It's been a while. Ca va? Go-Busters? Sorry, I've been watching way too much Super Sentai. Well, things are about to heat up and the Children of the Past cast is going to be joining us soon. So I thank everyone who has given this story their support and I hope you all enjoy!
-X-
December 21: Infinity Mountain Peak – 9:55 AM
TK dismounted just as they reached the summit where they saw a deteriorating old mansion. It looked just like the one TK and the others had thought was a luxurious place to stop and relax when in reality, the food, robes, and the amazing bath were all part of Devimon's illusion. According to the boy's memory, this place should be further down the mountain. Did Devimon have the power to move a building somewhere else or was this simply another conjured up hallucination?
Either way, it was disconcerting to TK because it held one of his worst memories on File Island. It had been their first encounter with Devimon and their second encounter with the brainwashed Leomon. To make matters worse, the seven of them were separated in flying beds and TK was alone for days before reuniting with anyone else.
Now that he thought about it, TK had to wonder how he was still mentally stable after all the craziness he went through. Then again, he could ask the same out of everyone. Most of them were only kids, not even in middle school, when they were ripped of the face of the Earth and into a completely different world where the natural laws from their own didn't apply.
"TK?" Pegasusmon called.
The teenager glanced over to the winged horse. "Sorry. I was thinking."
"About what?"
"I guess… the past."
His partner was worried, even without being together for the last couple of years, TK could tell that. Pegasusmon was probably thinking that TK was seeking vengeance on Devimon for what happened seven years ago. And in all honesty, TK did want that. He wanted Devimon to pay for his actions.
"Every time I think I've moved on, he comes back to haunt me," TK sighed. "We should probably evolve you into MagnaAngemon, just to be ready."
Pegasusmon nodded before returning to his Rookie form. "Okay."
TK held up his green D-3 just as a distorted ringing sound reached his ears. It sounded awful but he could tell that it wasn't a passing Flymon because this was much worse. It felt as if someone was taking a jackhammer to the inside of his skull, causing it to start to split right down the middle.
Patamon could hear it too and he used his tiny little hands to press his wings into his body. It wasn't long before something fell onto his soft head and he realized that it was the digivice. TK had dropped it while he was covering his ears to try and dull the sound.
"P-Patamon!" TK grunted.
"TK?" Patamon whimpered.
Patamon didn't even have the time to register what was happening let alone scream before his partner vanished right before his very eyes. The flying guinea pig frantically looked around, noticing that the ringing had stopped and bizarrely, the building had vanished!
"Oh no…," Patamon murmured as he picked up the D-3 and became airborne. "I need to find someone and quick! Who knows what'll happen to TK if I don't!"
The Digimon flew away just as TK woke up to find himself in the foyer of some ritzy mansion. Well, no, it wasn't just some mansion. There was no doubt that this was the same place which he and his team went to seven years ago. But what was he doing there? And more importantly, how did he get there?
"Devimon," the boy whispered. He balled up his fists angrily as he stood up. "I know you did this! Show yourself!"
"How impatient," a voice echoed with a maniacal laugh.
That wasn't Devimon. It belonged to a different, evil being. One that TK had hoped to never see again but when he turned around and saw the face of a clown, he jumped backwards, landing on his butt. The clown laughed as he hopped onto a giant, inflatable beach ball and started walking around on it while juggling some bowling pins.
"Piedmon…?" TK gasped.
As the two syllables were uttered, the scenery began to change. Carnival music began playing and the stairs kept flipping from slide to steps, slide to steps, slide to steps. The walls were aglow with copious amounts of vibrant pastels that seemed to rotate on an axis around and around and around. The chandelier overhead spun in a little circle, making quiet little tinkling sounds that kind of sounded like children's laughter.
"This is my funhouse," Piedmon laughed jubilantly. "Aren't you having fun?"
TK pushed himself onto his feet before running to the door to his left. He tried the knob and realized that it was locked. He turned back to see the clown directly in his face again and once more, he leapt backwards, hitting his back against the door and flying through.
This time, the colorful spinning lights were gone and instead, everything was dark. But one thing was for sure, he was in the foyer once more but he had come out of the right door. He looked back to find a wall and nothing more.
"What the hell is going on?" TK muttered to himself.
