Disclaimer: This is a test of the public disclaimer system, which goes off anytime a fanfic writer, such as myself, uses characters that he doesn't own, which unfortunately belong to somebody else, in one of his stories.. If you don't hear a beep in the next ten seconds, please call your local television stations to report this discrepancy-
Trimon: I've got the candy!
AF (Anime fan): Whoo-hoo!
Trimon: When did you start calling yourself AF?
AF: Well, I got bored of typing my full name, so just call me AF now.
Trimon: Didn't Epsilon say in that omake that "Anime fan" was a pretty stupid pen name? Maybe you should think about changing your name.
AF: Well, I'm too lazy to do that now, maybe during the summer.
Trimon: By the time you post this it will be the summer.
AF: Maybe, maybe not. And that's if I can post it all, considering that ff.net seems to go down every summer for some reason or another. I've got to remember stocking up on fics.
Trimon: So, have you finished thinking up new forms for me yet?
AF: Yep! It took a few more knocks to the noggin, but I have! And your new forms even have hands, so you don't have to bother levitating all the stuff with your psychic powers anymore!
Trimon: (looks at the floating boxes of leftover Halloween, Easter, and birthday candy): And people ask if I'm a Starmie, and if you're a Pokemon trainer.
AF: I will be once I get my hands on Pokemon Ruby! Or Sapphire! Whichever one I can get, or even better, both!
Trimon: You're insane.
AF: That's why it's your job to keep those scary men with the white jackets away. Anyways, now your Ultimate form is Elemmon, short for elements, and you can control the elements basically, since you'll look like a walking star with hands.
Trimon: In other words, just like Starmon?
AF: Don't bring that up, I'm saving my real creativity for your Mega form, Pulsarmon!
Trimon: (eyes go shiny) that one actually sounds cool.
AF: One of these days, I'll get around to describing him, or drawing a picture of him. Or get one of my friends to draw him, and I'll post it somewhere. For the moment he's just this celestial being, and I mean celestial as in from the stars, not heaven.
Trimon: You know we've just wasted a page talking?
AF: I plead temporary insanity!
Trimon: Temporary?
AF: Sorry readers, all five of you, for this excessive rambling, but I needed to let off some steam about something, so, before you go away, here's the story!
To clear up any confusion, the second book will be two or three chapters, as I put the entire half of the first book in one chapter, but the 2nd, longer half, will be cut into several chapters, so book II will last several chapters, unlike the first Book.
And to Serpentreize, sorry bout the review thing, I turned off the "only signed reviews" button (I had forgotten it was still on) and thanks for correcting me about Dukemon's lance's name. I had it mixed up with Garmmon from the fourth season.
Part III: Sacrifice
"I spy with my little eye something… white!"
"Snow?"
"How'd you guess so fast?"
Renamon shook her head, wondering what she had done to deserve being on guard duty with Guilmon of all people, er, Digimon.
Then she remembered that they had drawn lots for duty, and thus she had been temporarily partnered up with Guilmon.
She glanced at the group which was hunching in the snow, keeping up a low fire, courtesy of Flamedramon and Agumon.
Tai stood up and stared around their surroundings.
"So, which direction do you think we should head, Tai?" Davis asked from beside him, clutching his cloak tighter around him.
Tai tested the wind with his finger, then stooped to the ground, and fingered a few shreds of white snow, and then took out a small compass.
"Well, brilliant leader, what do you thing?" Matt asked from behind Tai.
Tai was silent for a moment before dramatically closed his eyes, spun around for a second, and then pointed in a random direction. "That a way!"
Matt fell down, creating a small crater, before staggering up. "That's your idea of directions?"
Tai shrugged. "The Drive Pass is north, but I'm not sure we should even be heading in that direction. It's dangerously close to Isengard, and I'm not sure how much resistance we'll encounter if we head that way."
Tai's eyes narrowed. "Besides, I don't know if I'll be able to face my sister yet."
Davis nodded in agreement. "Me neither."
Matt snorted. "So, our two leaders of 'Courage' have turned chicken?"
"Hey!" both goggleboys turned towards the Chosen of Friendship.
In another part of the camp, the Shinjuku Tamers were listening to Henry as he patiently explained the other functions of their Digivices.
"Bascially, these things are some of the most powerful computers ever created in the history of this world," Henry said, pointing to the collection of multi-colored D-Arcs on the ground. "They're more advanced than even the D-3 models, and have quite a few more handy accessories."
"Like what?" Jeri asked from where she was sitting on his right, between Henry and Takato.
"Well, for instance, Terriermon, look at Guilmon for a moment," Henry said and the Vaccine Digimon, who was too busy shivering to make any snide comments, just looked in the direction of the Virus dino.
A screen appeared in the air above Henry's D-Arc, but the Technomage frowned at the words "No data" on the screen. "That's strange, it should be able to analyze any new Digimon it meets, but it can't get a reading on Guilmon at all."
Takato rubbed his head. "Well, you see, I sorta drew him up, so maybe that's why your Digivice can't analyze it."
Henry blinked. "Drew him up? Ooookkkaayy. I won't ask. Anyways, Terriermon look at Guardromon instead."
"You mean that of hunk of junk next to Kazu?"
"Hey!" Kazu protested. "Guardromon is not a hunk of junk!"
"Yes I am!" Guardromon said confidently. "You've called me that lots of times, remember?"
Kazu stared at the Champion for a moment, before dropping his head and sighing. "Never mind."
A picture of Guardromon appeared over Henry's D-Arc, but this time, unlike Guilmon, there were words at the bottom of the screen, along with a short description.
"Okay, this button shows you his attacks, his type, and his possible evolutions," Henry said, tapping at several buttons at the bottom.
"Hey Henry, can you explain why these things can actually modify our Digimon with the effects of our cards?" Takato asked, as he held up one of his favorites, a Hyperwing card.
Henry blinked. "You already knew about that?" He decided to ask about that later, but seeing the rapt attention of the others, he decided to continue with his tutorial. "Have any of you others used your cards?"
Kazu and Kenta both raised their hands proudly. "Yeah, I got Guardromon to hit this stupid tree I never liked with Terra Force! It was one of the coolest things ever!"
"Yeah, and then MarineAngemon here just froze all the rubble, and then we just shattered it! No muss, no fuss," Kenta added.
Henry noticed that Jeri was being quiet, especially compared with the enthusiastic Digimon fan boys, and then asked, "Hey Jeri, have you tried it yet?"
Jeri's head jerked at being addressed, but then answered in a sly voice. "Well, no, I wasn't sure that Leomon could handle it, and some of the attacks are pretty weird."
Henry nodded, approvingly. "Good."
Kazu and Kenta's jaws both fell open. "What?"
Henry frowned at them. "Don't you understand? The D-Arcs can manifest the effects of the cards, but it is a double-edged sword. You said you had your Guardrmon use Terra Force? Well, what would've happen if it had lost control of it? Just slashing the card doesn't give him the innate knowledge of how to use it, like a real WarGreymon would have. Also, it drains a Digimon energy, and too many cards can be fatal."
Kazu and Kenta both cringed as Henry berated them.
