"As I said last night, Supreme Darkness will soon be aware of the fact that you are no longer in your normal houses. They will try to locate where you are hiding, and when they find that they cannot locate you, they will grow very angry. They will then simply take their wrath out on Odaiba, and tear it apart if need be to find you, or to cause you to defend the city." Gennai said. "What I do not know is when they will strike. It may be today, it may be tomorrow, or later. I also fear that they will not only attack Odaiba, but other cities, in Japan, or even other cities in other places in your world, to cause you to split up and so be that much easier to be destroyed. Their attack last night proved that when you all are separated you are weaker. Even though you managed to beat Supreme Darkness, it was a narrow thing, and if there had been two of them as opposed to one, I might not have arrived in time to help both groups of Digidestined."
"What can we do?" Kari asked, obviously worried about the fact that innocent people could be injured by Supreme Darkness' wrath.
"I have given this a lot of thought, and the only solution I can come up with that has any real hope of proving as a possible way to eventually defeat Supreme Darkness, would be to increase the amount of power your Digimon possess."
"What?" Izzy sat upright at Gennai's words. "Do you mean that you have devised a way in which to allow all of our Digimon to Digivolve to the Mega level?"
"I have." Gennai said. "Even if my theory works and you are all able to achieve your Mega forms, there is no guarantee that even with such power you would be able to defeat Supreme Darkness. And there might be a price to pay, the result of which is not known, even to me." Gennai paused, and saw that the Digidestined had no questions, so he continued. "My plan would be to allow your Digimon to absorb your tags and crests. The additional power would be sufficient enough to allow your Digimon to achieve Mega level, but I do not know if there would be any side effects. This might be too much power for your Digimon to handle, which would cause them to de-digivolve even further, or it might not be enough to sustain the Mega level for long. The decision lies with you."
"Isn't there anything else we can do?" Mimi asked. She seemed already fearful for Palmon.
"I have given it much thought, and I can think of nothing else. The only reason why Supreme Darkness has not destroyed you all already," he glanced at Agumon and Gabumon, who were sitting back in their chairs, full and contented. "Is largely because of WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon. Although they themselves are very powerful, and are able to hold Supreme Darkness at bay for a while, alone they cannot destroy them. If the rest of the Digimon were able to achieve their Mega level, it might become possible that Supreme Darkness may be defeated." He paused again, and looked at Mimi. "I know there is a possibility that in allowing your Digimon to absorb your tags and crests may have unforeseen side effects, I think that is a chance which must be taken, even if there is the slightest possibility that Supreme Darkness may be defeated."
"Gennai, why is it so important that—that—they must be defeated?" Matt asked, not wishing to mention Supreme Darkness' name. "You said that they are the real cause of all the bad Digimon in the Digital World before, but even if we defeated them, won't there still be some other darkness in the Digital World greater than they?"
"What you say is true." Gennai admitted. "Supreme Darkness is very great and terrible, the worst threat to the Digital World at this time, or for any time for ages, but if they are defeated, there still will be darkness upon the Digital World. There are powers of darkness in the Digital World that you—or any Digimon that I know of, cannot harm. Those powers are at constant war with the powers of light, and until all the powers of darkness are gone, evil Digimon will dwell on the Digital World. If we defeat Supreme Darkness, this will be a terrible blow to the powers of darkness on the Digital World, and we will not be plagued by evil Digimon for a long while."
There was a silence in the dining room for a while, as the Digidestined considered all that Gennai had said. Tai had made up his mind already, if it had come to a vote, and a glance at Sora had told him that she had as well. Discreetly, he slipped his hand under the table and took Sora's hand in his. Sora squeezed his hand gently in response.
"If we allow our Digimon to absorb our tags and crests, they will still be able to Digivolve to Champion and Ultimate?" Izzy asked, looking at Tentomon, who was sitting in a chair next to him thoughtfully.
"That is correct, Izzy." Gennai said. "Or as far as I know. As I have said, in allowing your Digimon to absorb the power of your tags and crests may produce unforeseen side effects."
"Will all of our Digimon be able to Digivolve to Mega?" T.K. asked, in a tone which suggested that he did not wish for Patamon to Digivolve to Mega.
