Some twenty miles away in midair, the vehicle was still flying after MadRobotmon, slowly gaining upon him. The Digidestined were now only twenty yards away from MadRobotmon, and he appeared still not to have noticed them.
Izzy accelerated the vehicle ever so slightly, and then turned back to look at the others in the back seat. "Tai, we cannot continue this chase forever. Sooner or later either MadRobotmon will notice us, or we will run out of fuel. We must act soon."
Tai glanced out the window at WarGreymon, who was effortlessly keeping pace with the vehicle, and then back at Sora, Izzy and Kari. "WarGreymon can keep MadRobotmon busy while Tentomon and Biyomon digivolve to Mega."
"Gatomon can help too." Kari said, and Gatomon stood up on the seat next to her, a determined look on her face.
"How are we going to get our Digimon out of the vehicle?" Sora asked Izzy, who increased the speed of the vehicle slightly.
He searched the vehicle's controls for a moment before answering. "This is not going to be easy, because the pressure inside this vehicle is not equal to that of the pressure outside, so if I open anything to the outside, everything that is not bolted down will be forced out." He paused, and glanced at the controls once more before continuing. "It appears we have only two options. Either I open the trunk, as Gennai did before, or there is an emergency escape hatch through the roof that the Digimon could get through. However, it is extremely important that the Digimon Digivolve almost immediately after they exit the vehicle, or otherwise they'll simply fall."
"Let's try the emergency escape hatch." Tai said, after a moment's thought.
"Tell me when, Tai," Izzy said, and lay his hand upon a red button underneath a small glass cover. He glanced over at Tentomon and said, "Good luck, pal." Tentomon merely nodded to show that he had heard, as he was rather nervous. Being forced to Digivolve to Mega for the first time in a span of a few moments was not something he looked forward to.
Sora hugged Biyomon briefly as she stood up on the seat. "Be careful, okay?" She released Biyomon, and Tai silently took her hand. She smiled at him, but her smile was filled with worry.
"Don't worry, Sora, you know I will be." Biyomon said, glad for her friend's concern.
Biyomon, Tentomon and Gatomon positioned themselves just beneath the closed emergency escape hatch, while Sora, Tai and Kari moved to the rear of the vehicle and made sure they were belted in.
By this time, the vehicle was only ten yards or so behind MadRobotmon, who still did not appear to realize the Digidestined were right behind him. Izzy decreased the speed of the vehicle slightly, as he knew he would have to slow down when the fight began, and put up all the shields at maximum power.
Tai was about to call out to WarGreymon to attack as soon as the escape hatch was opened, but before he could give the command to open the escape hatch, a low rustling laugh echoed through the sky in front of them, and MadRobotmon began to slow down, and so Izzy was forced to as well.
"Do you fools think I do not possess any sort of tracking devices?" his voice rumbled through the sky. "I knew you were coming after me before you even left the ground." MadRobotmon came to a full stop in midair, and slowly turned until he was facing the vehicle and WarGreymon. "Now it is time to re-enact a particular chase scene, but this time, Gennai is not here to save you. He and the other Digimbecils are chasing after SteelSpidermon; a useless gesture if ever I heard of one." His eyes glittered with a dark light. "Shall you fight, or shall you try to run? Either way is futile, and you shall not escape this time." Two cannons unfolded from his shoulders, aimed directly for the vehicle, which was also hovering in midair. "Ultimate Blaster!" The cannons fired simultaneously, and two smaller energy projectiles merged into one much larger one, and was about to slam into the vehicle, when WarGreymon dove in front of it and took the full hit of the attack.
He was thrown backwards and slammed into the front of the vehicle, a blow which was mostly deflected by the vehicle's shielding. As WarGreymon rose to his feet, glaring at MadRobotmon who was hovering some ten yards away, Izzy lifted the glass cover and pushed the red button.
The escape hatch began to open slowly, and as it opened wider, winds ripped through the inside of the vehicle. Biyomon and Tentomon flew out of the opening on their wings, and Gatomon leapt out after them. She tried to hold onto the top of the vehicle, but her claws would not find a hold. The escape hatch closed a few moments later, and as MadRobotmon advanced slowly through the air towards the vehicle, WarGreymon leapt out to intercept him.
