Within the void, the battle between Ahriman and the Ascended began quickly as LightforceVeedramon and HiMastemon stared down the Demon Ahriman, who gripped his scythe and glared at the two as his bone tendrils flailed about.
"Well, at least we got an idea what that was inside of you." LightforceVeedramon commented to HiMastemon, remembering when Zeras came for Kari, trying to awaken a dark presence within her, which looked similar to the Dark One in front of him.
"Zeras was weak, but he was right." Demon Ahriman stated as he looked at HiMastemon and added. "You should have listened to him, you were more powerful as the Dark Queen."
"You're wrong, and in the end, we'll take you down." HiMastemon spat back as a sword of light and a sword of darkness appeared in her hands, causing Demon Ahriman to snarl lightly.
"You dare use my power against me?!" The Dark One yelled, where HiMastemon replied with a grin. "Yep."
"Blazing Sabers!" LightforceVeedramon then declared as blades of light ignited on his arms, where he shot at the Demon Ahriman, who used his scythe to block the attack as the blades clashed against his scythe, where the Dark One's eyes widened as he felt the power behind it.
'Have the Ascended grown in power? Has the void drained me this...?" The combined mind of Ahriman thought, before sending it through all the Ascended as he then thought. 'No. Their proximity to each other is empowering them, giving them strength!'
Pushing back, Demon Ahriman then watched LightforceVeedramon go into the air as energy gathered into his chest, where he cried out. "Victory Blast!"
"Eternal Strike!" HiMastemon then followed up, gathering light and dark energy into her hands, bringing them together and firing a powerful blast of light and darkness alongside LightforceVeedramon, the two attacks crashing into Demon Ahriman and pushing him back, before he swung his scythe, sending out a shockwave of darkness that cut through the attack, causing the pair of Ascended he was fighting to move quickly out of the way.
"Twin Strikes!" HiMastemon then declared as he body glowed with a light and dark aura, shooting at her foe as she began throwing punches and kicks at Ahirman, who blocked the onslaught as best he could, especially when LightforceVeedramon joined in with his Blazing Sabers, both determined to win this fight and end the shadow that had been over them since the Virus Hecate first infected Kari and awakened Ahriman's darkness within her so long ago.
Nearby, SaviourVeedramon and Lightbringer Ophanimon looked up at the Titan Ahriman, who swung his spear around, ready to eliminate his foes.
"You. You're the darkness that plagued my future self, that drove her to her dark deeds." Lightbringer Ophanimon commented as she looked upon Ahriman, feeling the same darkness she felt from her alternate future version, the Dark Queen.
"Yes, disappointing, she was... useful, perhaps I can use that same rage within you, before taking what is mine." Titan Ahriman said in reply, which didn't sit well with SaviourVeedramon.
"No, you won't! We've beaten your darkness before, and we will again!" The Davis and Veemon that made SaviourVeedramon declared, before calling out with might. "Shining Blades!"
Extending out his energy blades, SaviourVeedramon rushed at Titan Ahriman, who swung his dark spear down to strike his foe, only to see the Ascended flicker and reappear close to his face, swinging his blades and cutting through the Dark One's arm and shoulder, causing him to growl in anger and pain as he body tried to heal itself, before seeing Lightbringer Ophanimon move in to strike.
"Divine Light!" The Biomerged form of Kari and Gatomon called out as she pointed her javelin at Ahriman, firing a blast of pink energy at the Dark One, who shielded himself from the blast, growling in anger.
"Heaven's Might!"
"Shining Strike!"
Both SaviourVeedramon and Lightbringer Ophanimon declared as he fired blasts of light and a series of pink orbs at Titan Ahriman, flying around the Dark One to keep him from defending himself, only for the Ahriman to yell. "Enough!"
In doing so, the Dark One let out several great blasts of dark electricity, the attack causing the pair of Ascended to quickly move and try to dodge the assault from Titan Arhiman, seeing that their foe was still powerful enough to be a challenge for them.
Despite this attack, SaviourVeedramon and Lightbringer Ophanimon were ready to give it their all to save their worlds and prevent another dark tragedy like the Dark Queen from happening again.
In the air above, V-Force and Dawnbringer were clashing their weapons against the Dark Angel Ahriman, the Dark One summoning a pair of dark energy blades to block the hero and heroine's blades and staff respectively.