He decided to try going up the stairs but just as he made it to the top, he found an upright coffin in front of him. The doors opened and a vampire stepped through, slicked back black hair, crimson red cape, shining white fangs, and a little mask to cover his eyes.
"Good evening!" the vampire cackled.
TK stumbled backwards, falling down the stairs. It hurt like hell but he seemed generally okay. "Myotismon this time?" he groaned. The Digimon may look different but there was no way TK could forget those voices. "What is this?"
"My haunted house," Myotismon grinned. "So glad you could come over for a bite."
Like the classic vampire joke says, the being walked close to TK and opened his mouth, fangs out, ready to bite into TK's throat. With all the strength he could muster, TK pushed himself up off the ground and smashed his head into his assailant. Once again, it hurt like hell, but worth it to get away.
TK grabbed Myotismon by the shoulders and pushed him aside before scaling the remainder of the stairs. He was almost to the top when Myotismon suddenly flew in from the side, coming down gently in front of TK. So the boy took to other desperate measures and swung himself over the railings and back down onto the floor, tumbling to make sure he didn't break his legs on the fall.
"Got to get out of this nut shack," TK muttered as he burst right through the front door.
His gut hit the railing as he realized that he wasn't outside but back in the foyer! This time, he was at the top of the staircase, looking down on what looked to be a ballroom this time, filled with people dancing. But while they looked human, their movements were stiff and awkward, as if they were being controlled by strings.
"Hey TK, remember me?" a nasally voice asked.
How could he forget? TK looked up at the ceiling to find that there wasn't a ceiling though it wasn't like he could see the sky either. Rather, he saw Puppetmon's gigantic face and his wooden fingers wiggling around while controlling the dancers.
This was insanity. "Stop this!" TK demanded. "Let me out!"
"Only if you play with me," laughed Puppetmon.
The dummies stopped dancing and they all turned their heads around to face TK. It didn't matter which way their bodies faced so long as their hollowed eyes were looking at the human. Their mouths clacked open and little needles started darting out in the direction of the boy.
TK ducked around the bannister as he made a break to the left. Trying his best to weave past the needles but a couple lodged themselves in his arm and leg. They stung and he could feel himself bleeding but he didn't stop until he kicked down the next door on his left, running through and coming out of the right.
"What is it this time?" he huffed. "Machinedramon? MetalSeadramon?"
TK pulled out the needles as he looked around, noticing that he was no longer in the foyer. It was nothing to be relieved about as he knew exactly where he was this time. This was no longer an enemy from seven years ago but from only four. He was in the flying base of the Digimon Emperor!
"Why hello, TK," the voice of an old friend called out from across the dark hall. "I never did repay you for that punch, did I?"
TK tensed up as he saw the Digimon Emperor, cape and shades and all, step out of the shadows. The difference was that he was no longer an eleven year old boy; he looked like he was still TK's age, which was probably to make him seem more intimidating than he used to be. But unlike the Digimon, TK wasn't afraid of this kind of evil.
But the Emperor had insurance, as he proved when he snapped his fingers and the room brightened up. TK had to cover his eyes momentarily with his arm but when he looked again, he felt like vomiting. All around him where his friends, covered in cuts, bruises, hanging like puppets with ropes around their necks. It was like some deluded serial killer's sick idea of interior decoration.
TK knew that this was only an illusion. Everything around him, it was fake. He had been with a couple of his friends just moments ago, at the base of the mountain. There was no way they could be hanging around like they were now.
"This is like that Bakemon trick, right?" TK said shakily. He knew it was a fake. He kept repeating to himself it was fake. But no one would be stable from seeing what TK was witnessing. "When you made Davis think that we were captured by you and about to become Deltamon chow?"
"Good guess," the Emperor chuckled.
The Emperor took out his whip and snapped it, causing three of the ropes to start moving so that it formed a barricade between the boys. To TK's horror, it held the visages of Matt, Kari, and Cody by their throats.
Was this a torture chamber for TK this time around? His brother, his best friend, and his DNA Digivolution partner were hanging dead in front of him and he wasn't supposed to puke out his breakfast? Well, that was exactly what he did.
"Looks like I'll need to call in the custodians," the Emperor shook his head with a smile before clapping his hands.
