AnT:
I am breaking from continuity with respect to that, and the Digidestined never gave up their Crest power. I am reasoning that it was the Dark Masters and Apocalymon sealing the Sovereigns away. Upon their deaths, the seals deteriorated, and the Sovereigns became free on their own.
Luis:
About the statues: Here's a hint, what do War Greymon, Metal Garurumon, Daemon, Malo Myotismon, and Imperial Dramon all have in common? If you can answer this, you will know what the statues represent... Or you can just read this chapter.
About the relationship of each evil group: It's kind of a moot point later on in this chapter.
About the Legendaries: Some of those Pokemon are out of the question due to plot reasons. As for the others, I'd like to keep the struggle mostly among humans and their monster partners. However, they will be mentioned in passing in this chapter.
Disclaimer:
Toei and Bandai own Digimon. Nintendo owns Pokemon.
The Stones of Doom
By: RB3
Chapter 9: The Mole
In Oak's lab, Gennai spoke to Izzy, Tracey and Oak and they were all stunned. "More thefts?"
"It's bad enough the Kanto Nationalists got away... Now we have more on our plate to worry about," commented Izzy.
"Yeah... And this time the threat is more obvious. Those statues were the seal that prevented Digimon from accessing their Mega forms."
"You don't think they know about that do you?" asked Tracey.
"We have assumed the worse and that they knew this from the start. As a defence, the Sovereigns are releasing the Digidestined's Megas to combat the threat. I wouldn't be surprised if denying us of Megas was one of their goals."
"Who are these thieves?" asked Oak.
Gennai described the uniforms of the robbers. Each robber was in loose fitting black uniforms. On each of their uniforms was the symbol of the crimson "R."
Tracey and Oak immediately recognized the robbers: "Team Rocket!"
"Could they be working for the enemy too?" asked Tracey.
Izzy brought up an interesting point: "Now that I think about it, it shouldn't be so surprising. When we caught the Kanto Nationalists, it's possible we threw a wrench into the enemy's plan. So, they get new guys to do their dirty work."
"Izzy is right, it's quite probable things worked out like that. We've got another problem now too, you know how Anubismon's servants take away the dead? I was talking with Anubismon, and he said that some dead from Zhuqiaomon's attack have not been accounted for."
Everyone was surprised. "What?"
"We have no idea where these bodies went. Our only explanation is that someone took them away before Anubismon's followers could get to the scene."
Izzy pondered the situation. "Stolen Destiny Stones... statues looted from a temple... and now missing bodies... Why does it have to be those things? There has to be a connection."
"Whatever it is, I don't like the sound of it," said Tracey.
Everyone pondered what the connection might be. Gennai broke the silence: "I don't think we will know until the enemy makes their move. Anyways, Izzy, I need to have a chat with you alone. I have a task that needs your talents. Professor, may we talk in your bedroom?"
Oak gave his permission and the two went to the bedroom. Gennai closed the door behind him and the two talked. "A spy?" asked Izzy incredulously.
"Yes, everything that happened at the police station wasn't real. It was all an elaborate trick to sneak someone into the enemy's ranks."
"Who's the spy, and why do you need me?"
"Our mole is named Makuramon. I'd like you to help us monitor his progress." Gennai waved his hand and loaded a new program into Izzy's laptop. "Here is a program that will help greatly. It allows you to speak to him, and also see and hear everything he can."
Izzy tested the program. On the screen, a picture of an unknown campsite appeared. Under an elevated dune buggy was a mechanic lying on a sliding board. Several splotches of black oil marked his khaki overalls. The mechanic was twisting a bolt into place with the steel wrench in his hands. The mechanic slid out and to retrieve some more bolts.
"Prodigious!"
"Oh, before I go, keep this a secret from the others. It's better that fewer people know so as to keep his cover intact."
"Okay, Gennai, my lips are sealed."
Gennai thanked Izzy, and vanished in a burst of rainbow-coloured light.
****************************************
For a week, the police searched unsuccessfully for the members of the fugitive Kanto Nationalists. As part of the act, Baihumon had issued an apology, and called Chatsuramon in for reprimanding and punishment. Chatsuramon was subsequently replaced with Vajramon. Baihumon had also committed some workers to help repair the damages caused by Chatsuramon. These Digimon were the familiar and ubiquitous Hagurumon.
With great speed and efficiency, the Hagurumon workers transported bags of cement to the site of the damaged station. On top of a cement mixer, a Hagurumon poured the cement powder inside, along with some water. The barrel of the mixer turned and turned, blending the water and powder into a thick grey muck. The Hagurumon took the wet cement to a second Hagurumon, who was cementing several bricks into a broken wall.
The heroes heard about this event, and were quite concerned about the officers' welfare. Fortunately, no one was seriously injured. The only thing that suffered severe harm was the police station itself. Today, Professor Oak, Izzy and Tentomon were getting ready to co-host Oak's radio show. In the Pokemon World, Oak hosted a radio show on all things Pokemon. The following weeklong series would be a special dedicated to Digimon exclusively.
A beautiful red haired woman in her late twenties greeted the Professor. She looked distinguished and intelligent wearing her pair of glasses. She was wearing a green blouse and a black skirt. In her hands was a clipboard with a schedule. This woman was Mary herself, one of the hosts of the show. She met Oak and the two hosts shook hands.
"Hi, Professor!"
"Hi, Mary! You here early..."
"I came early to have a look at things. The whole north side of town was destroyed and barred off. I heard talk of a war between the city and Digimon."
"Yeah, it was pretty hot around here. One of the Sovereigns of the Digital World attacked as retribution for the thefts of Destiny Stones."
"All this just for stones?"
"Excuse me, I'm Izzy Izumi... The Destiny Stones aren't just any old stones. They are sacred artefacts that maintain the balance of the Digital World. Their thefts caused a lot of damage."
"You seem like you know what's going on... Oh, where are my manners?" apologized Mary. "I'm Mary. You seem to know a lot about it."
"I helped to catch the thieves responsible for the thefts."
A radio announcer's table was being set up on the grassy front lawn of Oak's lab. On the table was a set of equipment, headsets, and microphones for transported the speakers' voices over the airwaves. There was a TV set with a large screen big enough for the entire audience to see. Several chairs were set up before the table for the audience. People began to take seats and gossiped on Digimon. They wondered what Oak would tell them.
The show began. "Good afternoon, everybody! This is DJ Mary..."
"...and Professor Samuel Oak, on Professor Oak's Pokemon Show!"
"Today, we are broadcasting live from the Digital World! This week, we're running the first of our exclusive five part series on the Digital World and the Digimon. Today, we have a pair of special guests joining us. They are Izzy Izumi and his Digimon partner, Tentomon."
"Hi, everybody!"
Professor Oak began lecturing about Digimon. "Most Digimon I've encountered came in one of the following levels, from weakest to strongest, they are Rookie, Champion, and Ultimate. It seems that Rookies, and especially Champions are the most common Digimon you'll see."
Izzy continued: "There are also Fresh and In-Training Digimon, who are basically babies, but you probably won't see many of them. The last and most powerful level of all is Mega. If you ever get on a Mega's bad side, consider yourself lucky if you live to tell the tale."