"Now," Henry said, picking out a random card from his own deck. "You know that Digimon are partially manifestations of our dreams and imaginations, right? Well, normal Digivices and D-3s just channel a partner's energy into their Digimon, allowing them to digivolve at will. Now, our D-Arcs go a step further, it can also create the effects of the cards as well. Basically, if you believe that the card will work, then it won't matter if it's a hand drawn piece of cardboard or a limited edition holographic card."
"Whoa," Takato said, as he shifted through his deck. "What about the cards other than attacks?"
"They're safer to use, as they take less energy. Like, Terriermon could use this Brave Shield card," and Henry held up the card showing Wargreymon's shield, emblazoned with the Crest of Courage, "to easily deflect an Ultimate's attack."
"Or hide me from Suzie," Terriermon added.
"Who's Suzie, a girlfriend?" Jeri asked suddenly, wondering why she felt jealous.
Henry laughed. "No way. She's my little sister. Though she's actually around 10, she likes to act like she's five occasionally, and at those times she dresses up Terriermon and her own partner Lopmon in "Princess Pretty Pants" clothes."
Terriermon twitched as they all imagined Terriermon in a dress. They were all rolling on the ground with laughter within seconds.
"Hey, do you know how traumatizing it is being handled like a doll?!" Terriermon protested.
Only MarineAngemon nodded in sympathyc, as all of their other partners were ever in a cuddly form.
"Why don't you guys laugh louder?" a sharp voice scolded suddenly, and they all looked up to see the stern face of Rika Nonaka, hands on her hips.
Now that her cloak was open slightly, Takato could see a small card holder on her belt. "You play the card game?" he asked surprised.
Rika looked at the scattered cards on the snow, and then at her own collection of cards at her waist. "Yeah, and I bet I could whoop you in five minutes flat."
"Hey!" Kazu protested, stepping up to her, only to be pulled back by Henry.
"I really wouldn't advise it," he said in a stage whisper. "She's so good that they call her the Digimon Queen of the Cards. I can only think of one person, in any of the three races, who's been able to beat her-"
"What was that, brainiac?!" Rika snapped.
Henry turned back towards her, and held his hands in front of him to try to pacify him. "Nothing, nothing."
Takato, meanwhile, was pondering the title of Digimon Queen. For some reason it sound familiar. He'd known that he had mentioned to Guilmon, but he had no idea where he had originally heard the term.
"Hey Rika," he asked. "You aren't really an Elf Queen are you?"
Rika glared at him. "And what gives you that idea?"
Takato shrugged. "You were at the council, so I assume you had to pretty high ranked to be there."
Rika continued glaring at the young goggle boy, but though Takato found his resolve melting, he still stood firm.
After another minute of this, Kazu remarked "Man, this is like one of those weird animes where the hero and heroine first meet and stare into each others' eyes forever and eventually-"
Kazu quickly found himself on the receiving end of the queen's glare. "He he, never mind."
Jeri gave a sidelong glance at Kazu. "You watch those types of anime?"
Kazu sweatdropped, and his sweatdrop got even bigger when Rika's glare turned into a malicious grin.
"Why, Kazu, is there something you would like to tell us?" Rika said, smirking.
"Well, anyways, back to the original topic," Takato reminded her. "Are you really some sort of queen?"
Rika's glare returned to the gogglehead, until Henry sighed.
"Rika, if you aren't going to tell him, then I might as well just to get this over with," he said.
Rika didn't look happy, but just nodded once before turning away wit a swish of her blue cloak.
Takato looked towards Henry now for the explanation, and luckily he didn't have to wait long.
"Rika's royalty, though she's not that happy about it," Henry said. "Technically, she's a Queen right now, because both her mother and grandmother aren't quite fit to rule anymore, due to age, and, in her mother's case, personality, so she's the official ruler of an Elf kingdom."
Takato's eyes widened. "Whoa…" His sentiments were echoed by the rest of his Shinuku friends.
"Right now, her grandmother is acting as regent for Rika, while she travels around. If it were up to her, she wouldn't even have any claim to the throne, but she still feels some obligations to her family."
"How'd you find out so much, Henry?" Jeri asked, as she leaned forward a bit.
Henry flushed slightly, and quickly adjusted himself so they couldn't see his face, but unfortunately Terriermon saw everything and grinned mischievously as he thought of the possibilities.
"Well, my family's been visiting Rivendell for years now, so we've met, and most of this stuff is gossip among the Elves at Gennai's house."
Jeri nodded in agreement, as she remembered some of the
comments had made about Rika being made completely of ice. She hated to say it, but now after spending a
week traveling with the Digimon Queen, she had to agree with the rumors.
Takato frowned. "It isn't nice to say things like that behind people's backs."
Henry gave a helpless shrug. "I know, which is why I don't indulge in gossip that much. Most of this I found out from my father who found out from Gennai. But some of the rumors about her are rather nasty."
"Ah, come on, I bet she can't be all that bad," Takato said, and then stood up.
"Where are you going, chumley?" Kazu asked.
"I'm going to go talk to her," Takato said determinedly.
Henry's eyes nearly bugged out at that, while the rest of the group shuddered. "Uh, Takato, are you sure that that's a smart thing to do?" Kenta asked, as he adjusted his glasses again.
Takato shrugged. "What, its not like she bites right? And she seemed okay when I talked to her before."
Henry still thought this was a bad idea, but decided to warn Takato at least. "Its your funeral, but a word of advice- try to avoid any mention of the card game, as she'll then feel inclined to challenge and flatten you, and also, whatever happens, do not mention the name of Ryo Akiyama within hearing range of her."
Takato blinked. "The guy who saved us back in Shinjuku? What's so bad about him?"
Henry gestured for Takato to come closer, and then he whispered in Takato's ear "He's the only person to actually beat her at the card game, something that she is still pissed off about."
Takato winced. "Okay, gotcha, the card game's a no-no with her."
Takato walked warily up towards Rika's back when she said "So, how much did visor-boy bet you to come here?"
Takato started, but quickly recovered. "Uh, visor boy?"
"Your moronic friend with the even more moronic Guardromon."
"Kazu?" Takato asked. "He's not that dumb, and neither is Guardromon."
They heard a yell from behind them, and they both turned around to see Guardromon flying circles in the air above Kazu's head.
"Guardromon!" they heard Kazu shout. "When I said let's take my Digivice for a spin, I didn't mean that!"
Takato sweatdropped. "Okay, well, Guardromon just takes things a bit too literate."
"And who would wear a visor on a quest?" Rika continued listing the flaw of Takato's friend. "And that's MarineAngmeon gotta be the weakest Mega I've ever seen. And your girlfriend's deck is packed with good cards, but she doesn't have a clue about combos."
"Jeri's not my girlfriend!" Takato stammered, blushing just the littlest bit.
Rika finally turned around and smirked at him. "Yeah, and I'm a fashion model."
Takato had to bite on his tongue from saying that she could
be one, but the memory of her glares from before on her perfect face kept him
from saying it.
"So, how long till I sic Renamon after you?" Rika asked.
"Uh, please, uh, no need to do that, uh, I was just leaving," Takato said, turning around and starting to lift his right foot before remembering something he had glimpsed before. "Uh, Rika, just one question, uh, what are you hiding?"