"That is a good question, T.K., and one of which I have spent much time dwelling over. It is my opinion that only four Digimon should be allowed to absorb the tags and crests of their human companions, and so Digivolve to the Mega level." Gennai paused, and looked down the length of the table to see that all the Digidestined were paying attention. "Agumon and Gabumon, obviously need not absorb Tai and Matt's tags and crests, as they can Digivolve to Mega without them. As for the other six Digimon, it seems to me that only Biyomon, Tentomon, Palmon and Gommamon should be allowed to absorb the power of the tags and crests. As for Patamon and Gatomon, and their respective tags and crests of Hope and Light . . . these are different from the others. The crest of Hope symbolizes all the hope that is known in the Digital World when darkness plagues it, and the crest of Light is a light that cannot be extinguished by the powers of darkness, and one that all may see and be guided by. It would not do well to allow those crests to be consumed by their Digimon."
"But Gennai, we'll need all the firepower we can get if we're going to destroy Supreme Darkness!" Matt said.
"You do not understand the importance of the crests of Hope and Light to the Digital World, Matt, and yet I did not expect any of you save T.K. and Kari to fully understand their true power." Gennai said. "It would be better if those crests were left alone."
"What if the power of six Mega Digimon is not enough?" Joe asked, adjusting his glasses.
"This may very well be." Gennai said, "But it is the only sound plan which has any hope of succeeding. If this plan should fail, then I have few others which we may attempt."
"How will we decide what to do?" Sora asked, looking at Mimi, who was looking at Palmon as if she did not wish for her to Digivolve to Mega level.
"We will hold a vote on the matter." Gennai said. "The four of you whose Digimon would be affected will vote. If there is a tie, then I shall create a tie-breaker." Tai glanced at the four Digidestined who would vote, and he thought he knew already what the result would be. There would be one vote against allowing the Digimon to absorb the crests, and three for it.
"Of the four of you who this matter concerns, who among you would vote to allow your Digimon to absorb your tags and crests in order to achieve the Mega level?" Gennai asked, looking at Mimi, Joe, Izzy and Sora in turn.
Sora and Izzy raised their hands at once, followed a moment or two later by Joe. Even though Mimi's vote did not count, the three Digidestined kept their hands up, waiting to see what her vote would be. Mimi was staring down at Palmon, with an expression of sorrow and other mixed emotions, as if she were involved in a great conflict within herself. At last, she too, slowly raised her hand.
"That is settled, then," Gennai said, and more than one of the Digidestined thought they heard something of relief in his voice. "Now comes the most trying time of all. We must wait for Supreme Darkness to make the first move."
"What?" Matt asked. "Why do we have to wait for them? Don't you know where they are?"
"I do indeed, but it would be unwise to go wantonly searching for them." Gennai said. "In the process we may cause more harm to Odaiba then would the enemy."
"But Gennai, if we wait for them to make the first move, then innocent people could be hurt." Kari said. "People were probably hurt last night during our fight with MadRobotmon."
"I have scanned the airwaves, Kari, in both Television and Radio, and I assure you, there have been no reported injuries as a result of either of your battles." Gennai said gently. "If it is any comfort to you, it is not with an easy heart that I have made any of my decisions, especially the one of achieving Mega level."
"I agree with Matt." Joe said. "Now that we've voted to allow our Digimon to absorb our crests, we should just go looking for Supreme Darkness and take them down before they've had anymore chances to attack Odaiba."
"Speaking purely from past battles, the element of surprise would be more with us the sooner we attack Supreme Darkness." Izzy said thoughtfully. "Doubtless they know of our past battles, and generally, trouble found us rather then the other way around. It would be safe to assume that they know once they show themselves by attacking the city we would attack, so if we were to launch an attack on them before they are ready, we might take them by surprise."
The rest of the Digidestined needed a few moments to digest this, but Gennai spoke up right away. "Izzy, most times in the past you have been correct, but not this time. It would be best to do as I say. None of you fully understand Supreme Darkness as I do, and it would be best to listen to my council." He did not raise his voice as he said this, but from the gleam in his eyes Tai could tell that he was getting impatient with Matt and Joe.
Izzy evidently knew that he had said too much, and saw that Gennai was slowly becoming angry, which he rarely ever did, so he said nothing in response.
"Matt, just listen to Gennai on this one!" Tai said, not wanting to start another fight, but not wanting Gennai to become angrier, as he knew Gennai must have had enough to worry about already. He glanced sideways at Sora, and she smiled slightly and squeezed his hand.
Kari, however, looked rather angry with her older brother, and when he look questioningly at her, she shook her head and looked away, pretending to be interested in Gatomon, who was dozing lightly on her lap.