"Gatomon Digivolved to . . . Angewoman!" Angewoman rose up from the roof of the car on her six shimmering wings, higher than Biyomon or Tentomon, who were trying to hover in one place.
"Nova Force!" WarGreymon generated a large sphere of energy between his gauntlets, and threw it point-blank at MadRobotmon. The force of the hit pushed MadRobotmon back through the air several yards, and just as MadRobotmon had recovered from the attack, Angewoman drew a shimmering arrow back upon an unseen thread.
"Celestial Arrow!" The arrow flew from the string and struck MadRobotmon in the chest, forcing him back a few more yards.
"Now, Biyomon and Tentomon! Digivolve while he is distracted!" Angewoman called back to the two rookie Digimon.
"I've been distracted by much more than that." MadRobotmon sneered, as he flew closer towards the vehicle. "Ultimate Blaster!" Two cannons unfolded from his shoulders and fired at the same time, and the energy blast flew straight for the vehicle.
WarGreymon dove in front of the attack, and just managed to take the hit before it slammed into the vehicle, but he was thrown several yards off to one side.
MadRobotmon drew closer still to the vehicle, and as Angewoman was drawing back another arrow forged of white light, Biyomon and Tentomon flew suddenly forward, heading directly for MadRobotmon. They both were rather frightened, but they knew that they had to protect the Digidestined.
They were a few yards from colliding with MadRobotmon, when they both became suddenly engulfed in a white light, and even MadRobotmon was forced to pause at the sudden increase of energy.
"Biyomon warp-digivolved to . . . Phoenixmon!"
"Tentomon warp-digivolved to . . . HerculesKabuterimon!"
MadRobotmon halted suddenly in the air, four yards away from the two Mega Digimon which had appeared before him, yet not without a glint of contempt in his eye. Phoenixmon appeared as a very large bird of prey with scarlet feathers and six long wings, each which measured at least twenty feet across. Her beak was of gold, and a fiery light was kindled in her eyes. Her talons were large and sharp, as if they might tear into MadRobotmon as if nothing more than a rat.
HerculesKabuterimon was an enormous yellow scarab beetle with two large, se mandibles atop of his head. He was flying upon several long wings which were moving so fast that they appeared to be invisible. He had several short arms, and slashes of red across his chest. His mandibles moved slightly, as if he were anticipating crushing MadRobotmon between them.
A cheer erupted suddenly from within the vehicle, which was still hovering perfectly still in midair. Tai and Sora hugged, oblivious to the fact that they were not alone in the vehicle, and Sora seemed much less worried about her partner Digimon than before. As she watched, Phoenixmon and HerculesKabuterimon placed themselves before the vehicle and MadRobotmon, who seemed now to not be surprised at all to see two new Mega Digimon. WarGreymon had recovered from the attack by this time, and he hovered in midair along side the other two, yet he was much smaller than they.
"Do you actually think that digivolving to Mega will save you?" MadRobotmon asked. He moved slowly forward, chuckling softly. "Those who have too much confidence in their abilities are often those who have little wits about them, and are only destroyed in the end."
"Is that what was in your horoscope this morning?" HerculesKabuterimon asked, his voice much deeper than even MadRobotmon's.
"I grow weary of listening to such pathetic words from those far inferior to myself." MadRobotmon continued, still moving slowly forward through the air. "So I believe I shall silence you once and for all." Two cannons unfolded from his shoulders even as he spoke. "Ultimate Blaster!" The cannons fired at the same time, and two small spheres of energy formed one larger one, which went hurtling into the midst of the four Digimon.
Angewoman, WarGreymon and Phoenixmon dodged out of the way, while HerculesKabuterimon simply turned around in midair, and the sphere of energy slammed almost without effect into his massive shell.
Even as MadRobotmon took notice of this, WarGreymon dove suddenly towards him. He placed his gauntlets over his head, and began to spin very fast, and shot suddenly horizontally at MadRobotmon. "Terra Force!" WarGreymon slammed into MadRobotmon, who had not had time to recover, sending him sprawling backwards.