As if this ordeal couldn't get worse. WarGreymon suddenly floated down from above with a Dark Spiral on his arm and he destroyed the part of the floor where the puke was. The explosion caused TK to fall backwards but he quickly crawled towards the now gaping hole when he heard the sounds of his friends.
Every single Digimon partner could be seen in the floor below, each sporting their very own Dark Spiral somewhere on their bodies. They moved around, completely mindless, and oblivious that their partners were dead by the hands of their evil master.
"You monster!" TK snarled through grit teeth.
The Chosen Child plunged his way past WarGreymon and slipped right under the hanging bodies of those closest to him before charging right at the Emperor. He threw a right jab which the Emperor caught and then slammed his knee right into TK's stomach, knocking the wind right out of him. To add insult to injury, the Ken impostor leapt backwards and snapped his whip which wrapped right around TK's neck.
"Can't… breathe…," TK wheezed, eyes watering.
The room was going dark again as he fell to his knees. He tried to train his glare on the laughing Emperor who was chanting that the child of hope was going to die. TK almost forgot, his crest was that of hope. He couldn't give up there. But what could he do in his state?
He needed help. Someone, help him!
Just then, the Emperor yelled out and TK could suddenly breathe again. Once the dark spots were out of his eyes, he could see that it was a Musyamon that had sliced the whip. Standing beside the samurai was a Turuiemon who charged forward and started releasing a flurry of punches at the Emperor who blocked them with ease.
"Are you okay?" Musyamon asked.
"Eh?" TK blinked. This warrior sounded womanly? Was this a female Musyamon? "Ah. Yeah, I'm okay."
Just then, the Turuiemon was knocked back but she quickly got back onto her feet just as the scenery shifted around them. Patamon suddenly flew into TK's arms just as the area changed back into Infinity Mountain's peak. No, in truth, TK never actually left, he was stuck in a dream world created by Devimon who was currently in the guise of the Digimon Emperor.
Patamon was sniveling. "TK! I'm so glad that you're okay! I was flying down the mountain, hoping to get help when I bumped into these two. They said that they were allies of the DigiDestined and that they would help us!"
TK could get on board with that. After all, they did actually save him. But… "Who are you two?" TK inquired.
"I am sensei Turuiemon!" the martial arts rabbit said, making three air punches for emphasis. "In one of my past lives, I trained one of the original Chosen Children in the art of taichi, muay thai, karate, kenpo, judo, jujitsu–!"
"That's too long!" Musyamon huffed, hitting her companion with the flat part of her sword. "We'll explain who we are later."
The Emperor, or rather, Devimon, did not seem happy with this as his body began to twist and soon enough, he changed back to the form of a fallen angel. He was as intimidating and evil-looking as TK remembered him to be.
Devimon hadn't expected to see two members of the United Xros Heart Army, especially not two high-ranking officials. He had assumed that he and his allies had destroyed or enslaved everyone that had been resisting them. Did that mean that Turuiemon and Musyamon were newly arrived reinforcements? Either way, he was going to make them pay for ruining his fun.
The demon raised his arms dramatically as Black Gears started raining from the sky and coming towards Turuiemon and Musyamon. TK took the D-3 out of Patamon's hands and quickly evolved his partner all the way to Ultimate. Although it looked like the two Champions were more than enough to keep the Black Gears from touching them.
"Hmph," Turuiemon scoffed as she swung a roundhouse kick and shattered two gears. "Compared to Dark Chains, these things are a cinch to break!"
"Chosen Child! Don't worry about us and just focus on defeating Devimon!" Musyamon commanded.
TK had so many questions on his mind but judging from what they were saying, they were once comrades of the Monster Makers. He remembered Shibumi mentioning something about Dark Chains. That they worked similarly to Black Gears and Dark Rings and that they could not affect humans or their digital partners. Supposedly, the Black Gears worked the same way and that's why the Digital World needed humans to protect it.
"Thanks, we will!" TK stated as he and MagnaAngemon charged towards Devimon.
MagnaAngemon was a few steps ahead though as he drew his blade and made a swing at Devimon but the demon just dodged it. The battle between light and darkness ensued as the pair clashed against each other, taking off towards the skies. TK bit his bottom lip as he watched from the ground, praying that his partner would be okay.