Matt, however, was not known for keeping his own opinions to himself, and he turned to Tai. "Tai, I know Gennai knows more than any of us do about Supreme Darkness, but—" he paused, and glanced at Gennai, who was sitting back in his chair, looking as if he was losing his patience, as composed as Gennai usually was. "—But don't you think that we have had . . . more battles , so we should . . . know . . . what we're talking . . . about?" Matt faltered under Gennai's gaze, and he saw that the other Digidestined were giving him looks which indicated that he should stop before Gennai grew even more angry.
Gennai did not say anything for a long while; instead he looked from one Digidestined to another. The Digidestined could tell he was rather deep in thought, for he appeared not to look at the Digidestined, but rather through them, as if he did not actually see they were there.
Tai turned discretely to his younger sister, who still did not look at him. "Kari, I—" He could not think of the right words, so he did not finish his sentence. Kari did not say anything in response; instead she merely looked up at her older brother, and sorrow was in her eyes. She managed a small smile, but Tai knew that she was upset, and he longed to talk to her in private, but it would have to wait until after the meeting.
After a long while, Izzy, who felt embarrassed that he had made Gennai angry, said in low voice, "Gennai, do you know of what forms the four Digimon will take once they achieve their Mega levels?"
"I have some idea," Gennai said suddenly, as if he had made up his mind upon which he had long brooded over. "But it is difficult to describe to you all, so it would be better for you to see the Mega levels for yourselves." Gennai appeared to have forgotten that he was on the verge of becoming angry, and as it was not important, he said nothing of it, to the relief of the Digidestined. "Now I must discuss with you what we shall do if we are forced to separate, which I fear we must. We shall separate into two groups. One of which, will be comprised of Mimi, Joe, Matt, T.K, and myself. The other group shall be comprised of Sora, Tai, Kari, and Izzy. With that group, I shall send along the vehicle upon which you arrived late last night." As if he anticipated a question, he said. "For transportation for the group which will be going with me, I have made sufficient arrangements. As I do not know the length of time of which we shall be separated, both groups shall have provisions enough until they may arrive back at this apartment." He paused, to allow the Digidestined to digest all this before he continued.
Gennai was about to say more, when he suddenly stopped, and said nothing for several long moments, but stared off into the distance. "It is as I feared. Supreme Darkness is readying to attack Oidaba." He said softly, before looking at the Digidestined.
"What?"
"Where are they?"
"When are they going to attack?"
"We have some twenty minutes to see that all in readiness. There is no more time now for speech. When it is time for your Digimon to achieve their Mega levels, I shall tell you what to do." Gennai said, and then got up from his chair and disappeared into the kitchen.
The Digidestined sat looking at each other for a few moments in silence, before they all got up and made ready to leave. After Tai had gotten ready, and had checked that Izzy would have sufficient stores of food in his backpack, he found Kari and pulled her into one of the bedrooms and shut the door.
"Kari, I'm sorry that—" he began, but Kari cut him off.
"It's not your fault, Tai." Kari said, and looking up at him, he saw that she was not as grievous as before. "It's just that—I don't want any innocent people to get hurt because of Supreme Darkness, or because of our Digimon."
Tai hugged his little sister. This was something that he had dwelled over himself, but he knew that they had to defeat Supreme Darkness, or more people would be hurt.
"Tai?" Kari whispered. "Promise me that we'll try not to harm innocent people, okay?"
"Sure Kari. I promise." Tai said, and he certainly meant it. He and his sister broke away, Kari looking much more happier than she had before, and they emerged from the bedroom.
Once outside in the small hall, Tai caught a glance of Sora passing by in the living room, and he felt very glad that he and Sora were in the same group. With all the Digidestined up and about preparing for the upcoming battle, they could do nothing more than send each other looks of longing. Things would have to wait until later.
The Digidestined were assembled, as ready as they could be, some five minutes later in the dining room. Joe had divided half of the supply of food that he had gotten from Gennai with Izzy, who packed it into his already crammed backpack.
Gennai appeared in the dining room, looking exactly as he had before, with the hilt of his sword just barely visible underneath his cloak. "Is all in readiness?" he asked. "For this first stage, we shall all ride together to the approximate spot where Supreme Darkness is planning to appear. Then, if they do split up, we shall as well—" he paused and glanced at Izzy. "Am I correct in assuming you can figure out how to drive the vehicle?"
