Compared to the other two groups, this one is just zipping by, isn't it. Either I'm trying to speed things up or there really isn't that much to explore in these kids. Or maybe I'm running out of steam to generate massive fight scenes. I still enjoy them but… Anyway! I believe our focus is finally going to be on Kouichi, Yolei, and Mako (The one no one realizes is with them). So this'll be fun. Last time we saw them, Duskmon just made his appearance, so it is now time for the battle of darkness in the Ruins of Light. Ironic. Enjoy!
P.S. I realize the updates are coming along really quickly but it's because this story is a lot of fun to write. The consistency of these updates is going to continue to fluctuate though so be careful not to expect too much out of me.
-X-
December 21: Ruins of Light – 9:01 AM
This had to be a nightmare. That was the only plausible explanation here. If Velgemon had been stuck in the Spirit World then shouldn't Duskmon have been as well? Not only that, the Warrior of Darkness was much too unstable to be his own separate being. He would need a human host in order to maintain his physical form. Unless… he had one.
"It's been a long while," Duskmon chuckled. "I've been wanting to see how you've grown."
Yolei looked over to the boys, noticing that Mako was trembling as he tried to hide behind the older one. As for Kouichi, his face became devoid of color and while he was shaking like there was an earthquake going on inside of the pit of his stomach, his pupils were erratic with motion. It almost looked like he was going to throw up and if she hadn't stepped in front of them, he actually might've.
"Don't think that you can have your way with Kouichi like last time," she glared. Then she jabbed a thumb to her chest. "You'll have to get past me first."
Duskmon cocked his head to the side as if assessing them before laughing. It bounced off the walls and hit their ribcages, causing them to cause a clangor in their chests while simultaneously sending Antarctic chills down their spines. What sort of black magic did he use to rattle their bones the way he did?
"And after I had just congratulated him for becoming independent," Duskmon laughed. "But it seems I have to take it back. You will always be a useless fool, Kouichi Kimura. What is a proper title for someone like you? Wait, I know. A leech."
Kouichi clenched his fists and took a shaky breath before retorting. "Funny, coming from someone who needed my body in order to fight. If anyone here is a leech, it would be you, Duskmon! I don't mooch off of others for my own selfish gain."
"Did I use you? Or was I the one being used?"
There was a short pause and Kouichi swore everyone in that room could hear his heartbeat pounding. "What are you talking about?"
Yolei knew how bad guys worked. They liked playing with the enemy's minds so there was no doubt in her's that Duskmon was trying to get into Kouichi's. And at the current moment, he was playing right into his hands which didn't exactly sit well with her. Her partner seemed to agree. And they also silently agreed that it was a good thing he hadn't flown through that crack in the ceiling before Duskmon made his presence known.
"Yolei, we shouldn't waste any more time with his silly mind games," Hawkmon advised. "Let me evolve and we can fight him!"
The bespectacled girl nodded but when she reached for her D-3, it wasn't anywhere on her person. She gasped as she started checking every single pocket on her clothes and on her bag but it was nowhere to be found. It must've fallen off her belt when they had fallen into that place! Since Hawkmon couldn't evolve without it, Duskmon continued.
"Was it not you who wanted revenge on Kouji for living the happy life while you and your mother suffered?" Duskmon asked. "If it had been up to me, I would've destroyed them a while ago but you hesitated. Don't you understand, Kouichi? You were always the one in control of my power. Therefore, you used my body, my power, in order to destroy the people you now call your friends. But you were too weak to do it. It doesn't change the fact that you were using me though… not the other way around."
Yolei gripped Kouichi's elbow when she noticed him shaking. "Enough! Kouichi, you're stronger than this guy is! Don't listen to his lies. It's all in the past and you've paid your dues."
Her underclassman nodded before pulling out his D-Tector. He tried to produce a data ring but the shadows around the wall suddenly started moving, gaining physical form as they plucked his digivice right out of his hands.
"Two for one," Duskmon chuckled.
Yolei's eyes widened as she noticed her red D-3 in his other hand. When had he taken it from her?
"Coward!" Mako spat.
"Don't blame me if I fight dirty," Yolei growled, fists bunched up tight.
The girl suddenly ran forward before anyone could stop her. It wasn't out of character for her to be reckless but this was a suicide mission no matter how you spun it. As she ran towards the Digimon, she grabbed a rusty metal pipe sticking out of the ground, yanking it out and raising it over her head like a sword.
