DIGIMON TAMERS: AFTERMATH
BOOK 3
by Vashkoda
(Disclaimer: This work of fiction uses characters belonging to Toei and Saban without their permission. I am getting no profit from it. I only do it because I think Digimon is a great show, and I want to keep the story alive!)
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"Piiipapo?"
Now that they were merged with their digimon, Ruki and Ai could understand MarineAngemon's speech. Do you think it's right that we left Juri with the D-Reaper? he asked.
"I don't see what we could have done to help her," replied Sakuyamon grimly.
"We just have to hope there's a way to separate her data from the D-Reaper later," said Beelzebumon. "Just like we have to hope there's a way to save Makato and Ryo."
"And me."
The three Megas twisted in mid-air, reflexively bringing their weapons to bear on the digimon that had appeared beside them. It was a humanoid cyborg in black armor, and Ruki recognized it instantly from her cards.
"HighAndromon," Sakuyamon said, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. "What are you doing here? Are you one of the Chosen, or a rebel?"
"Please, I not here to fight!" exclaimed the android. "Once was Guardromon! Merge with Tamer!"
"Kazu, is that you?" cried Beelzebumon in surprise, lowering his rifle. "Why are you still talking funny?"
"Popipiii." They are not fully merged, MarineAngemon explained. Guardromon loaded Kazu's data!
"You what?!" cried Beelzebumon, grabbing HighAndromon by the neck and choking him.
"Only way save human!" wheezed the cyborg. "Baihumon say...he would die!"
Beelzebumon relaxed his grip for a moment. "And let me guess--because he's one of your mighty Sovereign, you were willing to believe anything he told you? Despite the fact that his kind would like nothing more than to wipe out all the humans on this world?" the demon digimon growled
"He said he knew, because he save a human too! He said his partner was very hurt, and only biomerge could save him!"
"His partner?!" screamed Beelzebumon in fury. "I'm Mako's partner! He had no right to take him!"
"But what if biomerging really did save his life?" asked Sakuyamon, resting a hand on Beelzebumon's arm. "You were both there that day. You saw how the acid rain hurt Jenrya. Who knows how long Makato was exposed to it--or how badly he was burned? Impmon might not have reached him in time. Thankfully, another digimon did." She gave Beelzebumon a stern look. "Now let HighAndromon go. He's not the one you should be angry with."
With a sigh, Beelzebumon released the cyborg digimon, who quickly backed away in case the other changed his mind.
"So sorry. Hoped Baihumon speak truth. Human with me now, in here, but not awake," said HighAndromon, pointing at his own head. "I want find way to free him. That why I come to you."
"Piipipu." Unfortunately, we don't know how to do that.
"Maybe Baihumon does," said Sakuyamon. "Speaking of which, where exactly did the big cat run off to after you met him? We need to find him, and have a very long chat."
The cyborg winced. "Must not hurt Baihumon! Good inside!"
"Yeah, sure he is," snorted Beelzebumon. "That's why he almost had us killed back in his palace."
"No, only fooling other Sovereign!" insisted the Mega. "Afraid be chained like Qinglongmon if show kindness to humans. But now he say they go too far. He leave to free Qinglongmon!"
The others exchanged hopeful glances.
"That leaves only two Sovereign to deal with," said Sakuyamon with a grim smile.
They could already spot the giant forms of the digital gods hovering over the cliff edge. As they approached, Zhuqiaomon sent out out volley of fireballs to warn them away.
"Already told you, this our fight!" the phoenix digimon called out.
"We're not here to fight you or the rebels--haven't you been listening?" cried Sakuyamon. "There's an even greater threat to us all. The D-Reaper is getting ready to evolve, and when it does, it'll destroy everything it touches!"
Xuanwumon's twin heads laughed. "It no threat to us."
"Because of your bargain, right?" growled Beelzebumon. "Well let me tell you something, bud--when that thing gets big and ugly, it stops playing by the rules. And by then it'll be too late, 'cause it'll be a lot stronger than you."
The two Sovereign eyed each other uncertainly.
"Piipopapo." Trust us, we've seen it happen.
Zhuqiaomon snorted. "Other problem first. Rebel leader threat--must teach lesson."
One of Xuanwumon's heads peeked over the edge. "Take too long. We go down and get him."