The program continued, and Oak hit a few buttons on his remote control. The TV set turned on and a picture of a large orange dinosaur appeared on the screen. It had blue stripes on its legs and belly. Its head was protected by a silver metallic helmet with horns its sides and nose. The helmet also had holes for the creature's eyes. Tubes ran into the metal plate on its chest. A fearsome metal claw replaced its left arm. A pair of violet frayed wings was on the back of this Digimon. Below the picture were the words "Metal Greymon."
"Metal Greymon is a Digimon of the Ultimate level. As you can see there are metallic parts grafted to his body. He is half machine and half dinosaur. His claw is retractable and can shoot out to attack an enemy. The metal plate on his chest is actually a cover for a pair of missile launchers grafted into his chest."
The lecture continued and the question and answer period started. "Who has questions?" asked Mary.
Mary called a girl in the middle of the audience. "Izzy, how do you become a Digidestined, and what's it like being a Digidestined?"
"Well, to become a Digidestined, you must be selected for this job by 'higher powers.' Being a Digidestined has its perks, namely, friendship with a Digimon. However, it also comes with great responsibility, because we have to fight to defend the Digital World from harm. Right now, a few bad people are acting up so the Digidestined have to come in and stop them."
Mary called out a young boy in the front row. "This question is for Professor Oak. How many Digimon species are there?"
"Good question. Honestly, I don't really know. I estimate that I've seen or heard about at least fifty or sixty different species of Digimon personally. Back home, people are still discovering new, unseen species of Pokemon. Since we're newcomers to the Digital World, there would have to be many, many more Digimon I have never seen personally."
After a few more questions, the radio show was over. Izzy, Oak, and Tentomon stayed a bit longer to answer some further questions, before closing up for the day. The trio returned back to their respective homes to have a break. In his room, Izzy started his laptop computer and checked his e-mail. There were no new messages, so Izzy decided to relax and play a computer game. As soon as his game ended, the phone rang.
An image of a bull-like Digimon appeared on the screen. Izzy instantly recognized him as Vajramon. "Hello, Vajramon, did Makuramon report anything new?"
"Yes, the Kanto Nationalists are attending a meeting tomorrow night. From what Makuramon says, everyone's going to be there. This is our chance to nail all of them at once! Let everyone know, so they can prepare an ambush."
"Prodigious! They won't know what hit'em... I'll tell them right away!"
****************************************
Meanwhile, a greedy businessman entered his office and closed the door behind him. When he turned his lights on, it revealed the man's orange designer business suit. On his left was a shelf filled with books on Pokemon and on business. On his right were a trio of metallic filing cabinets. Within these cabinets rested several financial reports dealing with the businessman's holdings. If the law found those documents, he would be deep trouble.
At the rear of the room was a wooden desk. This desk had a nice, glossy finish and glistened in the light. His chair was an ergonomic, adjustable green office chair with wheels. He sat on his chair and his pet, a cat Pokemon called Persian, jumped onto his lap. The man stroked his cat, making him purr contently. The cat looked up, seemingly aware of something hiding within the shadows.
The man called to the shadows: "I know you are there, Vilemon. What do you want?"
From the shadows emerged a small, grotesque, furry gremlin. "Well Giovanni, I have brought you some reading material. However, it is written in an older form of Digital World syllabary. We will translate the curse to English with the help of these scrolls."
In Vilemon's hands were a trio of scrolls. Giovanni and Vilemon each opened one of Vilemon's scrolls. These scrolls had the same list of syllabary characters. Beside each character was a grouping of letters indicating the English equivalent. Vilemon opened the remaining scroll on Giovanni's desk. It was filled with characters written in a poetic form, but it looked like gibberish to Giovanni. Once they began translating, Giovanni realized the writing was just English words with a different "alphabet."
The duo worked on the translation until Giovanni got stuck. "Help me with this line, Vilemon. So far I have translated 'One from the seekers of.' I can't make out the last few words."
Vilemon looked at the problematic line. "Ah, I see the problem... That's an 'e' sound. The last part is 'evil's might.'
Giovanni repeated the line correctly: "So its says, 'One from the seekers of evil's might?'"
"Yep."
Giovanni continued until another line stumped him: "How about this word? It's before 'of Hostility.'"
Vilemon scrutinized the word and cross-referenced the symbols with his table. "Hmm, the word seems to be 'Rift.'"
"The Rift of Hostility..." mumbled Giovanni in contemplation.
After two hours, it was Vilemon's turn to be stumped. "Help me here, right now, I've got 'The Mask of Hypocrisy: One tells a.'"
Giovanni examined the word using the tables. "It looks like 'lie' to me."
Vilemon continued translating. "...And this part, 'to show one?'"
"Hmm... looks like 'face...'"
Vilemon put the information together and obtained the phrase: "The Mask of Hypocrisy: One tells a lie to your lover; to show one face, and hide the other." They continued to translate until they created a complete English translation of the entire curse. Giovanni opened his desk drawer, tucked the translation safely inside, and locked it up until needed. Vilemon's job was done, and thus he vanished into thin air.
****************************************
It was an hour before the big meeting between the Kanto Nationalists and their allies. The heroes and police were tense, and knew that a major battle would break out against the fugitives. The good guys had secretly stationed in the areas near the Wayfarer's Paradise Hotel. This hotel was a few blocks west of the New World Hotel where the heroes were staying.
The south entrance lead directly onto the street. It was a busy night, and several people were coming and going through the entrance. The men wore fashionable suits, and the women wore elegant dresses and jewellery. A small grey van pulled up on the side of the street the doorway. Its windows were tinted black, but if someone looked closely, they could make out the shapes of three heads. The window came down and Matt looked outside.
"Everything seems quiet..." he mumbled.
"You'll get action soon enough..." assured the driver, a cop in disguise.
The north entrance led to a large parking lot filled with all kinds of motor vehicles. The valets, men in regal red uniforms, were busy parking the cars of their wealthy clients. To the north of the hotel was a park. It was dark and a very creepy place to be in at night. Trees dotted the park in a random manner. Near the centre of the park was a small brick storage shed with a pointed roof. To the east and a bit north was a row of bushes that made an excellent hiding spot. To the west of the shed was a children's playground designed to be like a small fort and built over a sandbox.
Ash took a peek at the parking lot from above the crest of the roof. "Quiet, right Pikachu?"
Pikachu took Ash's binoculars and looked. "Pika... (Yeah...)"
Ash clicked his radio on. "How is everybody?"
Brock parted the bushes and peeked through his binoculars. "Nope, nothing so far."
Joe, Sora, and Kari peeked from their hiding spots in the playground. Each of them responded in the negative. At that moment, Pikachu spotted a black limousine approaching the hotel from the west. Its windows were tinted and he couldn't make out who was inside. For some reason, Pikachu felt unpleasant vibes from the limo.
"Pika Pika Pikachu! (I see something!)"
Ash took a look through the binoculars and spotted the limo pulling into the parking lot. "Hey Izzy, there's a limo coming in. Check it out."