"Yolei! Get back! It's too dangerous!" Kouichi and Hawkmon called after her.
'Just like how Cody does it in practice,' she thought to herself.
Yolei swung down with the pipe which was blocked by Duskmon's blade. The evil warrior then tried to kick Yolei in the chest but barely missed his mark thanks to Hawkmon grabbing onto his partner's collar with his beak and reeling her backwards. The girl tumbled out of the way and smirked.
"That was dangerous!" Hawkmon chided.
His partner gave him the peace sign. "But my plan worked."
"What plan?" the avian frowned
Yolei raised her palm to the sky and a red blur landed on it. Her D-3! As she was falling backwards because of Hawkmon's yank, she thought back to some of Davis's soccer flips on the field and smoothly kicked the device out of Duskmon's grip. As for how she knew that it would land in her hand the way it did, well that was just luck. But no one else needed to know that.
"Thanks Kouichi," Yolei called out to him.
"Eh?"
They noticed that the shadows around them were moving about crazily but some other shadows were keeping them from impaling Yolei. Duskmon had apparently attempted to use his manipulation of the darkness to hurt the eldest human but Kouichi used his similar powers to protect her. Unfortunately, he didn't have expert control and it was draining him of a lot of energy to maintain it.
"No problem," he grunted. "Just evolve Hawkmon, already!"
"Leave it to us!" Yolei nodded.
"Hawkmon Digivolve to… Aquilamon!"
Duskmon did not seem pleased with the fact that he had been sort of outsmarted by a human but that was fine. Just because the bird Digimon became larger didn't make him any more of a threat than he was before.
The humans quickly tried to get farther away from the dancing shadows trying to strangle them while Aquilamon blasted his way past with his Blast Rings attack. When he got close enough, he feinted by flying straight up and circling around until he charged downwards, his horns blazing hot. "Grand Horn!"
After tucking away Kouichi's D-Tector, he drew both of his swords and used them to block the horns. "Lunar Plasma!" He absorbed the energy stored in the eagle's horns before making an X-shaped slash, cutting into Aquilamon's torso.
"Aquilamon!" Yolei gasped.
"I'm fine," the bird coughed. "Just caught off guard."
Aquilamon stayed as far away as possible inside the dome, circling the perimeter and waiting for an opening to strike. But Duskmon wasn't giving him any as he moved the shadows and shot them towards the bird who had to maneuver his way through them like a leaf in the wind. He also had to keep an eye on the humans, make sure they wouldn't get struck down by Duskmon's attacks either and that wasn't an easy task.
"Ghost Move!"
Aquilamon blinked and Duskmon was gone. He blinked again and the Warrior of Darkness was suddenly on top of him, riding him.
"Get off! No hitchhikers allowed!" Aquilamon shouted.
Duskmon smirked underneath his mask. "Memory Disturbance!"
Aquilamon's eyes went blank as flashes of various memories started racing through his mind. He could see the day Yolei picked up the Digi-Egg of Love and met him but as if there was a bad signal, she started flickering. Suddenly, Yolei wasn't there anymore and instead stood Duskmon. The entire scenery changed around them as Sora, Izzy, Cody, TK, and Kari all vanished like they were dust, blown away by the wind.
"Hawkmon, are you okay?" Duskmon inquired.
"Who?" Hawkmon blinked, suddenly feeling sharp pain on every feather of his body. "What… happened?"
"Humans. Evil humans that want to eradicate our kind," Duskmon told him, lifting up the injured bird in his arms. The warrior was being so careful with the winged creature's body that Hawkmon was starting to think of him as a kind Digimon, despite his appearance. "They destroyed my friends and yours too."
"How could they do such a thing?"
"Because they are vile creatures."
"Which ones… killed my friends?"
Aquilamon followed Duskmon's sword which pointed at Yolei, Kouichi, and Mako standing on the sidelines, calling for his name. But in Aquilamon's ears, they sounded like they were jeering at him, making fun of him, as if he was a useless creature who couldn't win in a battle with even the smallest of their species.
"They're the ones who did it," Duskmon whispered into the eagle's ears. "And look at how they laugh at you."
Aquilamon roared in anger as he changed directions and aimed his following attack on his own friends. "Blast Rings!"
They all jumped out of the way, Yolei to the right and Kouichi, with Mako on his back, to the left. The rings caused an explosion but Yolei's screeching was louder than it as she tried to reach her partner's ears. "Aquilamon! What are you doing?!"