The Tamers and their digimon were startled to see the large turtle dive off the cliff. A cloud suddenly appeared beneath it, slowing its decent as it hovered over the river below.
"Uh oh--not good idea," muttered HighAndromon.
Beelzebumon gave him a curious stare. "Why not?"
Suddenly they heard a loud roar as the waters of the river rose into an enormous wave and fell crashing upon the Sovereign. Xuanwumon sputtered as he raised his heads above the flood, glowering at the digimon before him.
"Because that down there. Saw it when flew over river," said HighAndromon, shivering. "Very strong. Very angry."
It was a machine-beast type, with blood red armor, a tail, four legs, and two mechanical arms that ended in long flat palms like the kind Justimon used to summon his Accel Arm attack. Four cannons stretched out from its shoulders.
"I master of water! You not hurt me!" laughed the turtle god, calling forth his own attack. "Black Hail!"
Jagged chunks of dark crystal fell from the sky, striking the digimon directly. It stood still as it absorbed the blows, yet otherwise showed no sign of actual injury.
"Finished?" asked the new digimon mockingly. Without waiting for a reply, it announced, "My turn! Mugen Cannon!"
The ends of all four cannons lit up with intense energy. Xuanwumon braced himself, yet at the last second, the machine digimon raised its shoulders and took aim at the cliff above. The Tamer-Megas all dodged aside, but the beams shot over their heads and struck Zhuqiaomon instead. The Sovereign's eyes widened in surprise as he fell from the sky and toppled over the cliff to plunge into the icy river below.
"Ooo, that can't be good," observed Beelzebumon.
"You next," grinned the red digimon. "When I absorb Sovereign, I be new digimon god!"
"Ryo, stop!"
They all looked up in surprise to see SaintGalgomon swoop down and take a defensive position in front of Xuanwumon. Dukemon stood poised on the robot's shoulders, lance and shield in hand.
"Ryo, this isn't like you! C'mon, you're in there somewhere--take control! You know this is wrong!" cried the knight.
"That won't work--we tried with Baihumon and it didn't do anything," grumbled Beelzebumon. "Dukemon, SaintGalgomon--get out of there! Those guys aren't worth getting yourselves killed over!"
"On the contrary," said a familiar voice. "If we die, the Digital World--as unstable as it is right now--could be ripped apart."
"Qinglongmon! Baihumon!" greeted Sakuyamon in relief. "I hope you guys know a way out of this?"
The remaining two Sovereign landed on the cliff edge beside them. Baihumon's eyes glowed orange as he looked down and recognized the evolved form of the digimon he had fought earlier.
"Could kill him," suggested Baihumon with a toothy grin.
"No, that digimon is merged with a human, just as you are," retorted Qinglongmon. "We must find a way to separate him from his partner, first."
"Piipipopi." But we don't want to hurt Monodramon, either! He was brainwashed by the rebels. He doesn't have his memories back!
"Yeah, and in case you've forgotten, that whole rebel thing is your fault," growled Beelzebumon, pointing an angry finger at Baihumon. "If you guys hadn't started making all those stupid laws, none of this would have happened!"
"Look out!"
Once again, the red digimon's cannons aimed high over the heads of Xuanwumon and the others to strike at the cliff. This time the blasts struck both Baihumon and Qinglongmon, who gasped and sagged to the ground.
"We've got to protect the Sovereign!" cried Sakuyamon. "MarineAngemon, help me shield them!"
"Meanwhile, we'll take the offensive. C'mon HighAndromon!" cried the dark angel digimon, summoning his laser rifle. The cyborg digimon hesitated as he watched Beelzebumon dive down the cliff, then gave a resigned sigh and followed him.
Suddenly, Zhuqiaomon erupted out of the water and struck the rebel champion from behind, digging its flaming talons into the red armor. The digimon looked startled for a moment, then swung its torso around a hundred-and-eighty degrees and swatted the giant bird out of the air with its large palms. Zhuqiaomon crashed against the river bank.
"You pay for that!" cried both of Xuanwumon's heads in unison. A dark mist began to rise from the water.
"Get out of there!" shouted Beelzebumon, who recognized the Sovereign's attack from when Kazu had slashed its card. "That mist will drive you insane!"
