"Okay, so let me see if I've got this strait," Jareth said. "Angels will
shoot arrows of Hope and Light at the loved ones of those they protect."
"Yep."
"And what this boiled down to, was that Angemon and Angewomon had to impale two of the Digidestined."
"Yep."
"And this made Agumon and Gabumon go Mega?"
"Yep."
"Talkative today, aren't we?" Jareth grinned sideways at the small green reptile as the two of them trudged through the forest.
Venomon shrugged. "You aren't asking very elaborate questions."
"Okay, well here's one for you: What do you think about us setting up a semi-permanent base of operations?"
"Like a meeting place if we get separated? Or just a place to camp between attacks?" Venomon considered. "Not a bad idea. Any particular place in mind?"
"The mountaintop where we met Ann would work. So would the lakeside where Kayo is now."
"I'll take the lakeside."
Jareth grimaced. "You sure?"
"Well, I'm the only one of us that can fly, so not everyone has easy access to the mountaintop. Besides, Digimon need lots of food to fight well, and that lake's full of fish." Venomon glanced over at his human partner. "It's perfect."
"Yeah, I guess you're right."
"You're not upset that Kayo found it first? That he stumbled onto the perfect campsite without even trying?"
"No, I'm more upset at the prospect of staying in the same place as him for more than a few minutes."
"He really doesn't seem like that bad a guy. You should give him a chance."
Jareth tuned out what his companion was saying. He was right, of course. It wasn't Kayo's fault he was here. And Kayo really did seem like a decent enough guy.
Jareth shook his head, thinking about what he'd said earlier. 'I'm your elder, you should treat me as such....' Since when had he thought like that? Respect didn't come to someone just because they were older; it had to be earned. It was almost as if the words hadn't been his own. The voice had certainly been Jareth's, but when he replayed the scene in his mind, it sounded like someone else: a mocking, nasal voice with an attitude to match. Piedmon?
"....And anyway," Venomon continued, oblivious to Jareth's silence, "it's not as if being snotty to him can get rid of him. He's here, he' one of us and that's that."
Jareth sighed. "All right, all right. I'll try to be nicer to him. No promises, though."
A rumbling from deeper in the forest interrupted any further conversation.
"Did you hear that?"
"Could anyone MISS that?" Jareth quipped.
Loud, resounding THUDs began to head their way.
"I think it heard us." "I think you're right."
"I think those sound like very big feet."
"I think we should run."
Before they could move, a large, red dinosaur stepped into sight, his head nearly hidden by all the branches.
"I think we took too long," Jareth said.
"It's Tyranomon!" Venomon cried.
"Well? Digivolve already!"
"Venomon...Digivolve to....." The sound that followed wasn't the shriek of a Digivice, but rather, a loud rumbling from Venomon's midsection.
Jareth stared at the small reptilian Digimon. "Don't tell me...."
"Well, I haven't eaten anything for a while now...."
Tyrranomon took a step forward, bending down to get a better look at the two small morsels. He glanced over Venomon, then looked forward at Jareth, who was about twice the size of his Digimon. Tyranomon leaned forward; massive jaws open, revealing two rows of razor-sharp teeth...
Venomon's eyes narrowed. He lunged forward, head-butting Tyranomon in the ankle, his sharp horn sinking into the red Digimon's tender flesh.
For a moment, it seemed as though Tyranomon hadn't even felt Venomon's attack. His head drew nearer to Jareth. The Dark Digidestined could smell its rancid breath, see right down the massive beast's gullet....
Then the nerve impulse finally reached Tyranomon's relatively small brain, and it roared in pain. It glared balefully down at its foot, where a tiny trickle of blood leaked from a ludicrously small hole in its leg.
Venomon had already darted to Jareth's side.
"Come on! Let's go!"
Jareth shook his head as though coming out of a daydream, then turned and ran, Venomon keeping pace.