"WHAT?!?" Rika's voice had instantly turned subzero, and Takato could almost feel her gaze burning into his back.
He felt hands grab his shoulders, turn him around, and then hoist him off the ground. Man, she really wasn't just a pretty face!
"Would you care to repeat that?" she growled out, holding him an inch off of the snow-covered ground.
Takato was almost shivering now, and it wasn't because of the snow. "Well, its just that your eyes-"
"What about them, and if you mention anything about 'brilliant' 'piercing' or 'violet' we'll have to find a new Hazard Digivice bearer!"
Takato gulped, but figured he might as well finish what he wanted to say.
"Well, its just that I had a friend once, who was really
hurt badly by her parent's death, and afterwards, she acted all happy, and
normal, and smiled, but she was still hurting on the inside, and it took her
years to heal."
"And does it look like I'm smiling?" Rika ground out in a dangerously sweet voice.
"N-no, but it just that she kept on pretending that everything was okay, when it wasn't, but her eyes were just like yours, and I was just wondering who had died, or if he left, or-"
Takato couldn't say anymore as he was dropped right onto the cold snow as Rika let go of him.
He looked up directly into the violet eyes of Rika. "Let's get one thing straight. Just because I'm a part of this Fellowship that's supposed to protect you from Mordor doesn't mean that I won't hurt you if you bring up my father again. Got it?"
Takato nodded shakily, and then Rika stalked off.
"Man, chumley, you were so brave!" he heard Kazu say, as Kazu and Henry helped him to his feet and brushed off any stray snow. "I thought she was going to get that fox of hers to just kill you the way she was looking at you!"
Henry shook his head. "My friend, I really doubt we'll encounter anything more dangerous than her before the Drive Pass, so I commend you for surviving Hurricane Rika."
***
"That idiot, that moron, that fool, that, that, gogglehead," Rika spat the term as if it was a very vulgar swearword, and to her it was.
"Are you okay?" asked a disembodied voice next to her that she easily recognized as Renamon.
"Does it look like I'm okay!" she bit out.
"No," came the dry answer. "But I must say I'm impressed."
"About that gogglehead's stupidity?"
"No, about his insight," Renamon answered. "He's the first person besides me who has been able to see past your walls so easily to what's inside."
Rika stopped. "Renamon, stop. He left a long time ago, and I don't ever want to talk about him again, and I am not letting Takato bring him up."
"You didn't call him gogglehead," Renamon noted, causing Rika to stomp off in frustration again.
Reanmon, in invisible mode, watched after her Tamer silently for a moment before turning to the much larger group of Tamers behind her.
She hated to do this to Rika, but at times she still acted like a child, throwing tantrums. And that boy had again surprised her and Rika by figuring out the truth about Rika's other parent so quickly.
***
They trudged up the mountain, the only colors for miles around on the white snowcapped mountains.
It took them nearly two days to reach the Drive Pass, but, then they met with the mother of all snowstorms.
"This is ridiculous!" Davis shouted, as he tried to keep his goggles from being blown away. "This is the summer season, there shouldn't be any snowstorms like this around!"
"Unless Kari decided to just summon one up!" Tai said, as he cloak flapped in the wind (A/N: Think Taichi from V-Tamer )
"She can do that?!" Matt shouted over the wind, holding onto Garurumon. Lucky for Gaururmon that he had a thick fur coat.
"She's the Digidestined of Light, she can do whatever she wants!" Tai shouted back, as he pulled Agumon out a snow pile he had fell in. "Now all we need for this to be a complete disaster is for an avalanche to come down on us!"
***
"One avalanche coming right up!" Agnimon said, as he pounded his burning fists into the ground, causing more snow to melt, and more rocks to burst apart and go tumbling down the side of the mountain.
"Why does Lady Kari want us to just drop a few rocks on them?" Bolgmon (dub: MetalKabuterimon) said, as he rolled towards a border, picked it up, and then chucked it down the cliffs.
"They have several Megas in their party, and if you want to foolishly rush in and attack them, be my quest," Mercuremon said, as he tilted his mirrors to intensify some of the sunlight and then melt the snow. "We are powerful, yes, but still no match for Megas."
"I just wished it weren't so cold up here," Shutumon complained, as she sent another gust of wind into the storm already brewing.
"Don't worry, Shutumon, with Blizzarmon on the job, this'll be over in a jiff!" Blizzarmon said as he stomped towards the edge, and then jumped up, shouted out "Avalanche Step!" and brought his axes down onto the hard terrain releasing a whole landslide of rocks.
***
"You just had to jinx us, didn't you!" Matt complained as they dodged falling rocks.
"Its not like I knew it would start right now!" Tai shot back, as Agumon shot out a Pepper Breath at a large snowball above them.
Renamon herself was flickering in and out in the avalanche of snow and rocks, smashing rocks that headed towards Rika, and diverting snowballs that got too close.
"Watch where you push those things!" Takato shouted, as he ducked a large piece of snow that Renamon had accidentally pushed towards them.
"And could your own Digimon do better?" Rika snapped back at him, as Renamon continued teleporting to block the avalanche.
"I bet he could!" Takato retorted, and then shouted "Come on, boy! Let's show her what we can do!"
Guilmon ran forward, and lowered his head and roared "Pyrosphere!"
A blast of fire came from Guilmon's mouth and smashed apart another large snowball, and then Guilmon rushed forward, and used his "Rock Breaker" attack to knock away the other boulders.
"That's it, Flamedramon, think you can go up there and find out what's causing this?" Davis asked his Armored partner, as Flamedramon stood next to him, surrounded by a fiery aura that basically melted any snow that came close.
"Agumon'll go with you," Tai said, and then in a bright flash of orange light, Agumon warp-digivolved to Wargreymon. Though Veemon also could warp-digivolve, Imperialdramon might accidentally knock more rocks down (along with the rest of the mountain considering his size), and Flamedramon was more suited for this type of environment.
The two fire Digimon sped up through the falling debris, and neared the top.
Petaldramon looked over the side, and saw the two fireballs that were Wargreymon and Flamedramon. "Uh oh, I think we've got company."
"It doesn't matter, we've cut off this passage for them," Mercuremon said, as he surveyed their handiwork. "But perhaps our esteemed friend Duskmon could take care of them?"
Duskmon, who had been silent till now, stepped forward.
"I guess that's our cue to skedaddle," Agnimon said, as he slide evolved to Vritramon, and spread his wings. "You just need to distract them Duskmon. I doubt even you could handle a Mega."
Duskmon said nothing as the other Legendary Warriors there departed in their own ways, until only the Human Hybrid of Darkness was left.
He raised his two red swords, crossed them, and then said in a quiet voice "Conquest."
Darkness started expanding from his body, creating a dead zone that Wargreymon and Flamedramon crashed right into.
"What's going on?" Wargreymon shouted, as he tried to maneuver through the dark space. "Flamedramon, you there?"
"Somewhere," came the dragon Digimon's voice from Wargreymon's right. "What is this?"
Wargreymon sensed something behind him, and quickly whirled around and raised his two gauntlets and felt something metal slam into his armor.