"Oh yeah, that's all we need," quipped SaintGalgomon as he quickly rose out from the water, lifting Dukemon with him. "Let's make the already-crazy-Mega digimon even more psycho."
The mist did seem to be having an effect. The rebel champion screamed at unseen opponents and fired his cannons wildly in every direction. One blast headed straight for Zhuqiaomon, but a shield of rainbow light and violet petals materialized in front of him, deflecting the attack.
"Guys, you'd better get back up here quick. We have a problem," called down Sakuyamon.
The other Tamer Megas rejoined her and MarineAngemon on the edge of the cliff. The rebel army had regrouped and seemed to have taken heart at the sight of their champion's return. They began closing in on Baihumon and Qinglongmon, waving their weapons and talons menacingly.
"No, they good Sovereign!" protested HighAndromon, trying to stop their advance. "Not enemy!"
"No such thing as good Sovereign," spat a Deramon, rubbing a wing against its glistening beak. "We not be ruled by them again!"
"We don't have time for this," growled Beelzebumon to the others. "In case you've forgotten, the D-Reaper is getting ready to evolve, and when it does, it'll make all this look like a summer picnic!"
Dukemon and SaintGalgomon gasped in shock. "What do you mean, the D-Reaper's here?" demanded the knight. "The Wild Bunch wouldn't be crazy enough to bring him back!"
Qinglongmon uncoiled itself and lifted its head unsteadily. "They had no choice. The D-Reaper's program was already integrated into the Digital World's code. Its program was automatically included in the database we used to restore the digimon after the reformatting."
"We got it, Shiuchon," grumbled SaintGalgomon irritably. "I don't want to be reminded that you're just as responsible for all this as they are. You and Mako both," he added, glaring at Baihumon.
"So what now--are you going to let those rebels destroy us to teach us a lesson?" huffed the dragon Sovereign angrily.
"That's enough, guys! As you pointed out, Jen, we have bigger problems," sighed Sakuyamon, sounding drained. "The D-Reaper's about to drop by for a visit, there are these rebels here who want revenge on the Sovereign, and we have Ryo going postal on the other two. And I don't know about MarineAngemon, but I don't think I can keep shielding them much longer."
The pink angel peeped wearily in agreement. I'm not as strong without Kenta.
"Where is Kenta? And Juri and Leomon?" asked Dukemon.
Beelzebumon, MarineAngemon, and Sakuyamon exchanged meaningful glances.
Dukemon waited impatiently. "Well?" he asked, growing fearful as they took longer to answer than they should.
"Pipopopa," said MarineAngemon finally. She's with the D-Reaper. Elecmon is unconscious, probably from whatever's happening to Juri. We think the D-Reaper's using her and Culumon to evolve.
"This can't be...."
It was a scene out of her worst nightmares. Juri was back inside the D-Reaper, in a circular chamber lined with pulsing red walls. She cried out as thick iron-tipped cables began slithering towards her. She backed away in fear, but they stopped suddenly and writhed and snapped, merging with new cables popping up from the red ooze. They slowly coalesced into another familiar shape.
"It can, and it will."
It was the caricature the D-Reaper had made of her body. It didn't remotely resemble her now, with its blue skin, yellow eyes, and long spiky hair. It flexed its shoulders as two jagged wings slipped out from behind its back.
"Get away!" Juri hissed, though she was the one quickly taking steps back. The creature studied her with its glowing reptilian eyes.
"Are we not friends, then?" Its jagged smile made it look even less human, revolting Juri further. "We must have had some kind of relation in the past, considering the form I once took." The monster chuckled, indicating its warped body.
Juri trembled with suppressed emotion. What it said was all too true--Juri had helped it, though not intentionally. She was certainly not its friend! If that monster thought she would let it sap her will and energy again, it had another thing coming!
"Culuuu, don't listen, Juri! It's only trying to trick you! None of this is real, culu!"
Juri turned in surprise to discover Culumon hanging suspended several feet up against the wall, bound head to foot by the bright red cables.
"Culumon!" Juri ran towards her friend to try to free him, but no matter how much she pried the wires with her fingers, they refused to come loose. It was no good--his bonds were too tight.
"No, culu, these aren't real, Juri!" the little digimon cried. "The D-Reaper is making everything up from your memories, culu! Don't trust what you see!"
Juri turned around and looked back at the creature.