Tyranomon roared again, sending insects and small birds fying from the branches and scattering elsewhere. He stomped after them, each of his massive strides covering more than a dozen of his prey's.
Then he stopped.
Jareth, aware that Tyranomon had stopped chasing him due to the conspicuous absence of THUDs, turned. The large dinosaur seemed to be...dizzy?
Sure enough, Tyranomon was having trouble keeping his balance. He wobbled uncertainly, and seemed to be having trouble breathing. His eyes shifted in and out of focus, and he swiped with his claws at the air in front of him, as though he were hallucinating. Finally, the massive beast fell, forcing Jareth and Venomon to retreat so as not to be flattened.
Digimon and Digidestined looked over the fallen predator.
"What happened to him?" Jareth asked.
"It was probably just my poison taking effect," Venomon replied.
"Poison?"
"They don't call me Venomon for nothing," the furry lizard replied, looking smug.
"So... he's...."
"No, he's alive. My dosage isn't high enough to kill a Digimon that size. Not with one hit, anyway. If you like, I could stab him a few more times....."
"No, leave him," Jareth said. "After all.... It wasn't his fault he was there."
"What?"
"He was just doing what he did. What nature...or whatever...designed him to do. We shouldn't take it personally."
"So...what should we do?"
"What else? What WE were designed to do.... And I think I know how."
*************************************
"THAT's your plan? Are you nuts?"
"Yes, but that's beside the point. It worked for them, it'll work for us," Jareth said. I hope, he added mentally.
"But we don't have an angel," Kayo pointed out.
Jareth opened his mouth for a scathing retort, but bit it back.
"That's easily fixed," he said, restraining himself. "Venomon?"
Venomon stepped up eagerly, and Jareth's emerald green Digivice began to scream.
"Venomon, Digivolve to....Ravemon!"
"Ravemon, Digivolve to....DarkAngemon!"
Ann blinked. This was the first time she or Kayo had seen Venomon in any of his higher forms. "Okay...so we've got an angel," she said. "Now what?"
"Arrows." Jareth raised his Crest, and it obligingly shot forth a ray of light that coalesced into a six-foot-long spear of energy, which DarkAngemon grabbed from the air.
Ann reached beneath her blouse and drew forth her own Crest, which did likewise.
Kayo held his Crest for a moment, then followed suit.
DarkAngemon held the spears of light, testing their weight.
"Don't forget to revert to Venomon as soon as you throw them, okay?" Jareth reminded the eight-foot-tall angel.
"Yeah, yeah, I got it," DarkAngemon replied. "You ready?" "Wait," Kayo said. "Are you sure this is such a--"
DarkAngemon heaved the first spear; it's amber light striking Jareth directly through the crest that hung over his heart. The second struck Ann, the turquoise shaft piercing her just as the first did Jareth. The final spear shot forth at Kayo, it's crimson light flaring, and Kayo doubled over in pain as the blast knocked him back a good ten feet. Struggling to a sitting position, Kayo stared, gaping, as the Digimon companions of his fellow Dark Digidestined underwent a shocking transformation.
"Venomon, Warp-Dark Digivolve to....."
A wave of golden fire washed over Venomon, transforming him into Ravemon, then DarkAngemon, and finally into a large humanoid figure covered head to toe in shining silver-blue armor. Ten razor-sharp wings flashed into existence, fanning out behind him, made of the same shimmering metal as his armor. A pair of silver wings adorned the sides of his helmet, his eyes shone a striking electric blue, and a short, barbed horn emerged from his forehead. A long staff appeared in his hand, with bladed flanges at one end and a sparkling blue orb at the other.
"MithrilAngemon!"
"Enzoromon, Warp-Dark Digivolve to...." Arclets of blue energy flashed across Enzoromon's body, and before everyone's very eyes, she transformed into Felinamon, then Saberfelinamon, and finally into a large, four-legged beast. A pair of ragged, bat-like wings unfolded from her back, the thin membranes stretched between the brittle-looking bones. Her fur was a dark, oily-looking blue-black, and a row of short, curved spines ran down her back, starting between her eyes and ending at the stinger at the end of her curving, scorpion-like tail.