In the Wayfarer's Paradise parking lot, the limo stopped in front of the north entrance. The door opened and a tanned man in an orange business suit emerged. He was carrying a briefcase in his left hand and what looked like a cat in the other. Unknown to this man, he was being watched from behind by people in a black van and tinted windows. In this van was a black curtain concealing the surveillance team working in the back.
In the driver's seat sat a black-haired man in sunglasses. The driver continued to watched the man. "Well, well, well... Who do we have here? Guess who just showed up?"
Jenny peeked through the curtain. "Hey, that's Giovanni, head of Team Rocket! We've been trying to nail this guy for years!"
The police chief looked through the curtain. "It must be a really important meeting for him to come in person."
Tai peeked out. "Agumon, it looks things will get hot soon."
"Hey, if anyone knows about being hot, it's me!" joked Agumon.
Izzy watched as Makuramon's car approached the hotel. "Makuramon's coming too."
"Alright everybody, it looks like the meeting is about to start. Look sharp!"
****************************************
In the lobby, Giovanni and his underlings approached the clerk and inquired about meeting room 101. The clerk gave him directions, and they followed them to a brown-haired thug in a grey suit and sunglasses. The thug showed Team Rocket in. A central table dominated the room itself with enough seats for seven people at each side. At the centre on the wall was a screen for displaying slides from a projector. Team Rocket filled the left side of the table. It wasn't long before the other party, the Kanto Nationalists, came in and seated on the right.
"So these are the 'other guys?'" gossiped a Rocket grunt.
The terrorists broke into conversation as well. "Team Rocket?"
The terrorist leader was unsure of Team Rocket's involvement. "Those Digimon better know what they're doing."
Vilemon and Phantomon materialized in a nimbus of violet light and Phantomon began the meeting: "Greetings, Kanto Nationalists and Team Rocket. I trust you're acquainted with each other? The first topic is a progress report from each party. We shall begin with Team Rocket."
Giovanni opened his briefcase and pulled out a series of photos and the translation of the curse. "Team Rocket has secured the statues of Mega Digimon as requested. We have also successfully translated the Curse of the Eight Dooms to English."
Giovanni's Persian looked at the Kanto Nationalist Nick, and began to growl. Giovanni chastised Persian for his interruption.
Phantomon continued: "Impressive, and the Kanto Nationalists?"
The Nationalist leader got up and pulled out a series of photos as well. "Ahem, we have secured the eight Destiny Stones safely in our camp. We are ready for the next phase."
Vilemon gave the progress report for the evil Digimon. "We have acquired a great amount of human and Pokemon data from those killed in the South Sector's attack. We have enough to proceed to phase two."
Phantomon continued: "Alright then, everyone shall proceed to phase two of the plan. Our master is imprisoned in the Dark Area, and needs us to complete his body to manifest his full power. Our next step is obvious, we must free him."
"What about his body?" asked a Rocket grunt.
Persian growled and leapt out of Giovanni's arms. He landed in front of Nick and shocked the terrorist. Giovanni quickly grabbed his cat and pulled him away.
The terrorist leader was furious. "Dammit, get that fur ball under control before I dropkick him out of the room!"
Giovanni was pissed. "I'd watch your tone if I was you! Don't you dare threaten my Persian!"
"Well then, stop me, if you can..."
Everyone's hands were clutched around a Pokeball. They were ready to activate them at a moment's notice. The two sides glared at each other with intense hostility. Before the situation could disintegrate, Phantomon slammed his scythe into the table. "That's enough!" he cried. "We must work together if we are to succeed with phase three!"
The terrorist leader relented. "Just keep that cat under control. My patience is wearing thin..."
Once things settled, Vilemon continued: "Before I was rudely interrupted... The data we collected will make up his body. Giovanni will read the curse in front of my master's prison and he will be free."
"We will take care of this phase," said Phantomon. "Everyone else only needs to bring the items they collected. They are the Destiny Stones, the Mega statues, the translation of the Curse of the Eight Dooms, and the data."
Vilemon pulled out a trio of maps unrolled them on the table. The first map was labelled "Real World," the second was labelled "Digital World," and the final one was "Pokemon World."
"Our third phase involves building a power base in one of the three known worlds. Which one should we focus on first? Any suggestions? Let's hear everyone's opinions."
"How great is the military power of each world? How about the Real World?" asked the terrorist leader.
"The Real World doesn't have any Pokemon or Digimon in it. All we have to worry about is their military powers, like the USA. They don't have anything like Pokemon or Digimon to counter us. All they can field are mere war machines, hardly a match for us..."
"The Digital World is certainly out of the question," said Giovanni. "With the Sovereigns and those meddling kids around, we won't get much done. They have already interfered with our plans far too much."
Phantomon suggested invading the Pokemon World first. "Pokemon by themselves lack the organisation and strength needed to combat us. There are no known beings there capable of wielding holy-aligned powers to stop the Powers of Darkness. Also, this world's humans are just as corruptible as Real World humans."
"The Legendary Pokemon might rise up against us once we reveal our threat. There's also a certain Psychic Pokemon there that has a bone to pick with me."
"But has he ever faced the Powers of Darkness before?" asked Vilemon. "...And didn't you say Psychics were vulnerable to dark powers? After we set our plan into motion, no Psychic will be able to stand up to us anyways."
The groups pondered the risks and rewards for going after each world. The Real World was the easiest, with no beings directly able to counter Digimon and Pokemon. However, their army would add little to their strength. The Digital World offered the greatest reward once it was conquered. The hard part was conquering the world successfully, especially with so many powerful foes entrenched there. The Pokemon World was a middle-of-the-road conquest, but the Legendaries posed a problem.
The groups were forced to think hard about which world was the best to begin with. There were many tradeoffs and factors to consider. Persian grew restless and began to act up again and leapt onto Nick's chest. He freaked out and fell onto the ground. Persian began scratching his fallen foe as Nick struggled to get the mad cat off him. The other terrorists surrounded Persian and yanked him off their comrade.
They looked at where Nick should be, expecting to see him scratched up. However, that wasn't the case... Where Nick should have been was a short brown monkey. The monkey wore what looked like a purple fez with a Chinese-like character on it. He was clad in silver armour with gold trimmings. With one look at his face, everyone knew he was a mole. Makuramon's face turned to a fearful expression that announced his guilt.
"Spy! Get him!"
Makuramon took a deep breath and screamed at the top of his lungs: "MAKAAAAAAAA!"
Everyone instantly covered his or her ears. "Oh, shit! What the hell was that?".
"Primal Orb!" Makuramon lobbed a red-hot orb into the door, tearing it down. He promptly made a run for it.
"Forget him! Let's get the hell out of here!"
Everyone promptly made a run for his or her cars.
"Don't let them get away!" cried Izzy over the radio.
In the lobby, tourists gasped as Makuramon suddenly ran to the south entrance. Team Rocket and the Nationalists reached the lobby to find a trio of Pokemon trainers blocking the doorways. The three trainers were Ash, Misty and Brock. The three trainers fielded Pikachu, Geodude, and Starmie respectively. They glared at the fugitives with pure hostility.
"Those meddling kids!"