He wished he could do something though and as he touched his arm, he realized he still had a needle stuck in there. He hadn't even noticed. He pulled it out with a yell as he felt blood dripping down his arm and he wished he hadn't done that. But that meant the pain he felt was real even if everything else was fake.
As soon as that thought processed through his head, TK heard the ringing again. The Digimon, aside from Devimon, all yelled out as well, clearly being affected by the same thing. And once again, TK felt himself being taken somewhere.
TK grabbed the needle off the ground and stabbed his hand, much to everyone's shock. For a brief moment, he was back on stable ground, with enough time to grab onto a hunk of concrete from the deteriorating mansion. Like a shot put at the Olympics, he swung the piece of stone right for Devimon.
"The Touch of Evil!"
The ringing stopped when Devimon used that attack which meant that it was one of his other moves that invoked the ringing. The demon used one of his elongated arms to destroy the concrete chunk and the other to push MagnaAngemon into the mountainside, causing a miniature landslide.
"Excalibur!" MagnaAngemon bellowed, using his extended sword to cut right into the arm, causing Devimon to retract a little. It was enough for the angel to fly out of the way and as they could tell, smashing him into some rocks wasn't going to do more than give him a couple of scratches. "Soul Vanisher!"
"Death Hand!"
Both beings released energy of pure holy energy and pure evil respectively. When the attacks clashed, depending on which side you were standing, you would either be engulfed in a blinding light or a suffocating blackness. The offset from the attacks destroyed all the stray Black Gears though so TK was relieved to see their new allies were safe from harm.
"Tch, you're a lot stronger than I remember," MagnaAngemon huffed.
Devimon smirked. "I was granted this power by the Demon Lords. Why should I let it go to waste?"
There had been something that was bothering TK for a while. All of these past enemies that they had once faced, they were extremely independent and wanted to rule the multiverse on their own. So why would they follow orders from someone else? Even if that someone else was the all-powerful Demon Lords?
Unless the Demon Lords really did have that much power. Were they so strong that even the prideful Devimon was willing to surrender a huge percentage of the world to them? That they could make the cocky Etemon quake in fear? TK knew that the Demon Lords shouldn't be underestimated but that level of power was ridiculous.
The other thing that was bothering TK was that File Island was small compared to the other islands and continents in the Digital World. So why were there so many bad Digimon stationed here? Could it be that there was an active resistance against the Demon Lords? It would make sense. It would explain where Turuiemon and Musyamon came from and why they immediately chose to ally themselves with a random human and his partner they just chanced upon.
"Why are you so set on taking over this world?" MagnaAngemon asked. "Or a better question would be, why are the Demon Lords so determined to do this?"
Devimon chuckled darkly. "Who knows? Though I suppose I should inform you of something, MagnaAngemon."
The two female warriors joined TK as they all looked up at the two floating rivals. It was a little difficult to hear them from where they stood but Turuiemon's ears were sensitive enough for her to understand. And Musyamon had to say that she was decent with reading lips, even from a distance.
"And what's that?" MagnaAngemon inquired.
"Every attribute is born from a different human trait," Devimon grinned. "Fire is given life by passion and desire which is why your friend, Agumon, gets along so well with your leader. Wind is born from flexibility and freedom. Light is born from love and benevolence. Tell me now, do you know what darkness is made from?"
The sins? What exactly was Devimon trying to say? "Just spit it out," MagnaAngemon scoffed. "I don't want to play your guessing games."
Devimon's smug grin never vanished from his face as he gently landed on the deteriorating building, the tips of his feet barely touching the tallest piece of nearly broken wood. "Hatred and vengeance, the most vile of human emotions. Myself, the obstinate Myotismon, the Dark Masters, and Lord Apocalymon, we were all born from the wrongdoings of others and we vowed to take revenge on them."
TK swallowed but his throat was dry. He heard the origin stories for each of the Demon Lords and so many of them weren't bad in the first place. They were simply caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. As a matter of fact, the genesis of pride and wrath really stuck with TK.
Devimon gave up his life to bring back his deceased partner, Kurogane, with absolutely no hesitation whatsoever. The Angemon, on the other hand, had too much pride to do that, even for his own partner. Instead, when Devimon died and Kurogane was revived, the angel laughed psychotically because to him, he had won.