"Be quiet humans! Wind Breath!"
Yolei was suddenly hit with a blast of cold air as she was lifted off the ground and crashed into a wall, bruising her back rather badly. As if that wasn't enough, she cut herself against a rusty pipe which tore through the skin on her arm and caused her to bleed. Not that she cared to notice. Her brainwashed partner took priority here.
"Aquilamon, snap out of it!" she shouted. "You're an ally of humans! You're my best friend!"
Aquilamon wasn't listening. "You cannot fool me! Grand Horn!"
Yolei bit her lip and Kouichi could tell she was going to do something dangerously reckless again. When Aquilamon charged at her, she jumped and latched onto Duskmon's waist. The Warriors of Darkness, both of them, had their eyes bug out when she made that rather stupid move.
"What did you do to my partner?!" she screamed.
"Foolish girl!" Duskmon scoffed, his blade gleaming. "Do you have a death wish?"
The warrior could've amputated her arm if she hadn't let go at the last second. Kouichi placed Mako down before running forward and catching the falling girl before she could die from falling on her head. Once again, her absurd idea had allowed her to retrieve another digivice.
"Your D-Tector," she breathed shakily. "Quickly, evolve and save Aquilamon."
Kouichi nodded but before he could do anything, he was interrupted again as Duskmon dismounted and landed near Mako. The little boy tried to get out of the way but when he tried to stand, he stumbled back down because of his injured ankle. In a flash, Kouichi was standing in between the boy and the warrior as lasers shot out from every one of the Digimon's eyes. "Deadly Gaze!"
"Kouichi!" Yolei screamed as the boy fell to his knees, blood leaking from his lips.
Duskmon was taking slow purposeful steps towards the boys, one of them unconscious and the other frantically trying to wake him up. Yolei would've run towards them if her partner wasn't charging after her with another Grand Horn attack. What other reckless thing could she do? What would Davis do? What would Cody do? What would TK, Kari, or Ken do?
"This is the end!" Aquilamon bellowed.
She knew what she would do. Yolei stood firm in front of Aquilamon and when the eagle was in front of her, she took him by the horns, as they seared into her flesh. She didn't care though as she was picked up off the ground and into the air.
"I'm your friend!" Yolei shouted into his ear. "We've been together for the last four years! Do you not remember me at all?!"
Duskmon was now in front of the boys and Mako, trying to be brave, covered Kouichi's head with his body, as if doing so would be the ultimate defense against the warrior's weapons. "It's been sweet, Kouichi," Duskmon chuckled. He was about to bring down his sword when a giant bird flew in front of him, picking up Kouichi and Mako by his talons.
Yolei, riding on top of her partner, reached down and pulled Mako up onto the bird's back, wincing due to her blistering hands. But with Mako's help, they were able to bring Kouichi onto Aquilamon's back as well. The avian flew into the hallway where they had come out from and looking back, they could see shadowy snakes making their way towards them. Despite not having faces, there was something that emanated rage in those shadows.
"I'm sorry for the trouble I caused," Aquilamon said.
"Don't worry about it," Yolei coughed. "It could've happened to any one of us."
Mako was looking over Kouichi before noticing the death grip that the boy had on his D-Tector. If the younger male remembered correctly, those devices worked like communicators to other D-Tectors. The Monster Makers tried adding that function to the other digivices but it seemed when they tried, they only received static. It was a function unique to the D-Tectors apparently.
"Yolei, do you think we can contact another Warrior with this?" Mako asked, pointing at the device.
She nodded before pulling it out of Kouichi's hands. Hopefully, she knew what she was doing as she pressed random buttons before getting static. The screen displayed the pink symbol for the Legendary Warrior of Wind so she knew she came into contact with Zoey. A wave of relief hit her just like that rock that almost did from above though it did hit Kouichi. He came to but only for a second.
"K-Kouichi!" Yolei yelped. "Stay with me!" She then remembered that Zoey was on the line. "I'm trying to get away from a madman! Kouichi's unconscious and there's no way we can win on our own. Duskmon is coming after us!" Aquilamon had to swerve out of the way of a falling rock, causing her to scream her head off into the device. "Help!"
December 21: Ruins of Light Entrance – 9:53 AM
Kazemon was staring worriedly at her D-Tector and the others knew what was going on inside her head. It's been over twenty minutes since that static-filled SOS was sent to them from Yolei. Who knew what Duskmon had done to them at that point? Hopefully they were getting away.