Get out of my head! Juri cried angrily, directing the thought at the D-Reaper. The creature's body shimmered, reverting to the form of Culumon's gray clone.
The realization suddenly struck her. That was the D-Reaper? The digimon that had been following them all along?
The walls of the chamber were also beginning to melt away, revealing the iridescent bubble that had been the monster's prison. Juri had a sudden memory of the bubble rolling forward and engulfing her and Culumon.
Culumon!
She now saw the nature of what was holding him bound. Currents of golden energy snaked out of his body and into Juri's, and from her flowed other currents connecting them both to the D-Reaper.
"Now you know the truth, though it changes nothing." With a wave of the clone's hand, the red walls once again covered the surface of the bubble. "Soon this will be the truth. In your thoughts, I have seen the greatness that once was mine. With the Catalyst's help, I will reclaim that power, and more." A new, shadowy image superimposed itself over the clone's body. Juri saw the D-Reaper in its strongest form, the half-circle disk on its head gleaming brightly like a golden crown.
The chains of light connecting her and Culumon began glowing brightly. Culumon writhed and struggled against them to no avail. Juri could feel them sapping away her strength. She felt very cold.
"Culumon!" she called out frantically. "Please help me! Tell me what I'm supposed to do to stop it!"
A light began to shine from the D-Arc hanging at her belt. The normally dark screen flashed a brilliant blue, and suddenly Leomon was there, kneeling beside them.
Juri froze in a moment of disbelief, then tossed her doubts aside and rushed forward to embrace her partner, sobbing in relief. "Leomon," she breathed, burying her face in his warm fur as she let the tears fall. "Leomon, I don't know if you're real or not, but just for a moment, let me pretend."
Somehow, she knew that this was the true Leomon, the one she had lost five years ago. Though the reformatted Leomon shared his data, this one was her true partner.
The tall lion digimon caressed her reassuringly. "Juri...Juri," he rumbled softly. "Didn't I tell you that a part of me would always be with you? I am here, and this is real. But we are in danger, Juri. You have to stop the D-Reaper."
"But...but I don't know how," she protested. "Please, Leomon--help me."
"I will," he said firmly, brandishing his sword in one quick motion as he rose suddenly to his feet. "Be still," he cautioned, raising the blade. Juri thought he was gong to sever the chain connecting her to the D-Reaper, but when the sword came down, it sliced the air directly in front of her, leaving the link intact.
Juri stared at her partner in confusion. "What did you..." She swayed slightly, feeling faint. "Leomon, what did you do?" she cried. Hearing the fear in her voice, her partner wrapped his arms around her tightly. The comforting feeling made the emptiness growing inside her a little easier to bear.
"I cut down the walls you've built around yourself, Juri. If you are to stop the D-Reaper, you must speak openly and from the heart. You cannot keep your light sheltered and hidden away forever."
His words faded as the screen of her D-Arc became dark and she found herself alone once more. No, not alone--for she still felt the warmth of his arms around her, even if she could not see him. She took a hesitant step towards the D-Reaper, who now watched her warily.
"You have to let us go."
The small gray digimon snorted in amusement. "I could release you after I evolve, but there would be little point. Sooner or later, everything will fall to my might."
"But why?" Juri argued. "Why destroy everything? How could you find any pleasure in death?" It was a question that had plagued her after the traumatic events of five years ago, when she tried to rationalize what had happened so that she could finally put the past behind her. Unable to find any answers, she chose to bury those memories and move on, pretending none of it had ever happened. But when Shiuchon had brought the Digital World back, it reopened many old wounds and brought back many old questions.
"It is natural that I would take pleasure in completing my objective," grunted the D-Reaper in reply. 'I am programmed to absorb data. It is my purpose...my right!"
"But why would anyone create you just to have you destroy everything?" Juri asked, growing steadily more confident as she saw its certainty waver. "There has to be a reason for what you do; death alone serves no purpose. How can you take pleasure in something when you don't understand the reason why you do it?"
"It doesn't matter whether or not I understand it, I only know that it must be done," growled the D-Reaper, growing impatient. " And I enjoy having the power to do what I must. I like being strong!"
The creature pulled at the golden chains connecting itself to Juri, dragging her down to her knees. It moved steadily towards her until it stood only inches away.