The Digimon of light, born from love and benevolence was the one to fall to darkness first. Not all dark Digimon were bad, they could learn from their mistakes and choose not to take vengeance on those who have wronged them. But Devimon and those he named were not those Digimon.
"Darkness does not equate to evil, is that what you're trying to say?" TK shouted. MagnaAngemon and Devimon both looked down to the boy. "Or are you trying to make us feel pity for the darkness? Make us sympathize with the Demon Lords? Well it worked. But your intentions are to take revenge on the whole world, making the innocent suffer instead of making the guilty learn, that's what sets you apart from other dark Digimon."
Devimon frowned and in a blur, he was suddenly in front of the teenager. Turuiemon and Musyamon immediately jumped forward with the intention of attacking him, but he blasted them both back with packets of black energy. The woman warriors were blown away as MagnaAngemon tried getting down to TK as fast as possible.
TK tried to move out of the way but then Devimon grabbed his bleeding arm. "Hell Contract." A droplet of TK's blood fell into the palm of Devimon's hand and all of a sudden, the world tilted.
MagnaAngemon crash landed face-first into the dirt. He stood back up and frantically looked around but there was no sign of his partner, his enemy, or the building anymore! It was just like before. Did that mean they were in that weird subspace again?
"Musyamon! Turuiemon! How did you two enter that subspace before?" MagnaAngemon asked in a panicked tone.
The martial artist and the samurai limped over to the angel. "Meditation," Musyamon said. "If you empty your mind and envision a path to the subspace, you will be able to enter it. But only for about a minute or two."
"That'll be enough," MagnaAngemon stated. "It'll have to be."
December 21: Devil Subspace – 10:35 AM
The scenery around them changed and TK saw his assailant morph into Etemon. The area around them looked like the coliseum where Joe found his crest and where Agumon first evolved into SkullGreymon, another bad memory for the DigiDestined.
Etemon was still holding onto TK's wrist with an iron grip and he easily lifted the boy up before tossing him towards a soccer goal like a rag doll. He was probably getting bruises as he rolled into the net and he felt dirt getting into his open wounds.
TK swore under his breath as he pushed himself up. "Why go so far to torture me?"
"Vengeance," Etemon, no, Devimon stated. "I told you that I was born from the desire to take revenge." The image of the monkey pointed an accusing finger at TK. "Because of you, I was destroyed last time and now I will make you suffer for it. Dark Network!"
With a snap of his fingers, black cables shot out from every direction and completely restrained TK by latching onto his wrists, ankles, and even his throat. At first, the boy tried squirming and struggling but the harder he tried, the more likely an electric shock would course through his body, making his scream out in pain.
Devimon took on a new form, the Emperor once more and his signature whip. "I wonder how many shocks it would take before your eyes roll to the back of your head and you begin frothing at the mouth. My theory is four, shall we test it out?"
With a snap of a whip right across TK's chest, tearing up his shirt and causing blood to spill, another electric shock coursed through TK's veins. The pain was excruciating and in general, the situation was absolutely humiliating along with painful. But the pattern only continued from there, the whip, the shock, the whip, the shock.
"Has anyone ever told you that your mouth and chin look better dipped in deep red?" Devimon laughed when TK coughed up blood. He stopped though when he noticed the way TK was staring at him. "That's not contemptuous… Why the hell are your eyes alive and not angry?"
It was because all he needed to do was hold out. There was no way he was going to die there. "Someone will save me," TK coughed. "I know it. After all, I'm… the child of hope. Even if I'm not saved… don't think you've won… Because I'm just one out of hundreds of Chosen Children. And in the end, we will triumph."
Devimon did not like hearing that much confidence in someone who was a victim to his torture. In his rage, his form as the Emperor flickered and fragments of his real body could be seen in little gaps of his sophisticated illusion. "Die!" Devimon bellowed, sending the whip flying right for TK's face.
TK flash backed to the time Ken had done that to him. But this time, he could see the whip flicker and momentarily change to Devimon's elongated claw. That wouldn't just leave a mark; that would chop his head clean off his body. So he squeezed his eyes shut, resigned to this fate. But the claw never made contact.
TK fell into Turuiemon's arms and he could see that Musyamon cut down the cables. "You need to stop getting in these situations," Musyamon sighed. "Though I have to say that I'm surprised. Your partner got the meditation down really fast."