"Of course." Izzy said, not displaying much in the way of modesty.
"Gennai, what will the rest of us do? The ones who are going with you?" Mimi asked.
"I have made the necessary preparations, Mimi." He said, and smiled at her. "Now let us be off. We must be in place in five minutes." With that, he and the Digidestined and their Digimon headed out the apartment door, and took an elevator down to the parking garage. Luckily, no one was about, and they were out onto the main road in front of the apartment building without mishap.
As Gennai drove towards the spot where Supreme Darkness would appear, Tai felt strangely restless. Despite all that Gennai had said, Tai did not feel altogether sure that even if they had six Mega Digimon against Supreme Darkness that they would be able to win. From what Tai had seen, it appeared that Supreme Darkness was at a level higher than that of Mega. Tai glanced at the other Digidestined, and saw that they were staring out the windows, apparently thinking much the same thoughts that Tai was.
Sora was fingering her tag and crest, and looking thoughtfully down at Biyomon, as if she were wondering if her Digimon would be able to Digivolve to Mega. The only one of all the Digidestined who did not seem worried was T.K., perhaps because he did not have to worry about Patamon Digivolving to Mega. Kari seemed the most worried of them all, and as she sat staring out of a window with Gatomon in her lap, she seemed close to tears. Tai wished he had some way to comfort his younger sister, but he could think of no real way to do it.
The Digimon were restless as well, but for a different reason. They all felt they could Digivolve to Mega, but they were all wondering if all their power would be enough. Gatomon, Agumon, and Gabumon were the ones that most wanted to go up against Supreme Darkness, and were rather impatient for the battle to begin. The other Digimon were somewhat afraid, not only because of the fact that Supreme Darkness had caused them all to de-digivolve, but also because of the fact that they were wondering what their Mega forms might be.
Some five minutes later, Gennai announced that they had arrived at the correct spot. It was at a large intersection in the middle of downtown Oidaba, that was a main part of the commercial area of the city, and many businesses lined the streets around it. It was heavily populated, and if Supreme Darkness would appear there without anyone to stand against them, they would destroy all those businesses, and there would be terrible casualties.
"Supreme Darkness will be here at any moment." Gennai said, turning back to the Digidestined. He appeared rather anxious, yet not fearful, as if he believed that the Digidestined would be able to defeat Supreme Darkness. "I advise you all to stay within this vehicle, unless we should need to split up." He opened the trunk, and the Digimon gathered together just before it. The Digidestined pulled out their Digivices, the screens of which were glowing faintly, and held them out.
"Agumon and Gabumon should be the first out, and they should be able to hold off Supreme Darkness until the rest of the Digimon are able to Digivolve." Gennai said. "I will tell you when it is time to see if your Digimon will be able to Digivolve to Mega."
"How many of them will be here?" Matt asked.
"I do not know." Gennai admitted. "I do not think they all will be here, especially of their leader. This task he would think rather simple, and he would send the others to do the task before he himself would go."
This was somewhat comforting to the Digidestined to think that they would not have to fight all of Supreme Darkness at once. Yet, even one of Supreme Darkness would be enough, as they had seen well enough. Even with the eight of their Digimon at the Ultimate and Mega levels, if even two of Supreme Darkness came upon them at once, it was unknown who might win.
The Digidestined said no more, and only glanced very nervously at one another. It was very much like waiting for some unknown fate to be announced; the immediate future unknown. Even Gennai was silent, and the Digidestined saw he was running his fingers over the gilded hilt of his sword, as if he wanted very much to draw his sword, yet there was no real danger to do so.
Suddenly, there was a dull tremor in the ground, and the Digidestined became fully alert, and their Digimon practically shaking with pent-up energy and worry. Gennai placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, but still did not draw it. He glanced at a small monitor on the dashboard, and said, very quietly and strangely calmly, "They have emerged. There are . . . three of them. One is coming up that street," Gennai pointed to a street to their left, through which several cars were moving through, unhindered by the growing tremors. "Another is coming up the opposite street, and one shall materialize some ten yards before us, almost directly in the center of the street."
The tremors increased, and suddenly the cars moving to and fro through the intersection careened about and sped quickly away, up various streets, and the intersection was cleared in a few moments, save only for a half-dozen cars which had smashed into each other. Their drivers leapt out from their cars, as if spiders were crawling through it, and ran away as quickly as they could, not even paying attention to the fact that their cars were damaged. It was almost as if the cars and people were under some power which forced them to leave the intersections and the surrounding streets.