Phoenixmon rose high into the air upon wings which seemed to be alive with fire, and she glowed suddenly bright red. "Crimson Flame!" An enormous spout of deep red flames issued suddenly from her beak, and smote heavily upon MadRobotmon, forcing him further back.
Almost at the same instant, Angewoman drew back an arrow and let it fly, and it hit MadRobotmon almost in the same instant that Phoenixmon's attack did, and MadRobotmon was knocked back several yards, until he came to a halt, still hovering in midair. For a moment, MadRobotmon appeared as if he had actually been injured by the attacks, but then he simply began to glide towards them once more, his eyes glinting with a dark light. "Your attacks harmed me little more than the bite of an insignificant insect, one which I can easily crush." MadRobotmon said, but his words seemed slightly less calm than before, as if he were either becoming impatient, or weary. "Supreme Fusillade!" A ring of cannons appeared about his arm as he raised it, and a moment later, several small spheres of energy shot towards the vehicle.
All of the Digimon had separated from the vehicle, even HerculesKabuterimon, who had risen above the vehicle, as if to attack. Only WarGreymon was close enough, and although he was growing rather tired, he dove in front of the vehicle without hesitation.
The attacks slammed into WarGreymon a moment later, and he was forced backwards, flying towards the front of the vehicle. As he was about to slam into the vehicle, he was enveloped in a yellow light, and dedigivolved to Agumon, who hit the front of the vehicle, and proceeded to fall through the air, unmoving.
Tai leapt from his seat and was about to pound upon the window in anger and despair, even as Angewoman dove down to catch him. Tai sat back in his seat, filled with relief, yet sorrowful, that his friend had been harmed enough to dedigivolve. Sora grasped his hand tightly, and smiled warmly, yet Tai could not easily return the smile.
"It appears that one among you has already fallen," MadRobotmon sneered, as he moved closer to the rest of the Digimon, who were all glaring down at him. "The others shall surely follow."
"Time to end this," HerculesKabuterimon said, his voice booming through the air, and Angewoman and Phoenixmon nodded their agreement.
"I am glad that you fools agree with me." MadRobotmon said, "For it is indeed time for you all to be destroyed." Two cannons began to unfold from his shoulders, but before he could attack, HerculesKabuterimon rose up high above him. "Mega Electro Shocker!" Electrical energy seemed to ripple across HerculesKabuterimon and gather into a large, solid sphere in between his many clawed arms. He threw this solid sphere of electrical energy just as MadRobotmon was about to attack, and when the sphere hit MadRobotmon, there was a loud explosion, and electricity seemed to leap in every direction, as if several small lightning bolts. Electricity rippled across MadRobotmon, and for a moment, he stood entirely still, as if frozen, and the power in his eyes faded. Then, very slowly, MadRobotmon glided across the air, centimeters at a time, and he seemed to have difficulty moving at all. Electrical energy continued to ripple across his body, and the two cannons had nearly unfolded all the way, yet were only sitting atop his shoulders, unable to fire.
"This – This will – not – stop – me." MadRobotmon said, as he continued to nearly crawl towards the remaining Digimon. His arms seemed to be somehow fastened to his side, so he could not use his other attack, so for the moment, he was powerless. "Do—you think I – do not have any backup—systems? Even now – they are repairing the – damage – your pathetic attacks – have done to – my own electrical system." A moment later, the two cannons atop of his shoulders began to slowly continue to unfold, and MadRobotmon was slowly traveling through the air towards the remaining Digimon faster than before.
"Crimson Flame!" Phoenixmon dove down from high above towards the form of MadRobotmon, a torrent of fire springing from her open beak. The fire engulfed MadRobotmon, who had suddenly stopped moving, and disappeared in the middle of the sudden raging inferno, which was suspended in midair.
"Celestial Arrow!" Angewoman drew an arrow back and let it fly. It shot into the midst of the inferno and disappeared, although she knew it had found its target.
The flames burned for several long moments, until they died down all at once, as if a rainstorm had suddenly struck above them, and MadRobotmon could plainly be seen. The fire had blackened much of his metal body, and it was beginning to crumble and fragment. There was a large hole where Angewoman's arrow had pierced MadRobotmon, and electricity was once more rippling across his body. MadRobotmon looked up at the remaining Digimon, who were looking down at him triumphantly, and made a move towards them, when his body crumbled away in countless black fragments, rather slowly, and disappeared. His head was last, and the dim light in his eyes was rather surprised and filled with anger. A moment later, all that was left was a few black fragments, and a moment later, nothing was left.