TK looked up to see MagnaAngemon with his blade extended, blocking the claw which was now actually a claw. "Of course… He's my partner, after all," he smiled weakly.
The strange ringing came back. It was made so that TK and Patamon would shut their eyes and covered their ears while Devimon took some of the boy's blood for the Hell Contract. He was then transported into that subspace with the ever changing foyer. It seemed like Devimon had quite the grudge on the boy.
"Tch… I've used up too much of my energy," Devimon huffed.
MagnaAngemon ignored it and charged running along with the elongated arm. "Excalibur!"
In a flash of brilliant light, Devimon was sliced right in half just as the world around them returned to normal. And with that, MagnaAngemon returned to being a tired Tokomon. TK gave his partner a thumbs-up just as he heard people calling his name.
He turned around to see the others running towards him. It seemed like out of all the humans, he was in the worst state. Though Jeri looked a little worse for wear as well. There were obviously a lot of questions being asked but all TK wanted was to sleep.
"Taiki, is something wrong?" Takato inquired.
Everyone looked from the Tamer to the General who was looking at the spot where Devimon's two halves were slowly dissipating. "He's still alive." Right after he uttered those words, the two halves exploded and then came back together as a new Devimon.
"But how?!" Shinya blanched, hiding behind Tommy.
"These guys sure are persistent," Kristy muttered.
It didn't seem like Devimon was going to fight them though. He just gave them one last smug grin before vanishing into thin air.
"He… retreated," Guilmon said, cocking his head to the side. "Why did he do that, Takato?"
None of them could answer that question but it was worrying to them. But for now, they had to treat their wounded. So with TK safely in Turuiemon's arms, they climbed down Infinity Mountain, heading back to Primary Village for some well-deserved rest.
December 21: Sapporo, Japan – 10:30 AM
The mechanical drones of Tankmon flooded the city as they fired indiscriminately at every structure in sight. MetalTyrannomon rampaged through the streets and Andromon fired their missiles at the tallest skyscrapers. But the most prominent sound resounding in the capital of Hokkaido was the screams of the citizens as they tried to get away.
Sora and Mimi focused on evacuating the citizens, leaving it up to their partners to take on the small fry. But even so, it had already been a little over half an hour since they landed and they hadn't even seen the general of this destructive army yet.
"This is really bad," muttered Sora. "We said that we'd make sure there would be no more casualties but there is no way that everyone escaped the city before this whole thing started. We should probably regroup with the others."
Mimi nodded in agreement just as she helped lead a little boy back to his parents. "We've already evacuated this section of the city anyway. Let's go in deeper and see if we can find Yoshino in this warzone."
Dorulumon explained to them the problem that Splashmon comes with. For one thing, his humanoid form is actually a suit and his real form is a horrendous beast. Second, the general could not be affected by physical attacks because his form isn't completely physical, it moves just like water. Third, none of the Digimon in his army are real, they are just empty robotic casts animated by Splashers, a little invention of Splashmon because he doesn't trust anyone.
"I can't believe such a being exists though," said Sora.
"What do you mean?" Mimi asked as they kept running.
"Someone who thinks trusting in others is a bad thing," Sora stated. "I mean, we've fought numerous enemies who have thought that way but they've each had their own comrades at the very least. I never thought there was anyone who could really fight by themselves."
Mimi scoffed. "This guy is just arrogant. He trusts his own skills too much if you ask me."
There was another warning Dorulumon had given them. Splashmon can manipulate his shape and can essentially make himself look like any of them. So if they weren't careful, they could be fooled by an impostor pretending to be one of their allies.
For example, a certain police woman. "There you two are!" Yoshino huffed, running towards them. "Rosemon and Akari are already taking on Splashmon deeper in the city. But they're having trouble, do you two think you can call your partners to assist them?"
Sora and Mimi glanced at each other. It would be difficult to tell if Yoshino was a fake. After all, it was a big possibility that Kurosaki gathered data on every single one of the Chosen Children and delivered it to the Demon Lords and their allies. But thanks to Dorulumon's foresight, they were prepared.
Sora shot forward and punched Yoshino right in the face. The older girl crashed right into a concrete building. But just like they thought, the woman who stood there pretending to be Yoshino was just Splashmon in disguise.
"How the hell did you know?!" Splashmon snarled. He was holding his throbbing cheek as he stood back up.
