to stun him. Calanthemon landed at their side, gesturing for Cybelemon to mount her with her head. Cybelemon did so, and the two were in the air a moment later, just in time to keep themselves from being crushed by another strike from Cherubimon.
Ophanimon began to snarl under her breath, and she closed her eyes as she summoned her energy. A glow of gentle pink surrounded her body before she charged towards Cherubimon's shoulder. She sliced his flesh open easily, showing writhing Fractal Code beneath. Cherubimon roared in pain and sent one hand up to nurse his injury. However, when he removed his fingers, the wound was completely gone, having been stitched together by the powers of darkness that Cherubimon had come to control.
"He's healing himself?!" Thundramon shouted in surprise, his eyes suddenly as wide as saucers. He unleashed another blast of electricity, but he still wasn't able to do enough damage for it to be notable. Cherubimon was simply too large and powerful to be hurt by their attacks. It truly didn't appear as if there was enough strength between the Legendary Warriors for them to win this battle.
Ophanimon was still glowing with the same pink light as before when she spoke next. There was something weary and exhausted to her that struck an unsettling sensation deep inside of Aerismon. Ophanimon looked over her shoulder to the rest of the Legendary Warriors as words tumbled free of her lips. "I'm sorry," she whispered, but her voice was barely audible. Aerismon was sure that they only caught on because of their senses being heightened through the process of Spirit Evolution.
The light around Ophanimon's body began to grow stronger before bursting outward in a grand display of illumination. It was almost blinding, and Aerismon's vision was filled with spots even with their mask and helmet to block the glow from view. They waited for the stars to clear before they opened their eyes once again, and shock painted their expression as soon as they realized what was happening.
Ophanimon was holding out one hand at the heart of what appeared to be a comet. The powerful light that consumed her seemed embody the element itself, and it was causing Cherubimon to recoil and screech in pain because of the darkness that he had embraced. Aerismon was left to wonder what else the light was meant to do until they saw the flash of pink on Cherubimon's shoulder.
Slowly but surely, a pale color was creeping outwards across his skin. His shouldn't wasn't the only place where this was happening though. In fact, there were small spots of light spreading all over his body, and Aerismon was sure that they were being caused by Ophanimon. They watched, jaw agape, until they realized what she was doing.
"She's purifying him," Aerismon murmured. The glow continued to get stronger, but Aerismon could tell that something was wrong. Despite putting up the illusion of strength, Ophanimon was clearly exhausted, and her posture was slowly starting to give way to something far less elegant than what she was known for.
The pink light made up about a quarter of Cherubimon's body. Ophanimon was continuing to absorb as much of Cherubimon's corrupted Fractal Code as possible, but her pain was still visible on her expression. Her hands were shaking, and the trembling quickly spread to the rest of her body. The light of pink began to disappear a moment later as Ophanimon's wings collapsed, leaving her to fall towards the debris below.
Aerismon could tell that Cherubimon was weakened. He was screaming in agony as the pink light fully set in, leaving pale colors of white, pink, and yellow visible across his body. Ophanimon had successfully removed much of the dark energy that lived inside of him, but there was still a lot to contend with. She couldn't do more than she already had. Her energy was gone.
Ophanimon looked up to the Legendary Warriors with a sad smile on her face, and they could see tears streaming down her face. "I leave this in your hands," she murmured. Fractal Code appeared around her body, and with the last of her strength, she glanced to Aerismon in particular.
They understood what she wanted of them immediately, and they held up one hand to allow her Fractal Code to flow into their palm. It was cruel, the way that they possessed the memories of both Seraphimon and Ophanimon, those who had once been their foes but were now their allies. Aerismon could feel their eyes fogging with tears, and they could tell that the rest of the Legendary Warriors were in much the same condition. They had all been called to the Digital World by Ophanimon, and when they finally found her, they had been forced to see her die.
Aerismon watched as the last bit of data disappeared between their fingers. An egg was left in the place of Ophanimon's body, and Bokomon, Neemon, and Patamon scurried over to it before carrying it away from the scene. They were shaky and terrified, but they pressed on regardless. All of the Legendary Warriors would have to follow in their example.
Aerismon allowed their expression to fall into pure determination despite how disheartened they were. This wasn't the time to lose their nerve. "Let's finish this," they declared, knowing that the rest of the Legendary Warriors would follow their lead. They primed their sword for another attack before charging forward, only one thought on their mind.
For Ophanimon.
We're in the homestretch now, everyone!
Well, we're in the homestretch of act three. There's still quite a bit of story left, but for now, we're getting closer to being finished with this segment of the story. Next chapter will be the end of the third arc, and then we'll just have acts four and five, the two shortest arcs, left to get through. I'm very excited, to say the least, but for now, I want to talk about this week's update.
First off, let's talk about the character moments at the beginning of this chapter. Since there was a huge battle last chapter and the second half of this chapter along with all of next week's update are going to be centered around combat, I wanted to throw in some character development stuff this time around. The moments were subtle and minimalistic, but I'm happy with how they all turned out.
My personal favorites of them were Mayumi's counting habits and Chihiro finally forgiving Saki. Chihiro has been angry at Lyramon basically since the second they first arrived in the Digital World, and them finally moving past their rage at Lyramon, and, by extension, Saki, is a huge step for their character. It was a small part of this huge chapter, but it's a large step forward for Chihiro.
Now, let's talk combat stuff! This chapter gave me the chance to introduce Aerismon, so that means that half of the team has access to Hybrid form now. We're waiting on Takuya, Izumi, Mayumi, Haroi, Chihiro, and Yumiko now, but we'll get to those six soon enough. For now, we've got half of the team at their top level, and I think that's perfect for this fight. Plus, it still gives us enough time to develop the cast further throughout the rest of the book through the use of evolution. I think it's a nice balance. Since the Unified level doesn't exist in this version of the story, it gives me a long time to let the Hybrid forms play around, and I like it better that way.
Finally, it's time to discuss the elephant in the room: Ophanimon. Yeah. Rest in peace. Ophanimon has been a minor presence throughout the book along with being the catalyst for everything that happened, so to see her go down like this is unfortunate. She was losing her strength because of the blessing she gave to Takuya, Koji, and Haroi, so when she realized that the only way to win the fight was to purify Cherubimon, she knew what her fate was going to be. She realized that there was no way she would be getting out of the fight alive, but she trusted the Legendary Warriors to finish the battle in her stead.
I think that you're wondering why I chose to have Aerismon of all people take in Fractal Code. Let's just say that I'll be elaborating more on that choice next time around, but for now, just keep it in mind. It's going to help their character development, to say the least, and they really need that given how cagey they've been up to this point. Saki doesn't open up easily, but this is going to help them out of their shell at long last, if you can believe it.
With all of that said, I'm done talking for this week! Next time, we'll be rounding off act three at long last! In the meantime, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Feedback is always appreciated. I hope you have a nice day, everyone!
-Digital