"You are pathetic now! You held much more as the Night Queen, you should have remained Zhaitan's disciples!" The Dark One said tauntingly to Dawnbringer, causing the heroine version of Kari to cringe a little as she remembered her time as the dark villainess.
Shaking her head, the hero Kari pushed past the darkness and negativity, knowing it was what the Dark One desired.
"Wrong, she is stronger now than ever before, because she is free of you." V-Force declared, defending his beloved and causing Dawnbringer to nod in reply as they both pushed the Dark One back, who laughed sinisterly at the pair.
"You will never be free of me, because I am a part of you!" Dark Angel Ahriman bellowed as several dark portals opened around him, sending out dark tendrils at the two heroes, who quickly moved around, dodging the attack as they cut through the tendrils or blasts them with their Ascended energy.
Both V-Force and Dawnbringer moved in sync with one another, rushing back at the Dark One to continue their fight, both looked briefly to see Shadowknight with Izael, giving both familiar allies a nod as they clashed their weapons with Dark Angel Ahriman again.
The pair of heroes remained determined to help end this battle, to save their world, all worlds, from this darkness, no matter what it took.
Back on the ground, Knight Davis was clashing his blade with the Dark Knight Ahriman, his greatsword burning with light energy as he clashed it with the Dark One's weapon.
"You have let her make you weak, my Dark Lord. You should have stayed my servant." The Dark One commented, causing Knight Davis to growl in response.
"I will never be your puppet again!" The young knight bellowed back, pushing aside the Dark One as he continued swinging his blade against him, amusing the Dark One, only for him to cry out as a blast of light energy struck his side, looking to see the Priestess Kari holding her hand out towards him with a a small anger in her eyes, seeing now the physical manifestation of the evil that ruled her love for so long, and nearly brought her into the darkness as well.
"We defeated your evil, and that of your kin, before." The Priestess Kari then declared, remembering all the battles they had fought on their world against the Dark Ones and their servants, before adding as a light aura surrounded her. "And we shall do so again. You will be vanquished, once and for all!"
"You are a naive little girl. My power is absolute, and I will kill both of you here, before ending all life on your world." Dark Knight Ahriman said back as he swung his blade, sending out a shockwave at the priestess, who formed a barrier to protect herself, groaning as she felt the overwhelming power behind the attack, only for Knight Davis to push her out of the way before the attack could break through and strike them down.
"You should have accepted his offer and joined when you could have. Now you will both die!" The Dark One declared, watching as the two Ascended got back to their feet, ready to continue to fight, to end the evil that had plagued their lives, once and for all.
"Path of Destiny!"
"Ascension Blast!"
AscendedVeedramon and AscendedOphanimon called together as they unleashed powerful blasts of light energy at the Dark Mage Ahriman, who defended against the light as he held out his hands and a dark barrier formed around him, shielding him from the attack.
Casting the darkness aside, Ahriman glared at the Ascended before him.
"Do not think that these... insects will change anything. You will all die at my hands!" The Dark One bellowed, before sending out blasts of dark energy himself, the attack causing the Ascended Digimon to quickly move out of the way.
"Blade of Divinity!" AscendedVeedramon declared after sweeping past the darkness, the Digimon of Miracles bringing his blades together, forming the single blade, as he rushed at the Dark Mage Ahriman, who used his hands to block the attack, holding the Biomerged form of Davis and Veemon back.
"Shining Uproar!" AscendedOphanimon then announced, trying to assist in the conflict against the Ahriman, the Ascended Digimon of Light creating a powerful circle of light beneath the Dark One, who cried out in pain and rage as the pulsing light shone below him.
Pushing AscendedVeedramon back with a burst of dark energy, disrupting the circle as well, the Ascended Digimon regrouped and looked back at the Dark One, as well as the battles going on around them, seeing they had a fair way to go before the darkness was truly vanquished.
And despite the awe they felt at seeing their counterparts fighting with them, AscendedVeedramon and AscendedOphanimon refocused on the fight at hand, staying close together and knowing that if they failed, Ahriman would only get stronger, and their worlds would suffer for it.