"They know we are here." Gennai said, and even he could not easily hide the growing nervousness in his voice. "For if they did not, they would not care how much calamity they created in a busy intersection. They merely removed the cars and people from here so that we may fight unhindered, and, so they think, be able to destroy us that much easier."
The tremors increased, and suddenly, SteelSpidermon, creeping through the street very slowly, as he could only just fit his massive form between the buildings upon either side, emerged into the deserted intersection. A moment later, MadRobotmon appeared directly across from him. The fit for MadRobotmon was little better than for SteelSpidermon, but he could move more quickly.
As one the two terrible titans of darkness turned and looked directly upon the vehicle of which the Digidestined, their Digimon, and Gennai were seated in. A dry, robotic laugh, like that of metal scraping against metal came from MadRobotmon as his eyes flashed menacingly, and a low pitched hiss, which might be laughter emitted from SteelSpidermon.
They said nothing, and made no move to attack, but stood where they were, staring down upon the vehicle, as a hungry wolf eyes a rabbit. The Digidestined shuddered under the dreadful gaze of Supreme Darkness, and none save Gennai could return their gaze. Gennai was staring back at Supreme Darkness, and a fire was slowly being kindled in his eyes, and the Digidestined thought they could almost feel a hidden power building within Gennai.
Tai grabbed Sora's hand, and as she returned the pressure with which he squeezed her hand, Tai suddenly felt as if a barrier was put between him and Sora and the terrible gaze of Supreme Darkness. He could still see Supreme Darkness gazing down upon him, but now he did not feel as scared. He turned to Sora, and they smiled weakly at each other.
In the ground between where SteelSpidermon and MadRobotmon were standing, a small pool of black shadows suddenly appeared. The pool of shadows rapidly widened, and a moment later, Wraithmon rose up from the ground. He stood still between SteelSpidermon and MadRobotmon, and while they both towered over him, his cold gaze and the black shadows which seemed to loom about him, made him more terrifying then the others.
"I believe the phrase among the senseless rabble which inhabit this earth is, 'Fancy meeting you here.'" MadRobotmon said suddenly, and he laughed deeply again.
"Unless you have something to say with your wits, be silent!" Gennai said, and his voice sounded loud and powerful.
"Ah, Gennai." MadRobotmon said softly. He did not take a step toward the vehicle, yet moved his long, snakelike neck forward, his eyes glinting. "Have you not learned your lesson to not speak ill of those who are more powerful than yourself? I see the lesson is late in coming to you, and that it may need to be re-taught."
"There will be time enough later for talk," SteelSpidermon hissed, "If there will be any left to speak to."
As if moved by some sudden urge, and even though he was acting rather rashly, Tai thrust forward his Digivice. "I've heard enough from your big mouth! Agumon! See if you can shut it for him!"
"Right!" Agumon leapt from the back of the vehicle to the pavement just below.
"I tire of your insolence!" MadRobotmon said, his voice thundering off the building around the intersection. Two cannons unfolded from his massive shoulders. "Ultimate Blaster!" The cannons fired simultaneously, and two smaller spheres of energy converged into one larger one—
"Agumon warp-digivolved to . . . WarGreymon!"
WarGreymon crossed his large gauntlets before him, and an instant later, the sphere of energy slammed into him. He was braced for the attack, but still took a step or two backwards, towards the vehicle.
Gabumon leapt out, of the vehicle, just behind WarGreymon, and was hit by the immense power shooting from Matt's Digivice.
"Gabumon warp-Digivolved to . . . MetalGarurumon!"
"Nova Force!" WarGreymon generated a large sphere of energy between his outstretched gauntlets, and threw it straight for MadRobotmon, who took the hit and was forced back several yards, to slam into the lower floors of an office building.
"Ice Wolf Claw!" Several silos opened up in MetalGarurumon's robotic body and small missiles shot from them, converging directly at SteelSpidermon, who did not move. The missiles slammed into him, knocking him backwards and rapidly encasing him in a thin sheet of ice, and for a moment he appeared as a frozen statue.
Wraithmon silently drew his dark blade, and it glinted with a dark light, sharply contrasting the daylight surrounding him. With one swift stroke, the ice fell away from SteelSpidermon, and Wraithmon turned back to stare silently at the Digidestined.
WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon were about to attack again, when the rest of the Digimon leapt from the trunk of the vehicle, power brimming from their Digidestined's digivices.
"You need not waste your energy," MadRobotmon growled, as he moved back to where he had been standing before. "You'll only be destroyed anyway." He raised his robotic arm, and a row of cannons emerged from beneath a steel plate, to form a bracelet around his wrist. "Supreme Fusillade!"
"Spider Beam!" Two beams of energy shot from SteelSpidermon's snapping mandibles.
"Nova Force!" WarGreymon generated a small sphere of energy between his outstretched gauntlets, which became much larger as he raised it over his head. He threw it towards Supreme Darkness' oncoming attacks, and the sphere of energy engulfed both attacks. There was a blinding flash, which caused all the Digidestined to glance away, but when the flash had cleared, both Supreme Darkness' attacks had been vaporized by WarGreymon's own attack.
"All right!" Joe exclaimed, punching the air with his fist. "You guys show 'em who's boss!"
"Be careful, Palmon!" Mimi called, but she did not sound as worried as she had before.
"Palmon Digivolved to . . . Togemon!" "Togemon Digivolved to . . . Lillymon!"
"Gatomon Digivolved to . . . Angewoman!"
"Tentomon Digivolved to . . . Kabuterimon!" "Kabuterimon Digivolved to . . . MegaKabuterimon!"
"Biyomon Digivolved to . . . Birdramon! Birdramon Digivolved to . . . Garudamon!"
"Gommamon Digivolved to . . . Ikkakumon!" "Ikkakumon Digivolved to . . . Zudomon!"
"Patamon Digivolved to . . . Angemon!"
WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon still stood their ground before the vehicle, and while Angewoman, Lillymon, MegaKabuterimon, and Angemon took to the air, Zudomon and Garudamon stood at either side of the two Mega Digimon, both towering over the others.
Supreme Darkness surveyed the scene of two Mega, five Ultimate and one chmapion level Digimon standing before them and the Digidestined, but their expressions did not change. The Digidestined could still see the looks of utter contempt upon their faces.
"Let 'em have it, guys!" Izzy yelled.
"Flower Cannon!" A small but powerful energy projectile shot from Lillymon's outstretched hands.
"Celestial Arrow!" An shimmering white arrow was drawn back in a string, and let fly with perfect accuracy.
"Horn Buster!" A bolt of lightning leapt from MegaKabuterimon's large horn and went streaking straight for Supreme Darkness.
"Wing Blade!" A shimmering red bird of fire shot forth from Garudamon.
"Vulcan's Hammer!" Zudomon slammed his large hammer upon the ground; the impact of which created a spark of energy which leapt towards Supreme Darkness.
"Hand of Fate!" Angemon drew back his fist, which was brimming with a yellow light, and thrust it forwards suddenly, shooting of a beam of light which lanced towards Supreme Darkness.
"Let's join the party," MetalGarurumon growled. "Ice Wolf Claw!" Several small but extremely powerful missiles, their heads capable of encasing the target in ice, leapt forth from silos in MetalGarurumon's robotic body.
"Nova Force!" WarGreymon brought his gauntlets together, generating a small sphere of energy between them, which rapidly expanded as he brought his gauntlets over his head. A large sphere of energy flew directly towards Supreme Darkness.
All the attacks hit virtually upon the same moment, and the Digidestined and even their Digimon were forced to glance away from the sudden explosion of light. There was a sound as if a thousand bombs going off at once, and many of the windows of the office buildings shattered inwards and the buildings appeared almost to tremor slightly because of the enormous shock waves contained within such a small area.
The pavement upon which Supreme Darkness had been standing was blown apart, and a smoking crater a foot deep was all that remained. The air was clouded for a moment with dirt and debris, and in that moment, the Digidestined thought that they had done some damage to Supreme Darkness in the least, but just as they had such thoughts, a laugh like two corrugated metal pipes being rubbed together reached their ears. This was followed by a high-pitch hissing sound, and then silence. The air cleared before them a moment or two later, and the Digidestined were utterly astonished at what they saw.
Supreme Darkness still stood where they had been standing, apparently unscathed. At first it seemed that there were long black scorch marks across MadRobotmon and SteelSpidermon, as if they had been badly burned, but it was only the fragments of the pavement beneath them, which soon blew off. Wraithmon appeared only to have had his black cloaks ruffled, as if by a slight breeze. The buildings behind where Supreme Darkness had been standing seemed to have been hit several times by a large truck, as there were several large dents in the front of them.