The remaining Digimon turned back towards the vehicle, and as they did so, they were all surrounded by a yellow light, and dedigivolved back to their rookie forms, all rather tired yet glad, for they had finally managed to defeat one of Supreme Darkness. Izzy opened up the trunk, and the three Digimon flew in, Gatomon hanging onto Tentomon's legs, and they were greeted with cheers by their Digidestined partners.
Sora hugged Biyomon, glad mostly that she had not been hurt in the battle, while Kari squeezed Gatomon so hard she thought she might burst. Izzy congratulated Tentomon many times, before maneuvering the vehicle about in the air, and heading back to Oidaba.
By this time it was near mid-day, and despite the large breakfast they all had, they all were rather hungry, especially the Digimon, who were nearly famished. The flight back to the apartment that they were all staying in was uneventful, perhaps because Izzy kept the vehicle under stealth mode, for he did not wish Supreme Darkness to find them and take out their rage upon them, not with their Digimon as tired as they were.
Kari was staring out of the window at the passing scenery which was slowly becoming more urban, and slowly stroking Gatomon as she napped in her lap. Tai took notice of this, and asked, "What's the matter, Kari? We've finally defeated one of Supreme Darkness."
"I have a feeling that the others have succeeded in a similar way as we," Izzy said, steering the vehicle above a rather tall bridge crossing a large body of water.
Kari continued to stare out of the window, and did not look at the other Digidestined. "I know that, but I feel as if we only defeated a small part of Supreme Darkness." She turned to look at Tai and Sora, and she seemed rather worried. "There are still three of them out there, and I feel a dark shadow falling across the city, as if they are very angry. They might decide to take out their anger on innocent people instead of us."
Tai had nothing to say to this, as he could not think of what to say. Sora, however, leaned over and put her hand on Kari's shoulder. "Don't worry, Kari, we'll do everything we can to stop Supreme Darkness before that happens."
"I hope so." Kari managed a weak smile, and then turned back to look out the window, apparently deep in thought. Several moments passed, when she said, rather quietly, "I can feel their dark power as a cold breeze which never seems to end, and the sun seems almost blocked out by their shadows."
Tai and Sora glanced at each other, yet said nothing. Sora glanced down at Biyomon, who was resting against her knee, and then out of the window. While it was true they had defeated one of Supreme Darkness, it had not been an easy battle, and Sora found herself wondering if Kari was right, and that the remaining members of Supreme Darkness were much more powerful than either MadRobotmon or SteelSpidermon. What would they do if they would have to fight all three at once?
Tai glanced again at his sister, who was still staring out of the window, and she appeared uneasy, as if she did not know what might happen next. Tai reflected that his sister always cared about other people, and she never wanted to cause pain or hurt to another person if she could help it, and at times she might worry too much. But this was one time that she was right, for even Gennai had said that Supreme Darkness would do whatever it took to find the Digidestined and destroy them. Kari must have felt terrible while she was in the hidden apartment, for she knew that while she was safe, everyone else in Oidaba was in danger of Supreme Darkness' wrath, when they discovered they could not find the Digidestined.
They arrived at the apartment ten minutes later, and Izzy managed to convert the vehicle back into something that resembled a car before he parked it in the underground garage. The Digidestined took an elevator up to the top floor, and when they arrived at the door of the apartment, it was opened, and there stood Gennai, who seemed very glad to see them.
All the Digidestined soon sat down to a lunch of soup and various sandwiches, and it was at least twenty minutes before they began to speak of what had happened. Gennai spoke first, and told of how SteelSpidermon had been defeated, and then Tai told the others how they had defeated MadRobotmon.
"This is much better than I had hoped for!" Gennai said, after he had heard what had befallen the other Digidestined. "Two of Supreme Darkness have been defeated, even only by the merest of margins, and none have suffered grievous injury because of it. However," His tone suddenly became much more grave, "Now begins the most difficult part. While two of Supreme Darkness have been defeated, and that is a rather serious blow to them, three of them still remain, and these are the most powerful of all. You will be hard-pressed to defeat them, if you harm them at all."