"DarkTigressmon!"
Jareth and Ann stared at their companion Digimon, spellbound.
Kayo dragged himself to his feet. "Warp DARK Digivolve?" Kayo asked, puzzled. It seemed to him that when Gabumon went Mega, he'd just said Warp- Digivolve. "Is that right?"
"Don't be jealous just because it didn't work for you," Ann said.
Kayo glared daggers at her. Why HADN'T it worked for him? Aeromon was just as good as those other two!
He just couldn't catch a break.
*****************************************
Piedmon glared through his telescope at his servants in the field. He hadn't given them permission to Digivolve to Mega! He didn't trust them with that much power!
Furious, the clown-like Digimon abruptly got up from his seat and began pacing. At least it hadn't worked on the youngest one. What was his name...Kayo. That one was already beginning to show signs of fighting his control. Really, the alienation Kayo was feeling was his own fault; if he wasn't such a threat to Piedmon, then Piedmon wouldn't distrust him so, and that distrust wouldn't trickle down through his mind-control to the other two. Ironically, it was Kayo's alienation that was driving him to fight Piedmon's control. A vicious circle if ever there was one.
Piedmon glanced through the telescope again. Interesting.... The new Mega forms of those two Digimon directly reflected their partner's ideas of what evil was.... To Ann, evil meant death and decay, to Jareth, it meant self- righteousness and arrogance. Piedmon smiled. What an interesting perspective this mental link gave him! If only he could gaze into Kayo's mind this easily.....
***************************************
Digimon Analyzer
DarkTigressmon Mega Virus Feral Beast Digimon Attacks: Shade Claw, Plague Wing A savage shadow beast who haunts the dreams of the innocent.
MithrilAngemon Mega Vaccine Divine Angel Digimon Attacks: Divine Shadow, Plasma Blast A powerful guardian who destroys all those who oppose him.
"Yep."
"And what this boiled down to, was that Angemon and Angewomon had to impale two of the Digidestined."
"Yep."
"And this made Agumon and Gabumon go Mega?"
"Yep."
"Talkative today, aren't we?" Jareth grinned sideways at the small green reptile as the two of them trudged through the forest.
Venomon shrugged. "You aren't asking very elaborate questions."
"Okay, well here's one for you: What do you think about us setting up a semi-permanent base of operations?"
"Like a meeting place if we get separated? Or just a place to camp between attacks?" Venomon considered. "Not a bad idea. Any particular place in mind?"
"The mountaintop where we met Ann would work. So would the lakeside where Kayo is now."
"I'll take the lakeside."
Jareth grimaced. "You sure?"
"Well, I'm the only one of us that can fly, so not everyone has easy access to the mountaintop. Besides, Digimon need lots of food to fight well, and that lake's full of fish." Venomon glanced over at his human partner. "It's perfect."
"Yeah, I guess you're right."
"You're not upset that Kayo found it first? That he stumbled onto the perfect campsite without even trying?"
"No, I'm more upset at the prospect of staying in the same place as him for more than a few minutes."
"He really doesn't seem like that bad a guy. You should give him a chance."
Jareth tuned out what his companion was saying. He was right, of course. It wasn't Kayo's fault he was here. And Kayo really did seem like a decent enough guy.
Jareth shook his head, thinking about what he'd said earlier. 'I'm your elder, you should treat me as such....' Since when had he thought like that? Respect didn't come to someone just because they were older; it had to be earned. It was almost as if the words hadn't been his own. The voice had certainly been Jareth's, but when he replayed the scene in his mind, it sounded like someone else: a mocking, nasal voice with an attitude to match. Piedmon?
"....And anyway," Venomon continued, oblivious to Jareth's silence, "it's not as if being snotty to him can get rid of him. He's here, he' one of us and that's that."