"We can't waste time with them! Quilava, go!" In front of the Rocket grunt appeared a weasel with navy blue fur and a yellow underside. On its head and rear were flames that lit up the Pokemon's fur. "Quilava, Smokescreen!"
From Quilava's mouth came a foul black cloud of smoke. It descended over the lobby, making it impossible to see anything. The three trainers began coughing and covered their mouths and noses. Ash reached for his Pokeball and released his Noctowl.
"Noctowl, blow the smoke outside with Gust!"
****************************************
In the parking lot, Tai and Izzy watched smoke seep out of the hotel. The Rockets and the Nationalists ran out under the cover of the smoke. Agumon and Tentomon ran out of the surveillance van and blocked the fugitives' path of escape.
"Agumon, Digivolve to... Greymon!"
"Tentomon Digivolve to... Kabuterimon!"
"You there, stop!"
People began screaming and fleeing in terror once Greymon and Kabuterimon entered the scene. The enemy stopped at upon sight of the two Digimon and reached for their Pokeballs.
"Primeape, go!" A Pokemon resembling a white fur ball with limbs appeared in front of a terrorist. He looked very pissed.
"Steelix, go!" A Pokemon resembling a cross between a legless caterpillar and a snake materialized in front of a second terrorist. His body was completely coated by metal.
"Primeape, Jump Kick!"
Primeape launched himself forward with right leg extended into Greymon's chest. With the sound of metal crunching, and glass cracking, the Fire Dinosaur Digimon landed onto a series of parked cars. Primeape leapt into the air above his fallen foe, and descended with leg extended. Suddenly, Greymon rolled over and his tail whacked Primeape into the ground!
"Nova Blast!" Primeape recovered from the blow, only to place himself into the path of an incoming fireball. The attack burned Primeape painfully, ultimately sprawling him on the ground.
"Steelix, Wrap attack!" Steelix lurched forward, and coiled his serpentine body around Kabuterimon.
"Kabuterimon, you need help?"
Kabuterimon jockeyed with Steelix for the advantage. "I'm fine, Greymon, stop them from getting away!"
Greymon turned to hear the screech of tires. Several getaway cars skid into a hard left turn in front of the entrance and the enemy recalled their Pokemon. Greymon spit a Nova Blast fireball, and struck the trunk of the rear car. The car shook and freaked the driver out. The getaway car smashed into the rear of a silver car leaving its space, denting both vehicles' bodies.
"Learn to drive!"
Jenny heard the black limo start. "Stop that limo!"
The getaway cars shot out of the lot, nearly running over a terrified pedestrian as they turned to the right hard. Birdramon emerged from the park and gave pursuit. Birdramon's first volley of Meteor Wing fireballs missed, and the explosions alarmed the drivers. They banked left and right, dodging each volley like professionals. Birdramon continued her attack and eventually ripped up the right rear tire of one of the cars. The car tore a fire hydrant out of the ground before being completely stopped by its crash into a street post.
Giovanni's limo sped by the entrance and in front of Ash and friends. Ash sent Chikorita out and she launched a Razor Leaf volley. The blade-like leaves pinged against the car's armoured chassis and thumped against its bulletproof windows. The limo's tires smoked as it turned left hard to speed out of the parking lot. The limo made a hard left turn, and dodged a bolt of holy energy from the sky before picking up speed.
"Giovanni's limo has armour!"
Several blaring sirens came from behind the limo, and revealed themselves to be from police cruisers in hot pursuit.
"Step on it!" said Giovanni.
In the south end, the heroes there watched as a crowd of panicked people fled the hotel. The panicked crowd was screaming as they fled the hotel. Several bolts of dark energy shot out from the interior, missing the crowd by a large margin. A bolt of darkness struck a random tourist in the back and cut him down. The people continued to flee, and inadvertently trampled the tourist. Phantomon and Vilemon emerged, and continued to fire potshots at the crowd.
Matt took great offence this. "Cowards! Leave them alone!"
"Gabumon, Digivolve to... Garurumon!"
"Patamon, Digivolve to... Angemon!"
"Palmon, Digivolve to... Togemon!"
The crowd ran past the heroes, when suddenly, dark energy streaked out from a location out of the heroes' vision. The heroes followed the shot's path back to the shooter, a ghost-like Digimon. In fact, there was more than one ghost. Each looked like a floating, ripped up white sheet. They had scary faces and a mouth filled with sharp teeth. They were preoccupied with attacking the crowd, and not paying attention to the heroes' presence.
"Bakemon!"
"Marill, go!" Tracey activated his Pokeball, and the Aquamouse Pokemon appeared in a burst of crimson energy.
"Go, Beedrill!" A giant bee materialized in front of Casey.
"Marill, Water Gun!" The pressurized water jet blindsided the Bakemon, plastering the Ghost Digimon into a concrete wall. A different Bakemon discovered Tracey's sneak attack.
"Beedrill, Pin Missile!" This Bakemon turned to locate the attackers only to receive a volley of energy pins to the face.
Now, the Bakemon were fully aware of the heroes, and advanced menacingly. "Evil Charm!" Bakemon's bolt of dark energy popped Beedrill in the chest, dazing the Poison Bee.
Casey watched Beedrill shake her daze off. "Alright, Beedrill! Don't let them get you down!"
Togemon threw a mighty haymaker, only to miss her foe and hit a concrete street post. The post cracked and fissured before finally crashing down with a thud. "Needle Spray!"
"Arggggh!" Bakemon looked like a pincushion, with the needles embedded into his body. He crumpled to the ground and disintegrated into data.
Phantomon entered into a stand off with Angemon. The two sides kept their eyes on each other, watching for any openings. Phantomon broke the standoff and lunged. Angemon spotted the attack, and parried with his Angel Staff. Phantomon continued his assault, driving the length of his scythe forward to bash his foe. Angemon parried again, and the two Digimon separated to gain distance.
Angemon's fist charged with pure holy energy. "Hand of Fate!" With a forward punch, the holy energy surged forth as a beam.
Phantomon grunted as the beam seared the left side of his torso. Suddenly, a bolt of energy came from below and blew Angemon out of the air! The leaves and branches rustled as he fell through a tree and onto the ground. TK checked on Angemon's injuries and spotted Vilemon at the next intersection. He was laughing his head off with malicious glee. Phantomon moved beside Vilemon. A swirling rift opened in the ground and swallowed the two Digimon up.
****************************************
The police pursued Giovanni's limo persistently, matching the driver's moves like professionals. The limo rounded a corner and Giovanni looked back. The police instantly reappeared in his rear window, and back in pursuit. The sirens were getting irritating, and the police cars' crimson lights bore down on Giovanni's face. His frustration was growing.
"Can't you go any faster?" he complained.
The driver turned left around a corner to see several police cruisers lined up across the street. "Damn, roadblock!"
"The cops won't get us! Plow through!"
"They're speeding up! Hit the dirt!"
The police dove for cover moments before impact. With the sound of metal crunching and glass being smashed, the limo punched through a small gap in the cruisers. The limo was severely dented and its windows were cracked, but it passed through. The roadblock was in disarray and the central cruisers were turned almost ninety degrees. The pursuing police jammed on the brakes, moments before colliding with the roadblock, and ultimately letting the limo get away.