Wargreymon took a blind swipe forward, and was rewarded with a slight grunt, and then the darkness retreated, leaving only Wargreymon and his friend on the mountain.
"What happened?" Flamedramon asked as he blinked his eyes to readjust them to the light.
Wargreymon shook his head as he thought about his brief encounter with that mysterious Digimon. "I don't know. Whoever it was, he was strong. At least Ultimate strength."
"Whoever could block both of our sights would have to be at least that strong," Flamedramon agreed. "We should get back to the others."
Wargreymon nodded. "Yeah, Tai'll want to hear about this."
***
Tai grimaced after his Digimon related his story. "So, Kari's got this passage under guard. If we go any further, we're bound to be buried by another avalanche or ambushed by a small army."
"Isn't there another way?" Takato asked.
Tai thought for a moment. "Yes, but I really don't want to go back there."
"You don't mean Moria, do you?" Henry asked.
Tai sighed. "Yep. I definitely didn't want to go back there this lifetime or any other, but it looks like we have no choice."
"Ah, come on, how bad could it be?" Davis asked. "I've heard the stories, but not all of them could be true, could it?"
"Most, if not all are true, including that apocalyptic Digimon," Tai snapped.
Rika snorted. "Well, looks like the Chosen of Courage is chickening out."
Tai glared at her. "If you'd been there before, you wouldn't be so skeptical."
He was quiet for another moment, before abruptly standing up. "We have no choice. We must go through Moria if we are to reach Mordor. I just hope all of us survive this."
Tai didn't notice the glimmer of a mirror and the tip of a nose buried in a snowpile not far from the group
***
Kari blinked. "You're kidding."
Mercuremon and Grottomon, still bowing, shook their head. "No, me heard right," Grottomon said. They is go to Moria."
"But that's mad!" Kari said, tapping her staff against the floor in frustration. "No one who has gone in there in the last century has ever returned. I was hoping he would keep going like the determined idiot he was and then we could ambush him!"
"It seems that the Chosen of Courage has left our little stage," Mercuremon said. "Lucemon's forces now have the honor of facing and dying against them in battle."
Kari shook her head. "But they may not survive and-"
Kari's eyes flashed for just a moment, and then she held her head for a moment, groaning, before standing erect again.
"No matter. Moria is still inhabited by that Digimon. I doubt he'll be able to kill them, and I'll be there to clean up after him. Agnimon, Wolfmon!"
Two figures stepped out from the shadows. "Uh, that's Takuya and Kouji," Takuya corrected.
She glared at them. Takuya gulped. "Uh never mind, Agnimon and Wolfmon, yep, that's us."
Kouji rolled his eyes at Takuya behavior. "What do you want us to do, Laky Hikari?"
"Take a hundred Dark Ring and Spiral Digimon and head for Lothlorien. I want you to ambush them after they leave Moria, and if they reach Lothlorien first, then ambush then when they leave."
Kouji nodded, and turned around.
"One more thing, take all ten of you," Kari added.
Everybody raised their heads in surprise at that comment.
"Uh, do we really need all that firepower?" Takuya asked uncertainly.
"When fighting the Digidestined, you can never have too many Digimon," Kari said confidently.
***
After a really long detour, the Fellowship of the Digivice had arrived in a deep, dank, dark cave. At the back of it was a tall door, covered with intricate carvings.
As they neared it, Takato tapped Henry on the shoulder. "Uh Henry, one question?'
"What is it, Takato?" Henry said in a slightly irritated voice. He was already on edge just being this close to Moria.
"What's Moria?"
Henry stumbled, and would've fallen into the pool of water, if Jeri, who had been closest at the moment, hadn't grabbed the back of his cloak.
Henry turned to Takato. "You're only asking now?!?" Henry shouted, and then winced when Tai and Matt looked back at him, especially with the cave echoing his scream.
Takato winced. "I'm sorry, its just that I heard of it in a couple of legends, but I really don't know that much about this part of the world. My dad traveled north, not west."
Henry sighed, and tried to ignore the little voice in his head to "Momentai!" Oh wait, that was Terriermon.
"Do we have to explain why the sun rises in the morning?" Rika asked sarcastically from behind them, where she and Renamon had been watching for any followers. Neither of the pair could put their finger on it, but this cave gave them a bad feeling.
"Well," Henry started. "Long ago, during the First Age, before the Digivices of Power had been forged, Moria was essentially the Technomage's capital. There were other large cities, but none as developed as Moria was."
"A city? Down here?" Kenta asked. "How'd you do that?"
"My ancestors had built Moria deep under these mountains for three reasons," Henry said. "One, defense. There were still many primordial evils wandering themage's capital. There were other large cities, but none as developed as Moria was."
"A city? Down here?" Kenta asked. "How'd you do that?"
"My ancestors had built Moria deep under these mountains for three reasons," Henry said. "One, defense. There were still many primordial evils wandering the world during the First Age, evils that I hope have been killed in the time since. The mountains protected them from most of the monsters, and provided them a near impregnable fortress. Two, resources. Though we don't look it, we're really good miners, and there were many jewels and metal down here, diamonds, garnets, rubies, emeralds, gold, silver, and platinum. Third, well, let's just say that my people have always done lots of experiments, and we didn't want any of the fallout to damage any neighbors. One of them got loose, and that's why Moria was abandoned."
"Hey, you forgot to mention that mother load of ChronDigizoid metal," Davis called back.
"Oh yeah, you all know that ChronDigizoid metal is the strongest substance in the world, right?" and he received four nods. "Well, most of the time, ChronDigizoid is created as part of a D:igimon's body when he digivolves, but here at Moria, my people found a deposit of natural ChronDigizoid here, and used it to forge many weapons. What more, its said that the ChronDigizoid discovered here was somewhat stronger than the other weapons created by digivolution, so our weapons were highly prized. Even Dukemon's weapons, the Aegis and the Gram, was made from Moria ChronDigizoid metal, though he appeared long after Moria fell."
Takato guiltily checked his pocket for the aforementioned weapons. He had thought they looked shiner than normal ChronDigizoid, but had pegged it down to his imagination. He wondered if Henry knew that the Aegis and Gram could also shrink at well, which was how they both fit in his pocket.
They had reached the door, and Tai had been examining intently for a few minutes already.
"Well, any idea what it says?" Matt asked.
"After careful examination and thought, I have now concluded that… I have absolutely no idea what it says," Tai finished, causing Matt to slap his head in frustration.
"I thought you had been here before?"
"I was here once as Taichi," Tai corrected, "so that was give or take a millennium ago. And I came through the south gate, not the eastern one, and this one is still locked."
Tai turned towards the Technomage of their group. "Hey, Henry, could you help translate this for me?"
Henry stepped up and squinted at the golden words. "Let's see- 'Come weary travelers to the gates of Moria and just relax and speak the password.'"
"Password?" Kazu asked incredulously. "How are we supposed to know the password to this dump if everybody who knew it died years ago?"
Henry sighed. "Therein lies the problem."
Davis rubbed his hands together. "Well, there are so many languages right? I know several, Tai knows some more, so does Matt, and we've always got our resident Technomage and Elf expert on hand for some help."