Jareth sighed. "All right, all right. I'll try to be nicer to him. No promises, though."
A rumbling from deeper in the forest interrupted any further conversation.
"Did you hear that?"
"Could anyone MISS that?" Jareth quipped.
Loud, resounding THUDs began to head their way.
"I think it heard us." "I think you're right."
"I think those sound like very big feet."
"I think we should run."
Before they could move, a large, red dinosaur stepped into sight, his head nearly hidden by all the branches.
"I think we took too long," Jareth said.
"It's Tyranomon!" Venomon cried.
"Well? Digivolve already!"
"Venomon...Digivolve to....." The sound that followed wasn't the shriek of a Digivice, but rather, a loud rumbling from Venomon's midsection.
Jareth stared at the small reptilian Digimon. "Don't tell me...."
"Well, I haven't eaten anything for a while now...."
Tyrranomon took a step forward, bending down to get a better look at the two small morsels. He glanced over Venomon, then looked forward at Jareth, who was about twice the size of his Digimon. Tyranomon leaned forward; massive jaws open, revealing two rows of razor-sharp teeth...
Venomon's eyes narrowed. He lunged forward, head-butting Tyranomon in the ankle, his sharp horn sinking into the red Digimon's tender flesh.
For a moment, it seemed as though Tyranomon hadn't even felt Venomon's attack. His head drew nearer to Jareth. The Dark Digidestined could smell its rancid breath, see right down the massive beast's gullet....
Then the nerve impulse finally reached Tyranomon's relatively small brain, and it roared in pain. It glared balefully down at its foot, where a tiny trickle of blood leaked from a ludicrously small hole in its leg.
Venomon had already darted to Jareth's side.
"Come on! Let's go!"
Jareth shook his head as though coming out of a daydream, then turned and ran, Venomon keeping pace.
Tyranomon roared again, sending insects and small birds fying from the branches and scattering elsewhere. He stomped after them, each of his massive strides covering more than a dozen of his prey's.
Then he stopped.
Jareth, aware that Tyranomon had stopped chasing him due to the conspicuous absence of THUDs, turned. The large dinosaur seemed to be...dizzy?
Sure enough, Tyranomon was having trouble keeping his balance. He wobbled uncertainly, and seemed to be having trouble breathing. His eyes shifted in and out of focus, and he swiped with his claws at the air in front of him, as though he were hallucinating. Finally, the massive beast fell, forcing Jareth and Venomon to retreat so as not to be flattened.
Digimon and Digidestined looked over the fallen predator.
"What happened to him?" Jareth asked.
"It was probably just my poison taking effect," Venomon replied.
"Poison?"
"They don't call me Venomon for nothing," the furry lizard replied, looking smug.
"So... he's...."
"No, he's alive. My dosage isn't high enough to kill a Digimon that size. Not with one hit, anyway. If you like, I could stab him a few more times....."
"No, leave him," Jareth said. "After all.... It wasn't his fault he was there."
"What?"
"He was just doing what he did. What nature...or whatever...designed him to do. We shouldn't take it personally."
"So...what should we do?"
"What else? What WE were designed to do.... And I think I know how."
*************************************
"THAT's your plan? Are you nuts?"
"Yes, but that's beside the point. It worked for them, it'll work for us," Jareth said. I hope, he added mentally.
"But we don't have an angel," Kayo pointed out.
Jareth opened his mouth for a scathing retort, but bit it back.
"That's easily fixed," he said, restraining himself. "Venomon?"
Venomon stepped up eagerly, and Jareth's emerald green Digivice began to scream.
"Venomon, Digivolve to....Ravemon!"
"Ravemon, Digivolve to....DarkAngemon!"
Ann blinked. This was the first time she or Kayo had seen Venomon in any of his higher forms. "Okay...so we've got an angel," she said. "Now what?"