The Dark General had not been told that the redheaded child of love could throw punches like that. But 'Sora' pulled off her red hair to reveal brown underneath and she also removed eye contacts that changed her eye color. 'Mimi' did the same and once they removed their disguises, it was revealed that they were actually Yoshino and Akari.
"Sorry, but we were the ones to fool you," Yoshino smirked.
"We borrowed one of Tagiru's Digimon," Akari explained, "Betsumon, who provided our disguises."
Yoshino pinched the bridge of her nose in secondhand embarrassment when she saw the oddball creature. It was basically child-sized and wearing a poorly made Gatomon costume with a rather unappealing face. Yet he had quite the bag of tricks. On their way from Shinjuku to Sapporo, he made accurate costumes of the girls for them to disguise themselves as Dorulumon instructed them to. They even acted as the girl they were pretending to be just in case.
"I didn't even know such a Digimon could exist," Yoshino sighed.
Just then, another Yoshino and Akari showed up but just like the other two girls, they were in disguise. They quickly changed out of them as their partners soon joined the humans. They were able to finish off the army with relative ease since their general was busy trying to play an old trick.
Dorulumon took a step forward so that the humanoid could see him. "I already know your tricks by now, Splashmon. You cannot reuse them and expect us to fall for them again. As a matter of fact, they didn't even work the first time around, did they? Taiki and Kiriha saw right through you immediately."
"That is the kind of power you can have with comrades you trust," Garudamon continued.
Lillymon wiggled her finger and shook her head. "But of course, someone like you would never understand something like that."
If there was one thing Splashmon hated more than anything, it was losing. And there was no way that he was going to be defeated by this ragtag team. They were tripping over each other when they were attempting to take on Laylamon. So he wasn't about to lose to this lot.
"Don't think you've won yet," Splashmon glowered. "And you shouldn't underestimate a Dark General!"
Digital Analyzer: Splashmon's molecular structure is similar to that of water so he is capable of taking on the form of any Digimon or human at will. This ability makes espionage his specialty, so by gathering all the information he needs, he is able to relay it to the Splashers controlling his cyborg army in order to command them the way he wants. Splashmon puts his beauty as priority and will reject any strategy that will sully his beauty unless it comes time to call for desperate measures.
"Desperate measures?" Mimi frowned. "What does that mean?"
Cutemon answered from Akari's orange X-Loader. "Let's just say that Splashmon's true form is not very pretty."
"I won't let it come to that," Splashmon harrumphed. "Poisonous Force!"
From all over the city, the Splashers started flying towards them and they all started trying their best to avoid the nasty little blobs. It was no easy feat though, no matter how they moved, they all got hit one way or another by those things. Every time they destroyed one, it would just instantly come back together.
"Their molecular structures are also water!" Akari gasped.
"Stay in the eye of the storm!" Rosemon commanded.
Yoshino, Akari, and Rosemon tucked in close to Dorulumon as he started his Drill Tornado attack which acted as a shield for them. Sora, Mimi, and Lillymon did the same by sticking to Garudamon as she spun around to create her Fire Tornado attack. The Splashers couldn't even touch them through the tornadoes so instead, they gathered into Splashmon's body and suddenly, he was in a new form which the girls saw when they were out of the eye of the storms.
Mimi shuddered. "That is an absurd amount of muscle."
Splashmon didn't seem to hear her. "My beauty shall not be tarnished by you!" He raised his arms and from the ground rose these strange shadowy creatures that they had never seen before. Their forms were humanoid though they were completely black and where their faces were supposed to be, were blank white masks. "Voidlings, attack!"
"Voidlings?" they all repeated.
"Protect the humans!" chimed Lillymon. "Flower Cannon!"
"Kiss of Breath!"
"Drill Buster!"
Garudamon picked up the humans but they were able to watch as all of the Digimons' attacks harmlessly passed right through the shadows. The shadows started jumping around like a pack of howler monkeys as they charged at the Digimon, scratching them up with hidden knives.
"What is this?" Dorulumon grunted. "Our attacks don't faze them but they can attack us?"
"Don't tell me this is a new invention of his!" Lillymon yelped. "Maybe they're viruses? Flower Wreath!" She wrapped up a couple in her lei and it seemed to work, they were squirming about, unable to break free while incoherently screaming in agony. "That should do it."