And so ensued the wackiest guessing game in history as the group started shouting out words from "Open" to "Mellon" to "Open Sesame" to "Veni vedi vici" to "*%^&* door!" and other words that can't be said in a fic under R rating.
Finally, they all sat down in frustration on the rocks.
"Stupid, stupid, door!" Davis said, as he kept kicking it with his foot, until it got too sore to continue.
Rika and Renamon, who hadn't taken part in the guessing game were staring uneasily at the pool of water. Was it their imagination or were their ripples in there.
Unfortunately, their observations were ruined as Kazu and Kenta started skipping stones across the surface of the water, causing lots of ripples.
"Stop that!" Rika ordered, and the two boys immediately stopped. "I don't want to find out what's sleeping down there."
"Well, sorry!" Kazu said. "We're just trying to relax like that door and Terriermon are always saying."
Henry jerked. "Of course!" He chuckled at the simplicity as he stood up and walked to the door. "Now I've got it. Momentai!"
And to their amazement, the door then creaked open.
Terriermon himself couldn't believe it and was silent- for all of two seconds. "You see? You guys should listen to me more often instead of telling me to be quiet. The dog-rabbit knows all."
"Careful you don't let your ego grow bigger than your head, or else you won't be able to get the doors" Henry scolded as he walked through the door.
The rest of the group moved to follow him, when a tentacle shot up through the surface of the water and wrapped itself around Takato's leg.
"It's got me!" he shouted, as he frantically grabbed onto the closest thing, which happened to Rika's waist.
Rika was also yanked off her feet, but Guilmon grabbed her to stop Takato from being pulled under, and then Renamon grabbed onto Guilmon to keep him from being pulled into the water.
"A little help here," she asked as she strained to keep the four of them above water.
Rika reached for her cards and quickly pulled one out and slashed it through her D-Arc. "Digimodify! Seadramon's Ice Blast Activate!"
Renamon let go of Guilmon with one paw, and held the other glowing one up. "Ice Blast!"
An icicle flew from her paw, and hit the tentacle from where it rose from the water, eliciting a roar from the beast below and also freezing the surrounding water.
"You can let go, gogglehead," Rika snapped as Takato was still attached to her.
The goggleboy blushed and rapidly let go and turned towards the churning water.
A white squid monster thing rose out of the water, shattering the ice, and Takato only had time to identify it as a Gesomon, before it was reaching for him again.
Fortunately for Takato a Guardian Barrage courtesy of Guardromon hit Gesomon's right side, knocking the aquatic Digimon off balance.
"Everybody, inside!" Tai ordered. "That thing's only the tip of the iceberg, we've got to get inside now!"
Matt looked ready to protest, until two WaruSeadramons rose out of the water behind Gesomon and also started going for Takato.
They all ran inside the doors, and quickly started pulling the doors closed when the serpentine bodies of both WaruSeadramon slammed into the doors, forcing them shut.
Tai sighed in relief.
"Did you notice that?" Matt asked wearily, listening outside for a moment more.
Tai nodded. "Yeah, they went for Takato first."
***
After Davis had provided some light with his staff, the Fellowship moved onward through the dark passages of Moria, being very, very quiet.
While they walked, Tai still kept trying to remember which way to go. As the only one who had been there, he was the unofficial guide currently.
Finally, they came to what could've been a guard chamber in yester years, but now all that was left was a skeleton next to a well.
"Well, this looks like as good a place as any to set up camp," Tai said, and promptly sat down on a relatively dry spot, and pulled out his blanket.
"So, Tai, do you have any idea where we're going?" Matt prodded.
"I'm thinking, I'm thinking," Tai snapped at the Chosen of
Friendship. "I haven't been through this
part of Moria before, and my memory's still a bit
foggy. Anyways, a little nap will
probably help. Kazu,
you've got the first shift."
"What?!" Kazu protested, but Tai was already out like a light.
"Don't worry, we'll relieve you in an hour," Takato assured him as he and Guilmon also curled up to sleep.
"Easy for you to say," Kazu grumbled, as he leaned against Guardromon. "Ah, just put a lid on it," he muttered.
"Okay!" Guardromon said brightly, and then walked over to the well, letting Kazu drop, and then pulled what was left of the original lid for the well from the side and put it on, knocking the skeleton and a long chain to fall down the well.
Everybody snapped awake, weapons out, but all they saw was a sheepish and angry Kazu and proud Guardromon.
Matt groaned. "Next time, why don't you throw yourself in!"
"Sorry, it was an accident!" Kazu shouted.
"Quiet!" roared Davis, as he and Veemon laid back down. "We're trying to get some sleep here."
Kazu muttered some more, but sat back down and faced the way they had come, keeping watch with Guardromon.
Most of the Fellowship was asleep, except for a few members.
Takato couldn't be sure, but he wondered if his night-vision had ever been this good before. Shinjuku had never really been that dark, even during the night, with all the parties going on. And was it his imagination or did he hear an insane giggling in the distance somewhere?
He slowly lifted his head, and checked on Guilmon, who was muttering about bread in his sleep, and looked around.
It seemed that everybody was asleep. Wait, where was Renamon?
"Having trouble sleeping?"
Takato nearly shouted out at the quiet voice next to him, but managed to restrain himself, remembering the early incident with Kazu.
He looked up and saw the kitsune standing over him, also looking in the same direction as Takato.
"Has the gogglehead noticed him?" Rika asked from below her hood, still not stirring.
"Him?" Takato asked.
"That crazy little thing that's been following us. You heard him just then, didn't you?" Rika asked again, raising her head. Takato was surprised to see her hair wasn't up in its customary ponytail, but fell to her shoulders instead. He figured that she only let it down when she went to sleep.
Takato nodded. "I thought it was just an animal or something."
Rika shook her head. "That's no animal, its definitely a Digimon, and its been following us since we left Rivendell."
"What is it?" Takato asked, and for a moment thought his Digivice had vibrated like some demented pager.
"I don't know," Rika said.
"I do," said another voice, and they both saw that Davis had sat up now. "Its Keramon, the last owner of Takato's Digivice."
Takato blinked. "The mutated thing that my dad met?"
Davis nodded. "Yeah, after we all left, Keramon eventually followed us. What you don't know is that Takehiro told Keramon where he was from. Keramon hated the sunlight, but its obsession with the Hazard Digivice forced it to leave its little cave."
"What happened to it afterwards?" Rika asked. "We would've heard of such a strange Digimon before in Rivendell."
"I don't know the whole story, but I think he followed us back as far as Mirkwood, and then turned West. Towards Mordor. I think that's how the Nine knew to look for Takato in Shinjuku. Afterwards, he somehow popped up in Mirkwood, trying to get to Shinjuku, but the Elves there captured him as a favor for me. But he got out again, and this is the first I've seen of him since."
Rika snorted softly. "So now we have an insane Rookie after us, along with who knows what else is down here."
"Don't worry," Davis said when he saw the expression on Takato's face. "There's no way he can match all of us at once, and even Guilmon could probably handle him alone. And stranger things have happened. He may yet do something."