I am breaking from continuity with respect to that, and the Digidestined never gave up their Crest power. I am reasoning that it was the Dark Masters and Apocalymon sealing the Sovereigns away. Upon their deaths, the seals deteriorated, and the Sovereigns became free on their own.
Luis:
About the statues: Here's a hint, what do War Greymon, Metal Garurumon, Daemon, Malo Myotismon, and Imperial Dramon all have in common? If you can answer this, you will know what the statues represent... Or you can just read this chapter.
About the relationship of each evil group: It's kind of a moot point later on in this chapter.
About the Legendaries: Some of those Pokemon are out of the question due to plot reasons. As for the others, I'd like to keep the struggle mostly among humans and their monster partners. However, they will be mentioned in passing in this chapter.
Disclaimer:
Toei and Bandai own Digimon. Nintendo owns Pokemon.
The Stones of Doom
By: RB3
Chapter 9: The Mole
In Oak's lab, Gennai spoke to Izzy, Tracey and Oak and they were all stunned. "More thefts?"
"It's bad enough the Kanto Nationalists got away... Now we have more on our plate to worry about," commented Izzy.
"Yeah... And this time the threat is more obvious. Those statues were the seal that prevented Digimon from accessing their Mega forms."
"You don't think they know about that do you?" asked Tracey.
"We have assumed the worse and that they knew this from the start. As a defence, the Sovereigns are releasing the Digidestined's Megas to combat the threat. I wouldn't be surprised if denying us of Megas was one of their goals."
"Who are these thieves?" asked Oak.
Gennai described the uniforms of the robbers. Each robber was in loose fitting black uniforms. On each of their uniforms was the symbol of the crimson "R."
Tracey and Oak immediately recognized the robbers: "Team Rocket!"
"Could they be working for the enemy too?" asked Tracey.
Izzy brought up an interesting point: "Now that I think about it, it shouldn't be so surprising. When we caught the Kanto Nationalists, it's possible we threw a wrench into the enemy's plan. So, they get new guys to do their dirty work."
"Izzy is right, it's quite probable things worked out like that. We've got another problem now too, you know how Anubismon's servants take away the dead? I was talking with Anubismon, and he said that some dead from Zhuqiaomon's attack have not been accounted for."
Everyone was surprised. "What?"
"We have no idea where these bodies went. Our only explanation is that someone took them away before Anubismon's followers could get to the scene."
Izzy pondered the situation. "Stolen Destiny Stones... statues looted from a temple... and now missing bodies... Why does it have to be those things? There has to be a connection."
"Whatever it is, I don't like the sound of it," said Tracey.
Everyone pondered what the connection might be. Gennai broke the silence: "I don't think we will know until the enemy makes their move. Anyways, Izzy, I need to have a chat with you alone. I have a task that needs your talents. Professor, may we talk in your bedroom?"
Oak gave his permission and the two went to the bedroom. Gennai closed the door behind him and the two talked. "A spy?" asked Izzy incredulously.
"Yes, everything that happened at the police station wasn't real. It was all an elaborate trick to sneak someone into the enemy's ranks."
"Who's the spy, and why do you need me?"
"Our mole is named Makuramon. I'd like you to help us monitor his progress." Gennai waved his hand and loaded a new program into Izzy's laptop. "Here is a program that will help greatly. It allows you to speak to him, and also see and hear everything he can."
Izzy tested the program. On the screen, a picture of an unknown campsite appeared. Under an elevated dune buggy was a mechanic lying on a sliding board. Several splotches of black oil marked his khaki overalls. The mechanic was twisting a bolt into place with the steel wrench in his hands. The mechanic slid out and to retrieve some more bolts.
"Prodigious!"
"Oh, before I go, keep this a secret from the others. It's better that fewer people know so as to keep his cover intact."
"Okay, Gennai, my lips are sealed."
Gennai thanked Izzy, and vanished in a burst of rainbow-coloured light.
****************************************
For a week, the police searched unsuccessfully for the members of the fugitive Kanto Nationalists. As part of the act, Baihumon had issued an apology, and called Chatsuramon in for reprimanding and punishment. Chatsuramon was subsequently replaced with Vajramon. Baihumon had also committed some workers to help repair the damages caused by Chatsuramon. These Digimon were the familiar and ubiquitous Hagurumon.
With great speed and efficiency, the Hagurumon workers transported bags of cement to the site of the damaged station. On top of a cement mixer, a Hagurumon poured the cement powder inside, along with some water. The barrel of the mixer turned and turned, blending the water and powder into a thick grey muck. The Hagurumon took the wet cement to a second Hagurumon, who was cementing several bricks into a broken wall.
The heroes heard about this event, and were quite concerned about the officers' welfare. Fortunately, no one was seriously injured. The only thing that suffered severe harm was the police station itself. Today, Professor Oak, Izzy and Tentomon were getting ready to co-host Oak's radio show. In the Pokemon World, Oak hosted a radio show on all things Pokemon. The following weeklong series would be a special dedicated to Digimon exclusively.
A beautiful red haired woman in her late twenties greeted the Professor. She looked distinguished and intelligent wearing her pair of glasses. She was wearing a green blouse and a black skirt. In her hands was a clipboard with a schedule. This woman was Mary herself, one of the hosts of the show. She met Oak and the two hosts shook hands.
"Hi, Professor!"
"Hi, Mary! You here early..."
"I came early to have a look at things. The whole north side of town was destroyed and barred off. I heard talk of a war between the city and Digimon."
"Yeah, it was pretty hot around here. One of the Sovereigns of the Digital World attacked as retribution for the thefts of Destiny Stones."
"All this just for stones?"
"Excuse me, I'm Izzy Izumi... The Destiny Stones aren't just any old stones. They are sacred artefacts that maintain the balance of the Digital World. Their thefts caused a lot of damage."
"You seem like you know what's going on... Oh, where are my manners?" apologized Mary. "I'm Mary. You seem to know a lot about it."
"I helped to catch the thieves responsible for the thefts."
A radio announcer's table was being set up on the grassy front lawn of Oak's lab. On the table was a set of equipment, headsets, and microphones for transported the speakers' voices over the airwaves. There was a TV set with a large screen big enough for the entire audience to see. Several chairs were set up before the table for the audience. People began to take seats and gossiped on Digimon. They wondered what Oak would tell them.
The show began. "Good afternoon, everybody! This is DJ Mary..."
"...and Professor Samuel Oak, on Professor Oak's Pokemon Show!"
"Today, we are broadcasting live from the Digital World! This week, we're running the first of our exclusive five part series on the Digital World and the Digimon. Today, we have a pair of special guests joining us. They are Izzy Izumi and his Digimon partner, Tentomon."
"Hi, everybody!"
Professor Oak began lecturing about Digimon. "Most Digimon I've encountered came in one of the following levels, from weakest to strongest, they are Rookie, Champion, and Ultimate. It seems that Rookies, and especially Champions are the most common Digimon you'll see."
Izzy continued: "There are also Fresh and In-Training Digimon, who are basically babies, but you probably won't see many of them. The last and most powerful level of all is Mega. If you ever get on a Mega's bad side, consider yourself lucky if you live to tell the tale."