At his words, nearly all of the Digidestined felt their elated feelings slip away, to be replaced once more by fear and worry, and they all realized that what Gennai had said was unfortunately true, that they had only defeated the two members of Supreme Darkness by very narrow margins, and that the rest of Supreme Darkness would be much harder.
"Do not think that it is impossible to defeat Supreme Darkness, only very difficult." Gennai said, seeing the sudden downcast looks upon all of the Digidestind's faces. "We must now speak of how to defeat the remainder of Supreme Darkness, and I would ask you all not to think that su ask is impossible."
"We can't wait around for Supreme Darkness to come and find us." Kari said. "If we do, there's no telling what they will do to draw us back out into the open."
"So you're saying we should just hunt them down?" Matt asked. "Why do we have to bring the fight to them?"
"They want to destroy us so that they can take over our world." Kari said, her voice rising slightly, yet she was not at all reluctant to say what she just said. "If we find them before they can cause any more harm to Oidaba, then why shouldn't we just find them and destroy them?"
"If we do that then we'll run into all three of them at once. We won't be able to defeat them all at the same time." Matt said in a manner which suggested that Kari did not know what she was talking about.
"So you think we should just wait until they start destroying the city?" Kari practically yelled. "We aren't all as selfish as you, Matt."
Matt looked as if he wanted to yell something in response, but the glares he received from Kari, Gennai, Sora and Mimi stopped him cold. He sat back in his chair and did not say anything.
"It seems to me that, for the moment, the decision to stay in this apartment would be best." Gennai turned to look upon Kari, who looked as if she wanted to comment. "While this may not be the best decision, and that some of the folk of Oidaba may be injured, we must also think of ourselves, even if it is considered to be selfish. If we were to go to the place where Supreme Darkness is hiding and fight them, we would most likely be destroyed ourselves, and then who should stand against Supreme Darkness and defend your world? It would be better to wait until one of them appears in Odaiba, separate from the remainder of Supreme Darkness, and fight that one all together. In this way, we would have a much better chance of defeating one instead of all three." Kari did not seem to approve of this at all, but she seemed less angry than she had before, as if she realized what Gennai had said was true.
"I do not know when or where Supreme Darkness will strike next, and I shall not know until very shortly before they actually attack. It may be tomorrow, a week from now, or even later today, but we must be prepared for it. Now, if there are no more questions, I should say that we should not speak of Supreme Darkness any more today."
Most of the Digidestined watched movies for the rest of the day, very glad for the break, while those like Izzy worked on his computer, and Mimi took a rather long nap. Dinner consisted of chicken, mashed potatoes, various Japanese side dishes, and cherry pie, and during dinner, Gennai told of more tales of the Digital World before the Digidestined had come to it. After dinner, they all went to bed, as they were tired out from all that had happened that day.
As Tai lay in the hide-a-bed, next to his sister Kari, with Agumon sleeping soundly on the floor, he watched the rays of the sun trace a golden trail across the far wall. Gatomon was curled up next to Kari, already asleep, and now and again her tail would twitch. Tai felt rather tired, yet he found that he could not fall asleep. He kept going over the events of the past day in his mind, and he wondered what would happen now that two of Supreme Darkness had been defeated. He glanced over at his sister, and saw that she had her back to him, yet did not appear to be asleep. Tai thought she must be still feeling badly that she was safe inside the apartment, while the rest of Oidaba was in danger of being destroyed by Supreme Darkness. He wanted to say something to her, to possibly make her feel better, but he could think of nothing to say.
He must have eventually fallen asleep, for the next thing he knew, he had suddenly awoken, to find that something was not right in the apartment. There was a chill hanging about the air, as if the air conditioning had been left on for the entire night, and the room seemed to be in shadow, even as Tai looked about the room.