"What?" Takato asked, hoping for another explanation.
Davis shrugged. "I have absolutely no idea."
Takato sweatdropped, and then adjusted himself again. "I'm going back to sleep. I don't want to fall asleep on my feet later."
"Good idea," Davis agreed, and also laid back down besides Veemon.
"Renamon, keep an eye out, I don't expect that tin-can and his Digimon to be that vigilant," Rika said, before pulling her hood back up.
***
A few hours later, Tai had decided on a direction, up, and they had started their weary march yet again.
After another hour of their quiet walking, Takato had heard another distant sound.
"What is that?" he asked, stopping, and looking towards a nearby pit that seemed to be the source of the sound.
Henry peered forward. "I'd know that sound anywhere, it's the sound of a computer, and that's a hammer."
"So, that means we're not alone down here?" Kenta asked nervously.
Henry nodded grimly. "I'd think we'd better up our pace a little."
A few more miles underground, and then they could all see a dim light coming from above.
"I'd never thought I would be so glad just to see a little sunlight," Davis said, as he extinguished his staff, and pulled open the next door.
They all stopped when they saw what was within.
"It's a tomb," Jeri said quietly, her voice quivering slightly as old memories were stirred by the coffin and the smell of death.
Henry himself had gasped when he saw it. "Its Jenrya…"
"Who?" Kazu and Kenta asked together.
"My ancestor, Lee Jenrya, the last lord of Moria, before my people were forced to flee. It was said that a small group of our people had been trapped in here during the evacuation, including Jenrya. Now I know its true."
Davis was walking along, when he nearly tripped on something. He looked down and saw that it was a large book. He picked it up, coughed when he opened it up and dust went flying and blinked at the foreign letters.
"Hey, Henry, can you read this?" he asked, holding the book out to Henry.
Henry took the book gingerly, and turned the pages gently. "Barely. This is an old dialect. Wait, let me try something."
Henry set the book down on the floor, and took out his D-Arc and held it up over the book. The Digivice emitted a soft glow and then letters appeared in the air above the screen in Standard.
"These things can translate stuff too?" Kenta asked, amazed.
Henry nodded distractedly. "Only if its read that language before. I had scanned in this dialect from some of our older texts at the Lonely Mountain a few years before, but I never expected to find more of it."
Henry picked the book up and then moved it to the top of the coffin so he could scan it better when he noticed Jeri was still standing, frozen, at the entrance.
"Jeri, are you okay?"
The brunette jumped, but then pasted a false smile on her face. Leomon looked at her carefully. He had hoped that Jeri wouldn't have another trauma episode again so soon.
"I'm fine," Jeri said shakily. "Its just that I don't like being around… dead people."
Henry nodded in understanding. "Just let me get this into my D-Arc's memory, and then we can leave."
Suddenly, in the distance, a deep sound boomed. A drum. Seconds later, they could hear the sound of running feet getting closer and closer…
"Bar the door!" Tai ordered, as he drew the Grey Sword and beside him, Matt drew the Garuru Gun.
Kazu and Kenta, the nearest, threw themselves at the door, and Leomon dropped the door latch- and just in time as the doors shook with the impact of something.
Davis stepped forward, staff raised. "Get behind me! Check the other door, and get ready to run for your lives. I'll hold them off."
Matt pulled open the other door leading out, and shouted "Clear!"
The barred doors shook again and again as whatever on the other side kept getting madder.
Davis raised his staff, and a black glow appeared around the doors, and they stopped shaking.
Everybody else ran out, except for Takato and Tai.
"Come on Davis!" Takato shouted, seeing the strain Davis was under.
The black glow flickered once, then again, as the doors started shaking again.
A black glow surrounded Davis himself, and sweat poured down his brow, until several large cracks appeared in the door.
Finally, Davis roared "Positron Laser!" and a blast of blue light shot from his staff and slammed through the weakened doors, and sent whatever was on the other side of the door flying.
Takato and Guilmon cheered, as they and Tai and Agumon ran to help Davis up.
"Go," he whispered as they grabbed his arms. "Its still alive."
Takato's eyes widened. "But how could it survive an attack like that?"
"I'm not sure, but I don't think we have a chance against it in here, in this unholy darkness."
There was no more time as several more Digimon, Devidramons, flew up through the broken remains of the door and charged at the three goggleheads.
"You take him," Tai said, handing Davis over to Takato. "I'll handle these guys."
Tai leapt up into the air, and swung the Grey Sword, and was very surprised when it easily decapitated the lead Devidramon.
Tai landed behind the beheaded Devidramon, as the head separated from the body before both broke in dust.
Tai looked down at the gleaming edge of his weapon, and grinned ferally. He stood up and held his sword before him. "Who's next?"
Takato and Davis stumbled along, until Davis recovered enough to stand on his own and they ran till they met the rest of the group.
"Where's Tai?" Matt asked, looking around warily.
"He said he'll catch up," Takato answered.
The words were barely out of his mouth, when Tai ran into the room, still holding his weapon.
"Run, there are a whole lot of Digimon right behind that aren't happy to see me," he panted, before a giant drill broke through the walls to their right.
A dozen Minotaurumon stampeded out, swinging their drill arms left and right.
Rika dodged the swing of one of the Minotaurumon easily, and pulled out a Blue Card. "Walk all over them, Renamon! Digi-modify! Matrix Digivolution activate!"
"Renamon digivolve… Taomon!"
"You too, Terriermon!" Henry added, as he slashed another Blue Card. "Digi-modify! Matrix Digivolution Activate!"
"Terriermon digivolve to… Rapidmon!"
"Let's help them, Leomon!" Jeri shouted, as she concentrated on one of her cards, just like Takato had taught her, and then- "Digi-modify! Matrix Digivolution Activate!"
"Leomon digivolve to… Grapleomon!"
Matt raised his gun to shoot a charging Minotaurumon before Tai shouted "Don't! You'll kill us all."
Matt started to ask how his weapon could be so power, before he was forced to block the downward swing of the Minotaurumon's drill with the barrel of the Garuru Gun. "Gabumon!"
"Gabumon digivolve to… Garurumon! Garurumon digivolve to… Weregarurumon!"
Tai impaled an Minotaurumon on his sword, and cursed as he looked at the low ceilings. "Damn! Its too big for Greymon in here and I don't want Wargreymon to waste his energy on small fry like these."
"You call these small fries?!" Kazu shouted, and ducked when Guardromon went flying back, also creating another Blue Card at the same time. "Come on, we can do it, Guardromon! Digi-Modify! Matrix Digivolution Activate!"
"Guardromon digivolve to… Andromon!"
"Let's give them a shocking experience, Veemon!" Davis said, as he shot at a Minotaurumon with his staff. "Digi-Armor Energize!"
"Veemon armor digivolve to… Raidramon! The Storm of Friendship!" Raidramon leapt forward, and used Electric Bite on a Minotaurumon's arm, and then let go and hit its drill with a Thunder Blast.
Takato gulped as he slashed a Hyperwing card. "Times like these make me wish I hadn't make Guilmon's other forms so large."
Guilmon dodged the drill of a Minotaurumon, jabbed it in the chest with his head, and then circled around behind it and hit it with a PyroSphere.