The program continued, and Oak hit a few buttons on his remote control. The TV set turned on and a picture of a large orange dinosaur appeared on the screen. It had blue stripes on its legs and belly. Its head was protected by a silver metallic helmet with horns its sides and nose. The helmet also had holes for the creature's eyes. Tubes ran into the metal plate on its chest. A fearsome metal claw replaced its left arm. A pair of violet frayed wings was on the back of this Digimon. Below the picture were the words "Metal Greymon."
"Metal Greymon is a Digimon of the Ultimate level. As you can see there are metallic parts grafted to his body. He is half machine and half dinosaur. His claw is retractable and can shoot out to attack an enemy. The metal plate on his chest is actually a cover for a pair of missile launchers grafted into his chest."
The lecture continued and the question and answer period started. "Who has questions?" asked Mary.
Mary called a girl in the middle of the audience. "Izzy, how do you become a Digidestined, and what's it like being a Digidestined?"
"Well, to become a Digidestined, you must be selected for this job by 'higher powers.' Being a Digidestined has its perks, namely, friendship with a Digimon. However, it also comes with great responsibility, because we have to fight to defend the Digital World from harm. Right now, a few bad people are acting up so the Digidestined have to come in and stop them."
Mary called out a young boy in the front row. "This question is for Professor Oak. How many Digimon species are there?"
"Good question. Honestly, I don't really know. I estimate that I've seen or heard about at least fifty or sixty different species of Digimon personally. Back home, people are still discovering new, unseen species of Pokemon. Since we're newcomers to the Digital World, there would have to be many, many more Digimon I have never seen personally."
After a few more questions, the radio show was over. Izzy, Oak, and Tentomon stayed a bit longer to answer some further questions, before closing up for the day. The trio returned back to their respective homes to have a break. In his room, Izzy started his laptop computer and checked his e-mail. There were no new messages, so Izzy decided to relax and play a computer game. As soon as his game ended, the phone rang.
An image of a bull-like Digimon appeared on the screen. Izzy instantly recognized him as Vajramon. "Hello, Vajramon, did Makuramon report anything new?"
"Yes, the Kanto Nationalists are attending a meeting tomorrow night. From what Makuramon says, everyone's going to be there. This is our chance to nail all of them at once! Let everyone know, so they can prepare an ambush."
"Prodigious! They won't know what hit'em... I'll tell them right away!"
****************************************
Meanwhile, a greedy businessman entered his office and closed the door behind him. When he turned his lights on, it revealed the man's orange designer business suit. On his left was a shelf filled with books on Pokemon and on business. On his right were a trio of metallic filing cabinets. Within these cabinets rested several financial reports dealing with the businessman's holdings. If the law found those documents, he would be deep trouble.
At the rear of the room was a wooden desk. This desk had a nice, glossy finish and glistened in the light. His chair was an ergonomic, adjustable green office chair with wheels. He sat on his chair and his pet, a cat Pokemon called Persian, jumped onto his lap. The man stroked his cat, making him purr contently. The cat looked up, seemingly aware of something hiding within the shadows.
The man called to the shadows: "I know you are there, Vilemon. What do you want?"
From the shadows emerged a small, grotesque, furry gremlin. "Well Giovanni, I have brought you some reading material. However, it is written in an older form of Digital World syllabary. We will translate the curse to English with the help of these scrolls."
In Vilemon's hands were a trio of scrolls. Giovanni and Vilemon each opened one of Vilemon's scrolls. These scrolls had the same list of syllabary characters. Beside each character was a grouping of letters indicating the English equivalent. Vilemon opened the remaining scroll on Giovanni's desk. It was filled with characters written in a poetic form, but it looked like gibberish to Giovanni. Once they began translating, Giovanni realized the writing was just English words with a different "alphabet."
The duo worked on the translation until Giovanni got stuck. "Help me with this line, Vilemon. So far I have translated 'One from the seekers of.' I can't make out the last few words."
Vilemon looked at the problematic line. "Ah, I see the problem... That's an 'e' sound. The last part is 'evil's might.'
Giovanni repeated the line correctly: "So its says, 'One from the seekers of evil's might?'"
"Yep."
Giovanni continued until another line stumped him: "How about this word? It's before 'of Hostility.'"
Vilemon scrutinized the word and cross-referenced the symbols with his table. "Hmm, the word seems to be 'Rift.'"
"The Rift of Hostility..." mumbled Giovanni in contemplation.
After two hours, it was Vilemon's turn to be stumped. "Help me here, right now, I've got 'The Mask of Hypocrisy: One tells a.'"
Giovanni examined the word using the tables. "It looks like 'lie' to me."
Vilemon continued translating. "...And this part, 'to show one?'"
"Hmm... looks like 'face...'"
Vilemon put the information together and obtained the phrase: "The Mask of Hypocrisy: One tells a lie to your lover; to show one face, and hide the other." They continued to translate until they created a complete English translation of the entire curse. Giovanni opened his desk drawer, tucked the translation safely inside, and locked it up until needed. Vilemon's job was done, and thus he vanished into thin air.
****************************************
It was an hour before the big meeting between the Kanto Nationalists and their allies. The heroes and police were tense, and knew that a major battle would break out against the fugitives. The good guys had secretly stationed in the areas near the Wayfarer's Paradise Hotel. This hotel was a few blocks west of the New World Hotel where the heroes were staying.
The south entrance lead directly onto the street. It was a busy night, and several people were coming and going through the entrance. The men wore fashionable suits, and the women wore elegant dresses and jewellery. A small grey van pulled up on the side of the street the doorway. Its windows were tinted black, but if someone looked closely, they could make out the shapes of three heads. The window came down and Matt looked outside.
"Everything seems quiet..." he mumbled.
"You'll get action soon enough..." assured the driver, a cop in disguise.
The north entrance led to a large parking lot filled with all kinds of motor vehicles. The valets, men in regal red uniforms, were busy parking the cars of their wealthy clients. To the north of the hotel was a park. It was dark and a very creepy place to be in at night. Trees dotted the park in a random manner. Near the centre of the park was a small brick storage shed with a pointed roof. To the east and a bit north was a row of bushes that made an excellent hiding spot. To the west of the shed was a children's playground designed to be like a small fort and built over a sandbox.
Ash took a peek at the parking lot from above the crest of the roof. "Quiet, right Pikachu?"
Pikachu took Ash's binoculars and looked. "Pika... (Yeah...)"
Ash clicked his radio on. "How is everybody?"
Brock parted the bushes and peeked through his binoculars. "Nope, nothing so far."
Joe, Sora, and Kari peeked from their hiding spots in the playground. Each of them responded in the negative. At that moment, Pikachu spotted a black limousine approaching the hotel from the west. Its windows were tinted and he couldn't make out who was inside. For some reason, Pikachu felt unpleasant vibes from the limo.
"Pika Pika Pikachu! (I see something!)"
Ash took a look through the binoculars and spotted the limo pulling into the parking lot. "Hey Izzy, there's a limo coming in. Check it out."