"I almost felt that." MadRobotmon sneered, his eyes glittering with malice. "You should have tried harder. Now there shall not be another chance."
The Digimon bristled, knowing that for the moment, they would have to stand up to whatever Supreme Darkness might attack them with next. WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon shifted restlessly, as if they itched to take another shot at Supreme Darkness.
Back in the vehicle, the Digidestined glanced at one another and at Gennai, as if searching for an answer to an unasked question. Gennai, however, was merely staring at Supreme Darkness with an expression of anger that was slowly becoming more intense. Sora squeezed Tai's hand harder, and Tai figured that she was more worried than he was, as her Digimon was only at the Ultimate level. He squeezed her hand in return, but there was little else he could do to comfort her, at least for the moment.
MadRobotmon and SteelSpidermon, however, made no move to attack. Instead, Wraithmon glided silently forward, as if he were hovering in midair, and his long black robes concealed the fact if he had any feet at all. He held the black sword in one greenish hand, and it gleamed with an evil light in the sunshine. The Digidestined felt suddenly as if a massive air conditioner had been turned on and the temperature dropped rapidly as Wraithmon approached.
"Nova Force!" WarGreymon threw a vast sphere of energy straight for Wraithmon, yet he seemed to pass through it, as if walking through a thin wall of water, and the attack dispersed upon either side of him.
Angewoman and Angemon floated slowly downwards from where they had alighted in the air, the air about them rippling with white light. Wraithmon paused in his slow advancement upon the ranks of the other Digimon, and glanced up at the two angel Digimon above him.
"What are you doing?" Angemon called down to the other Digimon, holding his golden rod firmly in both hands. "If you stay all bunched up together you'll make an easier target!"
"Wraithmon has them under his power!" Angewoman said, and she clenched her fist in anger.
The Digimon finally appeared to take notice that Wraithmon was slowly bearing down upon them, as if they had awoken from a deep dream, and rapidly spaced themselves apart in a semi circle around Wraithmon.
"Celestial Arrow!" A shimmering white arrow flew from the string and struck Wraithmon head on. Wraithmon paused and appeared to shudder slightly, and the Digidestined could feel a very brief let up of the sudden chill that surrounded them.
"Let's hit him with everything we've got!" Angemon said, his fist glowing with bright yellow energy. The Digimon looked up at the two angel-type Digimon, and it was as if being splashed by cold water. They regained all their senses, and glared down at Wraithmon, who was standing still, surveying them all silently.
Before any of them could attack, or even make a move, Wraithmon flew suddenly towards Zudomon, who was almost directly before him, his sword becoming mostly intangible, and glowing even more darkly. "Phantom Sword!" The blade passed straight through Zudomon, even as he raised his enormous hammer to attack, and as it did so, Zudomon groaned loudly and lowered his hammer. He was bathed suddenly in yellow light, and de-digivolved to Gommamon, who collapsed wearily upon the ground.
"What just happened?" Joe yelled, grabbing the seat back before him.
"Wraithmon must have somehow drained Zudomon of all of his energy with his sword!" Izzy said, and he sounded completely surprised by this.
Kabuterimon and Garudamon charged straight for Wraithmon, who was once more standing still. Before either of them could reach him, he flew forward again, his sword glinting eerily even though it was intangible.
"Phantom Sword!" The blade passed straight through both Kabuterimon and Garudamon without stopping, and as Wraithmon came to a stop several feet in midair just behind Garudamon, both Digimon appeared to freeze on the spot. MegaKabuterimon managed to growl slightly before he de-digivolved to Tentomon. Garudamon turned to the vehicle, and Tai and Sora heard her mutter, "Sora," very weakly before she too de-digivolved to Biyomon, who lay upon the ground next to Tentomon, apparently knocked out.
Tai grabbed Sora around the waist with one arm as she tried to rise, while keeping a firm grip on her hand with the other. "Sora, listen to me." Tai whispered. "You can't do anything for them. They're okay, but it won't do you any good to get hurt." Sora looked blankly back at him, almost helplessly, and she fought back tears. Ignoring the presence of the other Digidestined, who were thunderstuck by the battle to be paying much attention, Tai hugged Sora briefly, but did not let go of her hand. She squeezed his hand slightly and managed a half smile as she turned back to the battle.
WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon shuddered with suppressed rage as they watched this, but they knew they could not do much to stop it. The three remaining Digimon stayed airborne where they were and glared down at Wraithmon where he now stood motionless, some ten feet in midair, looking up at them.
"Flower Cannon!" Lillymon rose up and fired off a small but powerful energy projectile from her hands straight for Wraithmon.
The sword in Wraithmon's hand glinted again as it became intangible. "Phantom Sword!" The blade passed first straight through Lillymon's attack, causing it to disperse, before passing straight through Lillymon, even as she tried to move out of the way.
Lillymon fell like a stone, bathed in yellow light as she de-digivolved to Palmon, and Angemon had barely time enough to dive down and catch her before she hit the pavement.
Angemon turned, and saw that Wraithmon was hovering almost directly over him. He brought his golden rod up to bear, and managed to block the blow that Wraithmon aimed at his head. He slammed Wraithmon in the chest with the head of his staff, but Wraithmon did not appear to feel it.
"Celestial Arrow!" A shimmering white arrow struck Wraithmon in the back, and he shuddered slightly. Angemon brought up his staff again, but before he could do anything else—
"Phantom Sword!" The intangible blade passed straight through Angemon's staff, and while the staff did not break, the blade also passed through Angemon, who groaned as he de-digivolved to Patamon.
Now only Angewoman was left among the other Digimon, but she stood firm in her place in the sky. "Even if you defeat me," she said through gritted teeth, "You still won't win! Celestial Arrow!" Another shimmering white arrow struck Wraithmon and forced him back a few feet.
"Allow me to help my comrade." MadRobotmon said, as two cannons unfolded from his shoulders. "Ultimate Blaster!" Angewoman managed to dodge most of the large sphere of energy sent hurtling towards her, but she was struck by the edge of it, and was thrown off balance.
"Phantom Sword!" Wraithmon flew through the air, his intangible sword glittering darkly. The blade passed shallowly through Angewoman, as she had tried to dodge it, but she fell, and de-digivolved to Gatomon as she fell.
Even as MetalGarurumon leapt to catch Gatomon carefully in his jaws, WarGreymon turned, seething with anger towards MadRobotmon. His place the tips of his claws together over his head, and began to spin incredibly fast. "Terra Force!" He launched himself horizontally with all his might for MadRobotmon. WarGreymon slammed fully into MadRobotmon, and forced him back several feet to imbed the machine-type Digimon several feet into the brick side of an office building.
WarGreymon landed next to MetalGarurumon, who was setting Gatomon's limp form carefully upon the pavement, and the two of them glared as hard as they could at Supreme Darkness, who had re-assembled themselves. "You must work on that temper of yours," MadRobotmon growled. "It might get you in trouble which you cannot handle one day."
The two Mega Digimon stood their ground, at a stand off for the moment with Supreme Darkness, while the Digidestined ran from the vehicle to gather up their fallen Digimon and bring them back to the vehicle. Supreme Darkness watched this with an air of unmistakable scorn and contempt, but did not make a move to stop them.
Once inside the vehicle, Sora was very glad to find out that Biyomon was not knocked out, but very tired, as if she had gone a long while without sleeping. She ate one of the bars of food, which seemed to revive her greatly.
The other Digimon were much in the same way as Biyomon, and once they had eaten a little, they appeared much better. This, however, did not change the fact that WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon were the only ones remaining between the Digidestined and Supreme Darkness, a fact which Joe pointed out to Gennai.
"I'd say it was time for us to test out this theory of yours, Gennai," Izzy said, "And we shall see if our Digimon will be able to Digivolve to Mega."
"Yes." Gennai said, speaking for the first time since the battle had started. "Although I would not readily speak ill of the Digimon, their Ultimate forms are not enough." None of the Digimon were insulted by this, as they all knew it was true. "The process to allow your Digimon to absorb your tags and crests is simple. All you need do is hold your tag and crest over your Digimon, and concentrate on the meaning of your crest. The tag and crest will be absorbed by your Digimon, and they should be able to Digivolve to Mega."
Before any of the Digidestined could say anything futher, they heard MadRobotmon say, "I tire of this charade with you impotent fools. We shall allow you to live, with the knowledge that your powers are inferior to ours, and that we may crush you at any moment." There was a rush of rocket engines, and MadRobotmon rose up into the air, rapidly accelerating. SteelSpidermon crawled back up the street that he had come up through, and Wraithmon melted back down into the street, through a pool of dark shadows.