"Man, this is... something else." Takuya said as he and the rest in the DATS Command Room continued to watch the monitors, watching not only Davis, Kari and their partners fight, but also versions of them from the worlds they had heard about.
"It's also too risky." Thomas then said in frustration as he added. "If any of them fall, Ahriman will take their fragments and grow stronger."
"We need to have faith in them, in all of them, just as they have had in us." Sora said calmly in reply, holding Tai's hand as the group continued to watch the unfolding battle.
"Where's the popcorn when you need it?!" BlackTerriermon let out as he continued to watch the battle before him, his remark causing his Henry to sigh in annoyance, while Stryker and Dark Hawk continued to watch from hiding, hoping that V-Force and Dawnbringer wouldn't notice them.
From their spot, Izael, Shadowknight and the older TK continued to watch the battle, knowing that there was nothing they could do to help, without being torn apart of Ahriman, before a familiar sound caught their attention, causing the trio to turn around and see hundreds of dark portals opening as swarms of Shadow Demons emerged and began charging at them.
"Of course it wouldn't be easy." The older blond let out with a groan as he took out his sword and gun, while Izael and Shadowknight took out their blades, rushing at the Shadow Demons as Ahriman and the Ascended noticed the new arrivals, even as larger portals began opening, with massive tendrils, claws, and many eyes seen through the darkness.
The other Dark Ones had arrived.
"We will not be stopped! Not after coming so far!" The Dark One, Zhaitan, declared as the Shadow Demons rushed towards the Ascended, who broke off their battle with Ahriman to engage the newcomers.
Swinging his blades, AscendedVeedramon cut through a dozen winged Stalkers, before backing into something, turning to see LightforceVeedramon's back against his.
"Nice to meet you, though I think introductions aren't necessary." LightforceVeedramon commented as he swung his blades and cut through a winged Dark Warrior.
This comment left AscendedVeedramon to nod and reply with a smirk. "Agreed."
SaviourVeedramon then came flying by as he cut down a Nightmare as it flew by, adding to the conversation as he said. "Not sure if this is what I was expecting when Izael first told me about there being multiple versions of me, but I'm not complaining."
"I'm still trying to wrap my head around this whole 'Digimon' thing." V-Force then found himself confessing, the heroic version of Davis wondering how things would turn for him if he too had a partner like Veemon.
But focusing more on the fight ahead of him, V-Force then unleashed a blast of light energy, destroying a large group of Shadow Demons heading his way.
"Try not to think too hard on it, it will only give you a headache in the end." Knight Davis told his ally, before whistling loudly, where a loud roar was heard, followed by something massive landing and crushing several demons, revealing a large blue dragon, covered in golden armour, with a V shaped helmet as it let out a white flame.
"Sweeet/Sweeet!" The voices of three Veemon let out through their Biomerged forms at seeing what most likely was their counterpart from Knight Davis and Priestess Kari's dimension, where they saw the knight quickly board the dragon's back, which took off as they saw Knight Davis' sword glow with a bright light, turning into an energy lance as he skewered a large number of flying demons in his path, while his dragon unleashed his fiery breath upon others.
"Eh, we can do better." LightforceVeedramon commented , expressing a faint pride in his tone as his body began to glow with a bright light, causing AscendedVeedramon, SaviourVeedramon and V-Force to back up slightly, before seeing LightforceVeedramon change into a large light dragon, letting out a roar himself as he took off, where the other three Ascended looked at one another, shrugged, and went back to the fight, working in sync as they cut through their enemies.
Down below, the older TK was having some trouble, finding himself surrounded by Stalkers and a few Brutes, before a blast of light pink energy fired down, incinerating the Shadow Demons, much to the blond's relief.
"TK!" A familiar voice then called from above, causing the older blond to look up and smile as Lightbringer Ophanimon floated down slightly and said with a smile. "It's good to see you again."
"Likewise." TK replied with a warm smile, happy to see the past, uncorrupted version of his Kari again as he then said. "I heard about what happened after we left. I am glad she was able to find peace."
Smiling at TK's reply, Lightbringer Ophanimon then turned and flew off, joining AscendedOphanimon and HiMastemon, where she and AscendedOphanimon looked at HiMastemon as they saw her sending out blasts of light and dark energy at the Shadow Demons.