Unfortunately, this caused it to see a seemingly defenseless Takato and it charged at him.
Rika, the only one who wasn't currently dodging a Minotaurumon, saw Takato's peril first. "Taomon! Takato's in trouble!"
"A little busy here," Taomon said, as she pushed her brush against a Minotaurumon's drill.
Rika hesitated for a moment, before drawing her own sword and leaping at the Minotaurumon's side.
It cried out in pain as Rika's sword point dug in deep, and Rika pulled it out for another swing, when it swung its own fist and sent Rika flying.
"Rika!" Takato ran towards the fallen Elf, and held his own sword up shakily, only to have it pulled out of his grasp by the Minotaurumon's much stronger hand.
It roared triumphantly, ignoring the pain on its back from Guilmon's attacks, and ran forward. "Earthquake Drill!"
Takato stepped backwards, towards Rika, and quickly reached into his pocket and pulled out Gram. "Shield us!" he commanded, and he threw it up into the air, and the red and white shield quickly grew to its original size. Takato fell back onto Rika to keep from banging his head on it, and then the shield easily covered both Takato and Rika underneath it.
The Minotaurumon continued running forward, and slammed its drill into the special ChronDigizoid shield, only to cry out in pain as the drill tip quickly dulled and then the entire drill shattered against the strong metal.
The Minotaurumon was put out of its misery moments later as Tai sliced it in half, the last of them to fall, leaving Tai to gape at the bright red shield in front of him.
"Is that the Aegis?" Matt asked, stunned at seeing the legendary weapon.
Davis walked up to it, and tapped on the side of it. "Uh, hello?"
There was the sound of banging from inside, and some shouting and cries from within, before the shield shrunk to a smaller size that Takato could easily hold.
Takato and Rika slowly stood up, with Rika blushing for some reason, and Takato also blushing and sporting a few bruises on the side of his face.
"Don't you ever do that again, gogglehead," Rika hissed, as she turned around to hide her blush from an already snickering Kazu and Kenta.
"Guess there wasn't a lot of room under there, rriiiggght, Takato?" Kazu hinted, poking Takato in the side.
Takato kept blushing, until he felt someone grab him again. The same person as last time.
"I thought you said you had put that back?!" Rika growled as she realized what Takato was holding.
"Uh, Takato, how did you get that thing?" Davis asked, joining the interrogation. "And where did you hide something that size on you?"
Takato sweated at the Digimon Queen's glare, and answered slowly "Well, I never said that I hadn't taken it, and they sorta wanted me too-"
"Wait, they wanted you too?" Matt asked with a raised eyebrow. "You make them sound alive."
"They are, in a way," Tai said, looking at Takato closely. "Rika drop him. We'll talk about this later."
Rika reluctantly let Takato down again, and whispered in his ear "WE are definitely going to have a talk later, causing Takato to gulp.
"Come on, move it or lose it!" Davis shouted, as he mounted Raidramon.
The others also were picked up their respective Digimon, Kenta riding with Kazu on Andromon, and Tai riding on Greymon, once he had room to digivolve.
Their frantic escape continued, with more encounters with random Digimon, until they reached a huge open space, with a stairway leading down. They followed it, when Digimon on the walls started shooting sniper attacks.
"Now, can I use it?" Matt asked Tai mockingly.
Tai nodded, and said "Watch out for the recoil," when Matt fired the gun at the walls and was nearly thrown off the stairs.
The energy ball wasn't that large, but when it hit the wall, that section of it disappeared along with several dozen Digimon.
Matt gaped at the damage, and then held up his gun. "I think I like this thing." A few more attacks from another part of the wall hit near them, and, after bracing himself, Matt fired a few more times.
They continued running, and had finally reached level ground and found a bridge.
"The Bridge of Khazad-Dum," Henry said in awe, still hanging half onto Grapleomon and half onto Jeri, so that Rapidmon could maneuver better.
"This should lead to the outside," Tai said, pointing at source of white light on the other side.
The had started running forward, and most of them had crossed the bridge, when Raidramon and Davis stopped at the midpoint.
"What is it?" Tai asked, as Greymon stopped besides Raidramon.
Davis dismounted, and Raidramon devolved to Veemon. "That thing from before is back. I'll hold it back, you guys go ahead."
"But Davis, you're still tired from the last time," Takato protested.
"I'll manage," Davis said, and then there was no more time as something arose from the dark pit.
Henry and Rapidmon had stopped, and turned around to face the dark creature and raised his Digivice. "Mephismon. Ultimate level."
Mephismon just grinned cruelly. "A Technomage. Haven't seen any of your kind here for a few centuries."
Henry kept his guard up, but when Mephismon saw that Henry still didn't recognize him said "Maybe this will help."
Mephismon's form turned into dark energy for a moment, and then it exploded until it was almost six stories tall.
Henry paled and nearly fainted, but still had enough energy to raise his Digivice. "Galfmon, Mega level Digimon. His Dead Scream can wake the dead, and the Black Requiem is his version of the apocalypse."
"A Mega…" Grapleomon said in awe, before he had to reach out to grab Henry when he let go of Rapidmon.
Grapleomon put him on his left shoulder, across from Jeri on his right shoulder.
"Henry, what is it?" Jeri asked, concerned.
"Th-th-th-th," Henry stuttered, before he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up into Jeri's eyes.
"Come on," she prodded gently. "You helped me in the tomb back there, can you at least tell me what scares you so much about that Digimon?"
Henry took a deep breath and then spoke. "Long ago, my ancestors were experimenting with an interdimensional portal. They managed to get it to work- and accidentally pulled something into this dimension. He came through. He wiped out hundreds of Technomages, and forced us to abandon Moria, which is why he is called Jenrya's Doom."
The rest of them backed away from the Bridge of Khazad-Dum, with Tai and Matt debating whether to attack, or let Davis fight by himself like he wanted.
Galfmon roared as it stepped forward with its four feet. Davis held his staff up grimly, and his Digivice shone with light.
"Veemon, you ready?" Davis asked grimly.
"Ready whenever you are, Davis!" the Rookie said confidently, and then he flashed with light. "Veemon warp-digivolve to Imperialdramon!"
The Dramon flapped its wings, roaring in answer to Galfmon's own roar. Davis stood in front of Imperialdramon, his own staff glowing.
"I am Daisuke Motomiya, the Black!" Davis shouted defiantly before the beast of destruction. "I am the Second Chosen of Courage and Friendship! And the future Chosen of Miracles! You will not pass this bridge!"
Galfmon didn't seem to hear, as it took a step forward.
"Fire!" Davis commanded, and Imperialdramon lowered his head and shouted "Positron Laser!"
Galfmon gave a growl that sounded something like "Dead Scream," but whatever it was, it shot a huge blast of black light from its own mouth. Imperialdramon's blue laser crashed against Galfmon's attack, and barely held it back, and managed to push into the side, where it crashed into the walls of the cavern and made a huge dent.
Galfmon reared back, and a giant mouth opened at its waste, and shot out a huge wave of dark power. Davis levitated up, while everybody else on the other side leapt back and tried to dodge the shockwave.