"We're in!" Dracomon cheered. He and Terriermon high-fived each other for finally breaking open a hole big enough for them to get through.
They agreed that it would be better for Kiriha and Henry to stay outside since their Digimon would be too big to fight inside the ruins. It would likely cause an even bigger cave-in if they weren't careful. Besides, Gravimon could potentially be hiding out there to attack Fire Terminal once they were gone. They heard from the Warrior of Wind that Fire Terminal was a base of the United Xros Heart Army, without it, hope would start diminishing in Ebonwumon's sector.
"Be careful, Kazemon," Henry said.
"Don't worry about me," Kazemon replied. "I've fought Duskmon many times before." Granted, it was Takuya and Kouji that defeated him but she wasn't going to sell herself short. "Besides, Ken and Relena are in there too. You guys just make sure Bokomon, Neemon, and the rest of the town stays safe."
"Leave it to us!" Terriermon saluted.
"Dracomon, do you think you can go with her?" Kiriha asked. "They might need to get out of there fast and you could probably provide them with an escape route."
"No problem, Kiriha!" Dracomon saluted before following Kazemon into the hole.
Kazemon landed on the floor with a light tap as she glanced around. Thanks to the light from the outside, she could still see but she was aware that everything would become pitch black if she just walked a few feet in front of her. But then she felt heat near her leg and new shadows threw themselves onto the walls from a new light source. A torch.
"Thanks Dracomon," Kazemon smiled.
Dracomon grinned while holding up the flaming stick. "We should hurry. Who knows what happened to the others."
Kazemon nodded as they started on their way. The larger Digimon pulled out her D-Tector in an attempt to contact Kouichi one more time while they were walking. She had been hoping that now they were closer, the signal would be better. Imagine her relief when the purple symbol for the Warrior of Darkness showed up on her screen.
"Kouichi?" she gasped. "Are you there?"
"Zoey? It's me, Yolei," came the reply. It was quiet, barely above a whisper so Kazemon was automatically struck by the image of them in hiding. This meant that they were safe to say the least. For now anyway. "Kouichi's still unconscious but Mako, Hawkmon, and I are all okay."
Mako's with them too? Kazemon couldn't believe they dragged a little kid in this mess. Though Tommy was even younger during his first adventure so she supposed there wasn't any room to say that he was too young to be in the Digital World or anything. At least he's safe too.
"Do you guys know where you are?" Kazemon asked, also in a whisper, just in case. "Like if there are any notable landmarks near you?"
She could almost see the older girl shaking her head. "Sorry. But if it helps, we're hiding out in complete darkness so we're not near any place with a light source."
It really wasn't that much help since this entire labyrinth was unlit, in pitch black darkness. Still, it did cross out the dome where Kouji found his human spirit, the main entrance to the north, and that leafy place where she and Takuya fell through that hole. Granted, according to Bokomon, they didn't even see ten percent of the ruins. This means there was so much left unexplored for them.
"We'll find you. Just stay safe until then," Kazemon told them.
"Okay, just be careful," Yolei swallowed. "This bad guy's really strong."
Kazemon took a deep breath as memories flashed through her mind of the corrupted Legendary Warrior of Darkness fighting them. It took the fusion form of a human and beast spirit in order to even balance the strength out between them. Not only that, but he nearly killed them several times and if it weren't for Kouichi's lingering memories as a human, he might've succeeded.
"I know," Kazemon replied.
After she turned off her D-Tector, she noticed Dracomon a little ways away, holding the torch against a wall. He seemed rather entranced by whatever was on it and she fluttered over to join him. There was a moment of disbelief as she saw a wonderful mural on the wall, with drawings depicting humans in the Digital World with various digital partners.
"That looks like me," Dracomon said, pointing a claw at an image of a dragon Digimon.
Kazemon nodded. "Yeah. I think that's the Dracomon that was Mr. Mizuno's partner."
The dragon cocked his head to the side. This was the first he heard that the middle-aged man had a partner in the first place. Now that Kazemon thought about it, the revelation that the Monster Makers were the very first Chosen Children happened before the Generals and Hunters joined them. Not only that, but Shibumi never talked about his partner often. Henry did, once, which was how the warrior heard it in the first place.
"These other Digimon… look really familiar to me too," Dracomon continued, his claws grazing over each of the partners.