In the Wayfarer's Paradise parking lot, the limo stopped in front of the north entrance. The door opened and a tanned man in an orange business suit emerged. He was carrying a briefcase in his left hand and what looked like a cat in the other. Unknown to this man, he was being watched from behind by people in a black van and tinted windows. In this van was a black curtain concealing the surveillance team working in the back.
In the driver's seat sat a black-haired man in sunglasses. The driver continued to watched the man. "Well, well, well... Who do we have here? Guess who just showed up?"
Jenny peeked through the curtain. "Hey, that's Giovanni, head of Team Rocket! We've been trying to nail this guy for years!"
The police chief looked through the curtain. "It must be a really important meeting for him to come in person."
Tai peeked out. "Agumon, it looks things will get hot soon."
"Hey, if anyone knows about being hot, it's me!" joked Agumon.
Izzy watched as Makuramon's car approached the hotel. "Makuramon's coming too."
"Alright everybody, it looks like the meeting is about to start. Look sharp!"
****************************************
In the lobby, Giovanni and his underlings approached the clerk and inquired about meeting room 101. The clerk gave him directions, and they followed them to a brown-haired thug in a grey suit and sunglasses. The thug showed Team Rocket in. A central table dominated the room itself with enough seats for seven people at each side. At the centre on the wall was a screen for displaying slides from a projector. Team Rocket filled the left side of the table. It wasn't long before the other party, the Kanto Nationalists, came in and seated on the right.
"So these are the 'other guys?'" gossiped a Rocket grunt.
The terrorists broke into conversation as well. "Team Rocket?"
The terrorist leader was unsure of Team Rocket's involvement. "Those Digimon better know what they're doing."
Vilemon and Phantomon materialized in a nimbus of violet light and Phantomon began the meeting: "Greetings, Kanto Nationalists and Team Rocket. I trust you're acquainted with each other? The first topic is a progress report from each party. We shall begin with Team Rocket."
Giovanni opened his briefcase and pulled out a series of photos and the translation of the curse. "Team Rocket has secured the statues of Mega Digimon as requested. We have also successfully translated the Curse of the Eight Dooms to English."
Giovanni's Persian looked at the Kanto Nationalist Nick, and began to growl. Giovanni chastised Persian for his interruption.
Phantomon continued: "Impressive, and the Kanto Nationalists?"
The Nationalist leader got up and pulled out a series of photos as well. "Ahem, we have secured the eight Destiny Stones safely in our camp. We are ready for the next phase."
Vilemon gave the progress report for the evil Digimon. "We have acquired a great amount of human and Pokemon data from those killed in the South Sector's attack. We have enough to proceed to phase two."
Phantomon continued: "Alright then, everyone shall proceed to phase two of the plan. Our master is imprisoned in the Dark Area, and needs us to complete his body to manifest his full power. Our next step is obvious, we must free him."
"What about his body?" asked a Rocket grunt.
Persian growled and leapt out of Giovanni's arms. He landed in front of Nick and shocked the terrorist. Giovanni quickly grabbed his cat and pulled him away.
The terrorist leader was furious. "Dammit, get that fur ball under control before I dropkick him out of the room!"
Giovanni was pissed. "I'd watch your tone if I was you! Don't you dare threaten my Persian!"
"Well then, stop me, if you can..."
Everyone's hands were clutched around a Pokeball. They were ready to activate them at a moment's notice. The two sides glared at each other with intense hostility. Before the situation could disintegrate, Phantomon slammed his scythe into the table. "That's enough!" he cried. "We must work together if we are to succeed with phase three!"
The terrorist leader relented. "Just keep that cat under control. My patience is wearing thin..."
Once things settled, Vilemon continued: "Before I was rudely interrupted... The data we collected will make up his body. Giovanni will read the curse in front of my master's prison and he will be free."
"We will take care of this phase," said Phantomon. "Everyone else only needs to bring the items they collected. They are the Destiny Stones, the Mega statues, the translation of the Curse of the Eight Dooms, and the data."
Vilemon pulled out a trio of maps unrolled them on the table. The first map was labelled "Real World," the second was labelled "Digital World," and the final one was "Pokemon World."
"Our third phase involves building a power base in one of the three known worlds. Which one should we focus on first? Any suggestions? Let's hear everyone's opinions."
"How great is the military power of each world? How about the Real World?" asked the terrorist leader.
"The Real World doesn't have any Pokemon or Digimon in it. All we have to worry about is their military powers, like the USA. They don't have anything like Pokemon or Digimon to counter us. All they can field are mere war machines, hardly a match for us..."
"The Digital World is certainly out of the question," said Giovanni. "With the Sovereigns and those meddling kids around, we won't get much done. They have already interfered with our plans far too much."
Phantomon suggested invading the Pokemon World first. "Pokemon by themselves lack the organisation and strength needed to combat us. There are no known beings there capable of wielding holy-aligned powers to stop the Powers of Darkness. Also, this world's humans are just as corruptible as Real World humans."
"The Legendary Pokemon might rise up against us once we reveal our threat. There's also a certain Psychic Pokemon there that has a bone to pick with me."
"But has he ever faced the Powers of Darkness before?" asked Vilemon. "...And didn't you say Psychics were vulnerable to dark powers? After we set our plan into motion, no Psychic will be able to stand up to us anyways."
The groups pondered the risks and rewards for going after each world. The Real World was the easiest, with no beings directly able to counter Digimon and Pokemon. However, their army would add little to their strength. The Digital World offered the greatest reward once it was conquered. The hard part was conquering the world successfully, especially with so many powerful foes entrenched there. The Pokemon World was a middle-of-the-road conquest, but the Legendaries posed a problem.
The groups were forced to think hard about which world was the best to begin with. There were many tradeoffs and factors to consider. Persian grew restless and began to act up again and leapt onto Nick's chest. He freaked out and fell onto the ground. Persian began scratching his fallen foe as Nick struggled to get the mad cat off him. The other terrorists surrounded Persian and yanked him off their comrade.
They looked at where Nick should be, expecting to see him scratched up. However, that wasn't the case... Where Nick should have been was a short brown monkey. The monkey wore what looked like a purple fez with a Chinese-like character on it. He was clad in silver armour with gold trimmings. With one look at his face, everyone knew he was a mole. Makuramon's face turned to a fearful expression that announced his guilt.
"Spy! Get him!"
Makuramon took a deep breath and screamed at the top of his lungs: "MAKAAAAAAAA!"
Everyone instantly covered his or her ears. "Oh, shit! What the hell was that?".
"Primal Orb!" Makuramon lobbed a red-hot orb into the door, tearing it down. He promptly made a run for it.
"Forget him! Let's get the hell out of here!"
Everyone promptly made a run for his or her cars.
"Don't let them get away!" cried Izzy over the radio.
In the lobby, tourists gasped as Makuramon suddenly ran to the south entrance. Team Rocket and the Nationalists reached the lobby to find a trio of Pokemon trainers blocking the doorways. The three trainers were Ash, Misty and Brock. The three trainers fielded Pikachu, Geodude, and Starmie respectively. They glared at the fugitives with pure hostility.
"Those meddling kids!"