The mouth at the waist shot another attack sphere, but this time Imperialdramon retaliated with "Mega Crusher!" and fired it own sphere from its mouth.
The black and blue attacks collided and struggled to overcome each other, before both exploded in a cataclysmic explosion.
"One more step, and I promise, you'll be sorry!" Davis threatened, as he gripped his staff tightly.
Galfmon almost seemed to smirk, and then simply took another step forward.
"You asked for it!" Davis said, then raised his staff with a great cry and slammed it into the bridge. It broke asunder.
The bridge itself was now riddled with cracks, and pieces of it were slowly falling away.
Davis leapt backwards, and floated towards Imperialdramon's head. "Blast that bridge before he gets across completely!"
Imperialdramon was more than happy to oblige. "Positron Laser!"
The blast hit the bridge, and the whole thing broke apart, falling into the pit, along with Galfmon.
The two watched the dark Digimon fall into the depths, and both sighed in relief, when they saw something slowly rising out of the darkness.
Davis' mouth fell open. "You're kidding?! That thing can fly?!"
Indeed it could, as slowly, Galfmon was rising back towards their level, and would be there in a few seconds more.
Davis' face settled into a resigned expression. "Guys, go on ahead! When you get out, blast the entrance! I'll catch up later!"
Tai gasped. "Are you kidding? There's no way you can take that thing alone!"
"I'll manage!" Davis shouted back. "If you guys don't go now, then all those other Digimon that are hiding because of this guy will eventually get the nerve to come out! Go, now! None of your Digimon have the bulk to match this guy at the Mega level!"
Davis turned away from his friends, and smiled grimly. "It's been nice knowing you, buddy."
"Hey, Davis, let's not talk like that yet," Imperialdramon answered.
Davis nodded, and then adopted a confident look. "You're right. We can beat this guy. Imperialdramon, charge!"
"You've got it!" Imperialdramon gave a challenging roar, and then plowed itself into Galfmon, pushing it back down.
Tai, Matt, and Takato ran to the edge. Matt raised his gun, and cursed when he couldn't get a clear shot at Galfmon since Imperialdramon was still wrestling with it.
"Go!" Davis' voice echoed up from the top of Imperialdramon's head. "We still have a few more tricks up our sleeves! Imperialdramon, mode change!"
"Imperialdramon mode change to… Fighter Mode!"
Imperialdramon, now a bipedal dragon, raised his arm cannon, and stuck into Galfmon's face. "Positron Laser!"
Galfmon roared in fury, and tried to push Imperialdramon away, but the Mega Dragon kept pushing Galfmon deeper into the abyss. Davis leapt from Imperialdramon's head, and pulled out the Elven sword he had acquired from his previous adventure with Takehiro, and stabbed it into Galfmon's arm, causing it to weaken more.
"Go!" Davis' voice came once more from the darkness, and there was another flash as Galfmon and Imperialdramon battled, then the three were gone from sight.
"Davis…" Takato whispered, before being shocked back to reality as an attack whizzed by his head.
With the unholy Galfmon gone, the other enemy Digimon had come out from hiding, and were hurling attacks at the party from across the bridge.
Takato raised the Aegis again, which easily withstood the attacks, before one particularly bold Digimon, a Boltmon, actually jumped across the canyon and swung his axe at them.
Tai swung the Grey Sword at it, but it blocked him and knocked Tai off his feet, and Matt hesitated to use his own weapon at such close quarters. Weregarurumon tried to attack it, but a quick axe swipe sent the wolf Digimon back to Rookie. Agumon and Guilmon ran forward, but were quickly knocked flat on their backs.
Boltmon turned towards Takato and raised its weapon. "Tomahawk Crunch!"
Takato deflected the first blow with the Aegis, but it kept coming, and his left arm was weakening, and Takato's mind was still in shock from Davis' sacrifice, so he wouldn't last much longer.
Deciding quickly, he reached into his pocket, and pulled out his other special item, the Gram.
Takato felt another strike hit Aegis, and quickly enlarging the Gram, he cried out and ran forward and impaled Boltmon on the lance.
Takato had a glimpse of Boltmon's surprised gaze before his body broke apart, and Takato staggered.
Tai looked at the abyss one last time, before picking up Takato. "Go, go!"
"You're just leaving him?!" Matt shouted incredulously, pointing at the pit.
"We can't go after him, we're all to exhausted from that last fight already," Tai said, already running. "Don't make Davis' sacrifice for nothing! We've gotta get out of here now!"
Matt gave him one more look, before picking up the unconscious Gabumon and running after Tai.
They reached the exit, and ran out into the bright sunlight.
"Where's Davis?" Henry asked.
"He's gone," Tai said, eliciting gasps from everybody. "There's nothing more we can do for him. Just blast that exit!"
"But-" Jeri protested before Rika ordered "Taomon! Attack!"
Taomon raised her arms and called out "Thousand Spells!"
Scrolls flew from her sleeves, and though they didn't look very dangerous, when they hit the rock face, they exploded, causing a small rockslide, burying the entrance.
"We've got to find cover!" Tai commanded, as he pulled the shellshocked Takato along.
"Don't you have a heart?!" Matt shouted incredulously at Tai. "Look at them, they need to rest! Or is battle all you care about?"
"We have no choice," Tai ground out, not looking happy. "By nightfall, they'll have dug their way out, and in our condition, we don't have a chance."
As if to emphasize their point, half of their Digimon devolved to their lower forms.
Matt nodded grudgingly, and then picked up Gabumon again. "Which way? You've been here before, right?"
"That way," Tai pointed towards the wood. "We'll be able to find sanctuary there."
The group moved forward, except for Takato.
Tai put his hand on Takato's shoulder. "He wouldn't want you to grieve Takato. And besides, he said he would catch up later, and you never know. He might survive this."
"How?" Takato asked in a lost voice.
"Davis hadn't reached his full potential yet," Tai said. "If he finally allowed himself to go all out, then he might have a chance against Galfmon."
Takato perked a little at that, but then asked "You said 'might'?"
Tai winced. "Anything's possible."
Takato nodded, and turned towards the woods, following Tai's lead.
But he looked one more time over his shoulder. "Good-bye Davis. May we meet again."
And so Takato Matsuda continued his quest with his Fellowship, one member less.
End part 3…
AF: I love sacrifice scenes, don't you?
Trimon: Of course, he'll be back eventually, for anybody who's read the books and watched the second movie will know.
AF: Yeah, but I hoped I described the battle scenes okay. I've got the video of it going on in my brain right now, but its always hard to put in words.
Anyways, I should've been studying for exams instead of typing this chapter, but I've been meaning to get to that particular stand at the Bridge of Khazad-Dum scene for months, so at least that won't be distracting me from my exams.
If any of you are huge Tolkien fanatics, I apologize for any mistakes, I'm just trying to write an entertaining story, so I might get a few of the details wrong. Hope I kept everything straight. One of these days I've got to revise this whole fic.
Oh well, another part of Book II, then onto Book III, and hopefully I'll get the next chapter out in a month, or sooner, since my summer vacation starts in two weeks! Hurray! Until then, ja ne!