"Arrows." Jareth raised his Crest, and it obligingly shot forth a ray of light that coalesced into a six-foot-long spear of energy, which DarkAngemon grabbed from the air.
Ann reached beneath her blouse and drew forth her own Crest, which did likewise.
Kayo held his Crest for a moment, then followed suit.
DarkAngemon held the spears of light, testing their weight.
"Don't forget to revert to Venomon as soon as you throw them, okay?" Jareth reminded the eight-foot-tall angel.
"Yeah, yeah, I got it," DarkAngemon replied. "You ready?" "Wait," Kayo said. "Are you sure this is such a--"
DarkAngemon heaved the first spear; it's amber light striking Jareth directly through the crest that hung over his heart. The second struck Ann, the turquoise shaft piercing her just as the first did Jareth. The final spear shot forth at Kayo, it's crimson light flaring, and Kayo doubled over in pain as the blast knocked him back a good ten feet. Struggling to a sitting position, Kayo stared, gaping, as the Digimon companions of his fellow Dark Digidestined underwent a shocking transformation.
"Venomon, Warp-Dark Digivolve to....."
A wave of golden fire washed over Venomon, transforming him into Ravemon, then DarkAngemon, and finally into a large humanoid figure covered head to toe in shining silver-blue armor. Ten razor-sharp wings flashed into existence, fanning out behind him, made of the same shimmering metal as his armor. A pair of silver wings adorned the sides of his helmet, his eyes shone a striking electric blue, and a short, barbed horn emerged from his forehead. A long staff appeared in his hand, with bladed flanges at one end and a sparkling blue orb at the other.
"MithrilAngemon!"
"Enzoromon, Warp-Dark Digivolve to...." Arclets of blue energy flashed across Enzoromon's body, and before everyone's very eyes, she transformed into Felinamon, then Saberfelinamon, and finally into a large, four-legged beast. A pair of ragged, bat-like wings unfolded from her back, the thin membranes stretched between the brittle-looking bones. Her fur was a dark, oily-looking blue-black, and a row of short, curved spines ran down her back, starting between her eyes and ending at the stinger at the end of her curving, scorpion-like tail.
"DarkTigressmon!"
Jareth and Ann stared at their companion Digimon, spellbound.
Kayo dragged himself to his feet. "Warp DARK Digivolve?" Kayo asked, puzzled. It seemed to him that when Gabumon went Mega, he'd just said Warp- Digivolve. "Is that right?"
"Don't be jealous just because it didn't work for you," Ann said.
Kayo glared daggers at her. Why HADN'T it worked for him? Aeromon was just as good as those other two!
He just couldn't catch a break.
*****************************************
Piedmon glared through his telescope at his servants in the field. He hadn't given them permission to Digivolve to Mega! He didn't trust them with that much power!
Furious, the clown-like Digimon abruptly got up from his seat and began pacing. At least it hadn't worked on the youngest one. What was his name...Kayo. That one was already beginning to show signs of fighting his control. Really, the alienation Kayo was feeling was his own fault; if he wasn't such a threat to Piedmon, then Piedmon wouldn't distrust him so, and that distrust wouldn't trickle down through his mind-control to the other two. Ironically, it was Kayo's alienation that was driving him to fight Piedmon's control. A vicious circle if ever there was one.
Piedmon glanced through the telescope again. Interesting.... The new Mega forms of those two Digimon directly reflected their partner's ideas of what evil was.... To Ann, evil meant death and decay, to Jareth, it meant self- righteousness and arrogance. Piedmon smiled. What an interesting perspective this mental link gave him! If only he could gaze into Kayo's mind this easily.....
***************************************
Digimon Analyzer
DarkTigressmon Mega Virus Feral Beast Digimon Attacks: Shade Claw, Plague Wing A savage shadow beast who haunts the dreams of the innocent.
MithrilAngemon Mega Vaccine Divine Angel Digimon Attacks: Divine Shadow, Plasma Blast A powerful guardian who destroys all those who oppose him.