"We can't waste time with them! Quilava, go!" In front of the Rocket grunt appeared a weasel with navy blue fur and a yellow underside. On its head and rear were flames that lit up the Pokemon's fur. "Quilava, Smokescreen!"
From Quilava's mouth came a foul black cloud of smoke. It descended over the lobby, making it impossible to see anything. The three trainers began coughing and covered their mouths and noses. Ash reached for his Pokeball and released his Noctowl.
"Noctowl, blow the smoke outside with Gust!"
****************************************
In the parking lot, Tai and Izzy watched smoke seep out of the hotel. The Rockets and the Nationalists ran out under the cover of the smoke. Agumon and Tentomon ran out of the surveillance van and blocked the fugitives' path of escape.
"Agumon, Digivolve to... Greymon!"
"Tentomon Digivolve to... Kabuterimon!"
"You there, stop!"
People began screaming and fleeing in terror once Greymon and Kabuterimon entered the scene. The enemy stopped at upon sight of the two Digimon and reached for their Pokeballs.
"Primeape, go!" A Pokemon resembling a white fur ball with limbs appeared in front of a terrorist. He looked very pissed.
"Steelix, go!" A Pokemon resembling a cross between a legless caterpillar and a snake materialized in front of a second terrorist. His body was completely coated by metal.
"Primeape, Jump Kick!"
Primeape launched himself forward with right leg extended into Greymon's chest. With the sound of metal crunching, and glass cracking, the Fire Dinosaur Digimon landed onto a series of parked cars. Primeape leapt into the air above his fallen foe, and descended with leg extended. Suddenly, Greymon rolled over and his tail whacked Primeape into the ground!
"Nova Blast!" Primeape recovered from the blow, only to place himself into the path of an incoming fireball. The attack burned Primeape painfully, ultimately sprawling him on the ground.
"Steelix, Wrap attack!" Steelix lurched forward, and coiled his serpentine body around Kabuterimon.
"Kabuterimon, you need help?"
Kabuterimon jockeyed with Steelix for the advantage. "I'm fine, Greymon, stop them from getting away!"
Greymon turned to hear the screech of tires. Several getaway cars skid into a hard left turn in front of the entrance and the enemy recalled their Pokemon. Greymon spit a Nova Blast fireball, and struck the trunk of the rear car. The car shook and freaked the driver out. The getaway car smashed into the rear of a silver car leaving its space, denting both vehicles' bodies.
"Learn to drive!"
Jenny heard the black limo start. "Stop that limo!"
The getaway cars shot out of the lot, nearly running over a terrified pedestrian as they turned to the right hard. Birdramon emerged from the park and gave pursuit. Birdramon's first volley of Meteor Wing fireballs missed, and the explosions alarmed the drivers. They banked left and right, dodging each volley like professionals. Birdramon continued her attack and eventually ripped up the right rear tire of one of the cars. The car tore a fire hydrant out of the ground before being completely stopped by its crash into a street post.
Giovanni's limo sped by the entrance and in front of Ash and friends. Ash sent Chikorita out and she launched a Razor Leaf volley. The blade-like leaves pinged against the car's armoured chassis and thumped against its bulletproof windows. The limo's tires smoked as it turned left hard to speed out of the parking lot. The limo made a hard left turn, and dodged a bolt of holy energy from the sky before picking up speed.
"Giovanni's limo has armour!"
Several blaring sirens came from behind the limo, and revealed themselves to be from police cruisers in hot pursuit.
"Step on it!" said Giovanni.
In the south end, the heroes there watched as a crowd of panicked people fled the hotel. The panicked crowd was screaming as they fled the hotel. Several bolts of dark energy shot out from the interior, missing the crowd by a large margin. A bolt of darkness struck a random tourist in the back and cut him down. The people continued to flee, and inadvertently trampled the tourist. Phantomon and Vilemon emerged, and continued to fire potshots at the crowd.
Matt took great offence this. "Cowards! Leave them alone!"
"Gabumon, Digivolve to... Garurumon!"
"Patamon, Digivolve to... Angemon!"
"Palmon, Digivolve to... Togemon!"
The crowd ran past the heroes, when suddenly, dark energy streaked out from a location out of the heroes' vision. The heroes followed the shot's path back to the shooter, a ghost-like Digimon. In fact, there was more than one ghost. Each looked like a floating, ripped up white sheet. They had scary faces and a mouth filled with sharp teeth. They were preoccupied with attacking the crowd, and not paying attention to the heroes' presence.
"Bakemon!"
"Marill, go!" Tracey activated his Pokeball, and the Aquamouse Pokemon appeared in a burst of crimson energy.
"Go, Beedrill!" A giant bee materialized in front of Casey.
"Marill, Water Gun!" The pressurized water jet blindsided the Bakemon, plastering the Ghost Digimon into a concrete wall. A different Bakemon discovered Tracey's sneak attack.
"Beedrill, Pin Missile!" This Bakemon turned to locate the attackers only to receive a volley of energy pins to the face.
Now, the Bakemon were fully aware of the heroes, and advanced menacingly. "Evil Charm!" Bakemon's bolt of dark energy popped Beedrill in the chest, dazing the Poison Bee.
Casey watched Beedrill shake her daze off. "Alright, Beedrill! Don't let them get you down!"
Togemon threw a mighty haymaker, only to miss her foe and hit a concrete street post. The post cracked and fissured before finally crashing down with a thud. "Needle Spray!"
"Arggggh!" Bakemon looked like a pincushion, with the needles embedded into his body. He crumpled to the ground and disintegrated into data.
Phantomon entered into a stand off with Angemon. The two sides kept their eyes on each other, watching for any openings. Phantomon broke the standoff and lunged. Angemon spotted the attack, and parried with his Angel Staff. Phantomon continued his assault, driving the length of his scythe forward to bash his foe. Angemon parried again, and the two Digimon separated to gain distance.
Angemon's fist charged with pure holy energy. "Hand of Fate!" With a forward punch, the holy energy surged forth as a beam.
Phantomon grunted as the beam seared the left side of his torso. Suddenly, a bolt of energy came from below and blew Angemon out of the air! The leaves and branches rustled as he fell through a tree and onto the ground. TK checked on Angemon's injuries and spotted Vilemon at the next intersection. He was laughing his head off with malicious glee. Phantomon moved beside Vilemon. A swirling rift opened in the ground and swallowed the two Digimon up.
****************************************
The police pursued Giovanni's limo persistently, matching the driver's moves like professionals. The limo rounded a corner and Giovanni looked back. The police instantly reappeared in his rear window, and back in pursuit. The sirens were getting irritating, and the police cars' crimson lights bore down on Giovanni's face. His frustration was growing.
"Can't you go any faster?" he complained.
The driver turned left around a corner to see several police cruisers lined up across the street. "Damn, roadblock!"
"The cops won't get us! Plow through!"
"They're speeding up! Hit the dirt!"
The police dove for cover moments before impact. With the sound of metal crunching and glass being smashed, the limo punched through a small gap in the cruisers. The limo was severely dented and its windows were cracked, but it passed through. The roadblock was in disarray and the central cruisers were turned almost ninety degrees. The pursuing police jammed on the brakes, moments before colliding with the roadblock, and ultimately letting the limo get away.