"Hydro-Pressure!"
From Splashmon's fingertips, high-pressure water spouted right out and broke through the wreath but it didn't leave a scratch on the Voidlings. But Lillymon and the others were all blasted back by the force of the water, crashing into the nearby buildings.
"His attacks don't affect them either!" Yoshino gaped.
"So no Digimon can touch them?!" Mimi groaned. "How are we supposed to beat that?"
Splashmon smirked, thinking he had won and mentally thanked whoever actually did create these mindless drones. But it didn't last long when the sound of helicopter propellers were heard from above. They all looked upwards just as a rope ladder came down, touching the top of one of the buildings and to their surprise, a knight in shining armor came sliding down while swinging a sword.
"You beat them like this!" the knight shouted.
The Chosen Children and their partners' jaws dropped and eyes bulged when they realized that they knew that voice. It belonged to Daisy Kaipova, one of the Monster Makers and original Chosen Children. But what the heck was she doing?!
To answer that question, Daisy landed on the building's roof before flipping right over the edge and landing on the sidewalk with one knee to the cement. Several Voidlings changed direction and started coming to her but in a flash, she cut their masks right in two with her blade. As soon as they broke, the shadows seemed to evaporate in the light.
"Digimon can't touch them but humans can!" Daisy bellowed. "But you have to be able to use your DigiSoul in order to do so."
Yoshino glanced down at her fist. "Is that so? Wait, before that, what are you doing Daisy?!" Upon closer inspection, they noticed that she looked significantly younger than how she was when they saw her last. Their confusion was escalating at an exponential rate.
They watched as Daisy sheathed her sword and as she weaved through the Voidlings, she swiftly unsheathed her blade and cut them down. When she was younger, she trained under Musyamon to learn the iaido technique, the idea of slashing while simultaneously drawing your blade. As soon as Daisy put on her armor, she remembered those skills, those lessons, and her talents as a warrior.
She shocked them some more when a legion of Voidlings started coming at her but she suddenly scaled the wall of one of the nearby buildings to avoid them. She flipped over their heads and landed behind them, with two quick slashes, they evaporated in the light.
Splashmon couldn't believe this. So many of his minions were being destroyed by a mere human. "Who are you?!"
Daisy smirked before sheathing her blade again. "Daisy Kaipova! The Knight of Empathy!"
Splashmon bit his lower lip before snapping his fingers, bringing forth four MetalTyrannomon. Daisy may be strong enough to take on some shadows but she shouldn't possess the power to fight four Ultimate level Digimon, right? But almost as soon as the cyborg dinosaurs appeared, Garudamon and Lillymon attacked them.
"We'll take care of these guys!" Garudamon called out.
Yoshino quickly joined Daisy's side as more of those Voidlings started showing up. "I'll be expecting an explanation after this," said the younger woman.
"And your anti-age diet," Mimi added from the background.
"Don't worry," Daisy smiled. "I'll be sure to tell you guys everything when this is over. But… Who is going to take on Splashmon?"
Akari walked forward and placed a hand on Dorulumon's back to show that she would support him. Rosemon floated down and landed beside the girl and the lion as well. "Don't worry, let us handle the big boss. We'll definitely be able to beat him."
Splashmon's confidence wavered momentarily. He never expected the group he would take on to be so cunning and skillful. But as he took a deep breath, he remembered that he was far more powerful than he used to be. He wouldn't let it end here. "Hmph… I'd like to see you try."
-X-
It looks like TK may be out of commission for a while but he was able to stand tall against Devimon at the very least. And the girls in the human world seem to be doing well for themselves. But everything has become more than just a little confusing. Just who exactly are Turuiemon and Musyamon? And what are Voidlings and who created them? Since when was Daisy a knight of all things? You can only find the answers by tuning into Digimon: Children of the Present!
For those of you who do not know, in Children of the Past, I have basically made Robert and the others characters into a Japanese RPG. I will also be switching between Digital and human world rather frequently. After the Splashmon fight, we will be seeing Zhuqiaomon's world again and we will get to learn just how Rika is doing in the hands of IceDevimon. Excited? I know I am. I hope you guys enjoyed and don't forget to leave a review! Happy Holidays, can't wait to see you guys next year!