Kazemon examined the six humans in the painting. Her eyes glazed over what looked to be a samurai spinning a spear next to a Ryudamon, a martial artist in an offensive stance next to a FanBeemon, a knight drawing her sword next to a Salamon, a pirate aiming his pistol next to a Betamon, a mage with her staff raised over her head next to a Candlemon, and a… well, she couldn't tell what the sixth was supposed to be. It just looked like a cloaked figure wielding a scythe beside Dracomon.
"A Grim Reaper?" she muttered. "There's an interesting twist for a protector of the Digital World."
Dracomon shook his head. "I don't think so. A reaper takes souls of those who are ready to leave this realm of existence. By that logic, would it not be reasonable for a reaper to protect the souls of the living before they have to go?"
It was a bit convoluted. Almost stretching the job description of the bringer of death. But the way Dracomon jumped to the defense of this human had strengthened a theory working in the back of Kazemon's head. Was it possible though?
"Dracomon… Have you ever met Mr. Mizuno outside of Kiriha's X-Loader?" she asked.
The Rookie took a few seconds to think about it. "I think so."
"What did he say?"
"...Let's work hard together."
"Is this a recent memory? Or one from a past life?"
Dracomon didn't answer, he seemed to be contemplating his last few words. But he understood what Kazemon was implying and he wasn't completely sure he liked it. "Whatever happened, happened. I'm Kiriha's partner now."
"...I understand."
December 21: Ruins of Light – 9:56 AM
Yolei mutely winced once she turned off the D-Tector which made the faintest of beeping sounds after conversing with Zoey. The group of four was hiding in a small hole in the wall that they nearly missed if it hadn't been for Aquilamon's exceptional night vision. Every once in a while, the Champion would poke his beak out and scope out the hallways so that Duskmon wouldn't get the jump on them.
"How's Kouichi?" Yolei whispered to Mako.
"He's still breathing if that helps," Mako replied, wishing he could at least see the outline of his companions. The most he knew in his dark surroundings was that the older boy's chest was rising and falling at a steady pace. "What about you? How are your hands?"
Yolei flexed her fingers, holding back the sounds of pain she wanted to emit. Mako was probably frightened enough as it was, he didn't need to know that the only awake human aside from himself was still badly injured.
"I have some ointment in my bag that helps with burns, don't worry," Yolei brushed off.
It wasn't a lie. But she was honestly too scared to unzip her bag to take it out, the sound might bounce around and hit the ears of their pursuer. Even if he didn't detect the sound, she would have to make temporary light with her digivice to find the ointment in the inky blackness and that would certainly give away their location if Duskmon was nearby.
Aquilamon abruptly shushed them and they froze up, hearts pounding against their ribcages when the sound of metal scraping along the floor echoed through the halls. Yolei wondered if this is what felt like to be in a real-life horror movie. Where the protagonists were hiding somewhere, in a closet or under a bed (which were probably the most cliché and obvious hiding places), and the supernatural serial killer was slowly trudging towards them.
Their breaths hitched when the scraping stopped suddenly. Hopefully, without a light source, Duskmon wouldn't be able to manipulate the shadows since everything was completely dark. But to their horror, a beam of red light flooded the tunnels and threw their shadows against the wall. Yolei was blinded and her ears were invaded by the terrified screams of a young boy.
"Mako?!" she yelled.
Duskmon used the massive eyeball on his chest to emit the red light and then manipulated a wisp of a shadow to grab Mako's ankle and then yank him towards him. His blades drawn, he would've beheaded the boy if a glittering golden blur hadn't cut into the shadows.
"That's… JewelBeemon!" Aquilamon gasped.
Mako fell onto his twisted ankle so he shouted in pain though it didn't make him any less grateful to be alive. Now he understood why grownups always told the younger generation that they didn't know how lucky they were. Granted, they were probably about the vast progression of technology but he was going to pretend they were talking about being alive as well.
Relena showed up by his side and she helped him onto Grizzlymon before mounting behind him. With them safely aboard the quadruped bear, they quickly bounded over to the hole where they retrieved the unconscious Kouichi and ran down the halls at top speed.
"Yolei, are you okay?" Ken asked as his partner kept Duskmon busy.
"I'm fine," Yolei scoffed before embracing her friend. "Thank you though."
Ken nodded before pulling away. But when his fingers brushed against her hands and she winced, he noticed the burn marks on them. So he grasped her wrists and examined her hands. "What happened? Did Duskmon do this to you?"