A sudden fear came over Tai a moment or two after he had gotten up, as if something terrible was about to happen. He rose slowly to his feet, careful not to disturb his sister or their Digimon, and as he did so, it seemed to him that the cold chill suddenly increased, as if there were now four air conditioners going instead of only one. The floor beneath his feet felt as if it were covered in a layer of ice, and as he slowly headed towards Gennai's chair, it seemed that the shadows about the room seemed to thicken, and it was only until Tai was standing a foot away from the chair did he actually see it. Gennai was sleeping soundly in it, and try as he might, Tai could not wake him.
He turned and headed towards the hallway where the other Digidestined were sleeping, when he saw Sora, clothed in a rather large t-shirt which hung down past her short sleeping shorts immerge from her bedroom. Even through the shadows, he could see that Sora had a worried look about her face. Her eyes became slightly more awake when she saw him, and came over to him, hugging her arms around her.
"Tai, what's going on?" She asked, and then wrapped her arms around Tai and pulled him close. "It's so cold . . . and the shadows. When I got up, Mimi wasn't in her bed."
Tai hugged Sora back, and felt a slight bit of warmth from her, which fought off some of the chill which had settled about them both. "Something's wrong. Gennai won't wake up . . . who else is missing?"
"I don't know. I only saw that Mimi was not there." Sora said, and shivered. Tai hugged her closer for a moment, and then the two of them went down the darkened hallway, their hands clasped together.
The first bedroom they came to was the one that Sora had occupied with Mimi and Joe. Mimi's bed was empty, and the shadows seemed to loom heavily over the bed, as if a dark storm cloud. Joe was lying in his own bed, still asleep. They woke him up, and he was rather startled to find the apartment in such a state, and was as confused as Sora was as to Mimi's whereabouts. Gommamon, who was sleeping at the foot of Joe's bed was awoken, and after Sora woke up Biyomon, who was sleeping soundly in Sora's bed, the three of them continued on to the next room.
Izzy and T.K. were sleeping in their beds, yet Matt's bed was empty, and when they had been shaken awake, they did not know where Matt had gone, nor why the chill and the shadows loomed over the apartment. They awoke their Digimon, and the five of them returned to the living room. The shadows seemed to have only increased, so that the room was now nearly all in darkness, and Kari could only just be seen, still asleep in the hide-a-bed. Tai woke her up, and she also seemed startled to see the shadows about the apartment, and the cold chill in the air. She woke up Gatomon, and Tai shook Agumon awake, and the six of them stood together in the living room, huddled together to keep warm against the chill, which only seemed to be worsening.
"What are we going to do?" Kari asked. "Did you wake up Gennai?"
"I tried to, but he won't wake up." Tai said, and all the Digidestined grew more worried still at this news.
"Mimi and Matt wouldn't just leave us without a note or something." Joe said.
"Speaking purely from a logical viewpoint," Izzy said, sounding much calmer than he looked. "It would appear that whatever has caused such shadows and the chill about this apartment would also be responsible for the sudden disappearance of Mimi and Matt."
"It has to be Supreme Darkness." Joe said, trying to remain calm. "But how is that possible? Gennai said that we would be safe inside this apartment!"
"It doesn't matter how safe we are." Kari said, a determined look in her eyes. "Mimi and Matt are gone, and we've got to find them."
"How can we find them if we don't even know where to start looking?" Joe asked.
Kari turned and looked down at Gatomon, who was standing next to her feet. "Do you think you can track them down?"
"I can try." Gatomon said, and she stood up on her hind legs and closed her eyes for several moments. When she opened them, she said, "I've got a scent, but it's kind of faint. I don't know how well I can follow it. All of these shadows are confusing my nose."
Gatomon headed for the apartment door slowly, as if she were not entirely sure which way to go, and the Digidestined followed after her, not knowing what to expect. Gatomon paused at the front door, and after Kari opened it for her, she started down the hallway, which was also filled with the strange shadows, with the Digidestined following closed behind
Several times Gatomon paused for a few moments to make sure she was going in the right direction. Each time she did this, the Digidestined grew more worried, wondering what was happening to Mimi and Matt. Gatomon halted in front of a closed door near the end of the hallway and said, "This is where the trail ends."
"This is a door which leads up to the roof." Sora said, sounding slightly confused. She glanced at Tai, who glanced at Sora for a moment before saying, "Let's go see what's up there."