"Um... isn't that...?" AscendedOphanimon began to ask, not sure how HiMastemon was able to control Ahriman's power without it affecting her.
"Long story, let's just say this power once ruled me, but now I use it to protect those I care for." HiMastemon said in reply, expressing her care and her emotion in her words, before joining the two other Digimon around her as Dawnbringer flew by, sending out a series of light arrows that pierced through dozens of Shadow Demons, destroying them instantly.
"I understand your pain. For a long time I let that darkness use me, believing that I was trying to make things better, but V-Force showed me that I was being used, and now I fight to protect others instead of trying to control or ruin them." The super heroine Kari added, ready to put her dark past behind her, and give that darkness what it deserved, where the four saw a trio of Nightmares flying at them only for the Shadow Demons to be destroyed by a blast of light.
Turning to see the source, AscendedOphanimon, HiMastemon, Lightbringer Ophanimon and Dawnbringer saw the Priestess Kari smiling at them, though their attention was turned slightly to her mount, seeing a winged white sphinx, more beast-like than Nefertimon in AscendedOphanimon, HiMastemon and Lightbringer Ophanimon's eyes, the creature even holding similar features to Nefertimon as it wore a golden mask over its face, which held two horns sticking out of it.
"The past doesn't matter, so long as we strive to protect our future, for our beloveds, for our families, and for those yet to come. We have proven ourselves stronger then this evil, and now we must stop it, here and now." Priestess Kari stated as her sphinx let out a mighty roar, its mask glowing brightly as it fired a blast of light energy at several demons, taking them down and sending the five versions of Kari off to continue battling as AscendedOphanimon's crystal blades flew around everywhere, skewering or slicing through the demons in their path.
"TEAR them APART!" The Shaper yelled from above, spurring the Shadow Demons further as they tried to take down the ten Ascended, finding their enemy working together in unison, easily taking down the Dark Ones' servants.
During the confusion, the Dark Knight, Titan, Dark Angel and Demon Ahrimans tried to strike at the Ascended, only to be sent flying back by their combined efforts, much to Ahirman's anger and frustration.
"ENOUGH!" The Dark Mage Ahriman cried out in rage, sending out a shockwave of dark energy, sending the Ascended flying back slightly, while Izael, Shadowknight, the older TK, Stryker, Dark Hawk, their Henry and BlackTerriermon braced themselves, holding on as they saw the blast not only destroy every single Shadow Demon left, but strike at the dark ones above, who cried out in pain as streams of energy seemed to leave them and circle around Ahriman.
"What are you doing?!" Zhaitan screamed as he felt his power draining.
"I will not wait any longer! I will be reborn, and if I must use all of you to do so, then so be it!" Ahriman yelled through his Dark Mage form, just as the other four landed around it, moving towards the Dark Mage as their bodies broke into darkness, swirling around the final form and consuming it in darkness, just as the Dark Ones gave one final cry as their energy was drained, the dark beings sinking back through the portals to the Dark Realm, which closed behind them.
A moment later, the dark sphere exploded in a powerful blast,the eruption causing the ten Ascended to act quickly and to bring up a light barrier to protect them, their allies present and the unknown few hidden in the midst.
When the blast faded, the ten Ascended, Shadowknight, the older TK, Stryker, Dark Hawk, their Henry, BlackTerriermon and those watching from the Digital World looked in shock and horror to see what was before them, while Izael gritted his teeth in anger.
Before them was a massive being, with a torso covered in black armour that bore a demon's face on it, while black clocks covered a stream of dark mist that served as a lower body.
Two regular clawed arms held a dark staff and blade in each hand, while two larger arms held razor sharp claws, obstructing two massive black wings, which held many, many red eyes within them.
Finally, staring down at the Ascended was a face, covered by a hood and a silver mask with seven glowing red eyes upon it, while a spiked crown rested upon the Dark One's head, showing a semi complete form of Ahriman as he looked down and laughed darkly.
"Take one last look at your precious reality. For soon, all that shall remain is shadows and death!" Ahriman declared, ready to end this annoyance and take his fragments back, to finish what he started long ago, and bring all back to an age of eternal darkness.
Steeling themselves, the ten Ascended prepared themselves for the growing battle, ready to stop this evil, or die trying.