Aquilamon guiltily looked to his talons. "It was…"
"Indirectly," Yolei cut in. "Duskmon indirectly did it to me. But I'm fine Ken. Trust me."
Ken didn't exactly take her word for it but he told her to get out of there and follow Grizzlymon. "JewelBeemon and I will take care of things here so don't worry."
"I'm not leaving you alone," she protested.
"This isn't up for debate!"
His harsh tone startled her but she supposed it was to be expected. Ken was her friend, and she got hurt because of this enemy, he wasn't just going to sit around while Duskmon put her in further danger. He wanted her safe. So Yolei gave him a small nod before getting onto Aquilamon's back and taking off.
"Stay safe!" she called back.
Ken nodded. "You too!"
The teenager turned back to the fight to see sparks flying as his partner swung his prismatic spear to parry Duskmon's twin blades. The narrow space they fought in was disadvantageous for JewelBeemon who was used to flying and thanks to the torch in Ken's hand, casting shadows, the insect humanoid had to whack away the snaking shadows around him as well. So the Chosen Child had to focus on kicking and slapping away the shadows targeting him in order to keep his partner focused on the enemy at hand rather than his safety.
JewelBeemon took a few steps back and swung his weapon at the speed of light. "Spike Buster!" It sent out a sonic boom that blasted away the shadows and continued on towards his foe.
"Lunar Plasma!" Duskmon crossed his swords, absorbing the power from his opponent's attack and then shot forward with his weapons charged with another's power. With three quick, consecutive slashes, JewelBeemon was given cuts all over his torso.
"He broke through my armor?!" JewelBeemon gasped.
"And I will now break you!" Duskmon shouted.
Ken tensed up as he watched Duskmon arced his arms with the intent of splitting JewelBeemon in half, his legs and his torso. But despite the imminent danger in front of him, he could still observe other things. Like the feeling of someone's hands on his shoulder. And the sudden weight pushing him down as the owner of these hands used him to flip over his head and JewelBeemon's, landing in front of Duskmon.
"Hurricane Wave!"
The corrupted Warrior was blown away, quite literally, through the halls, disappearing into the darkness that was too far to be touched by the torchlight. JewelBeemon fell to one knee, breathing heavily because of the wounds that were made upon his body. The villain's swords didn't just break his armor, but it also cut through his skin. If he was human, he'd be bleeding.
"Kazemon, you're a lifesaver," JewelBeemon huffed.
The fairy Digimon gave him the okay sign. "Nessun problema."
"The Warrior of Wind, huh," Duskmon's husky voice called from the darkness. He stepped back into the torchlight. "It's good to see you're doing well."
"Wish I could say the same about you," Kazemon frowned.
Kazemon got into a fighting stance and charged forward without using her wings, knowing they would just scrape along the walls and hold her back. So she focused more on using physical attacks since the human host has been taking some martial arts classes in recent years. Besides, it was better than letting Duskmon use his Lunar Plasma to absorb her power and use it against her.
"JewelBeemon, try flying behind Duskmon and taking him on there," Ken advised.
"Good idea," his partner nodded.
The armored Digimon got onto Duskmon's other side who had to now concentrate on blocking two kicking nuisances with his blades. But that was the thing. Their enemy was using his swords which made it hard for Kazemon to get close without fear of getting cut into. JewelBeemon was having an easier time but it was hard to turn his staff in the narrow hallway.
Kazemon did a backbend to avoid the arc of Duskmon's blade and made a low sweep, swinging Duskmon's feet out from under him. As the corrupted Warrior fell, JewelBeemon raised his staff, ready to pierce right through the Digimon's heart.
"Deadly Gaze!"
Lasers shot out from every eye on his body and Ken had to block his eyes to keep dust and dirt from blowing in as the ceiling exploded from getting blasted. The boy used his ears to listen to the clashing of metals against metals and he hoped that Kazemon didn't get struck with her exposed skin. But when the dust cleared, he saw, to his relief, Zephyrmon blocking the sharp end of one of Duskmon's weapons with his sharpened claws.
"Plasma Paws!"
Zephyrmon sent a red electrified current through the sword but it didn't seem to do anything to Duskmon who ended up absorbing the energy instead, showing that he had initiated the Lunar Plasma attack before he even hit her. With the additional energy, he continued his slash and it struck Zephyrmon in the shoulder, causing her to fall to her knees.
JwelBeemon tried to pierce Duskmon while the enemy's back was turned. "Shot Claw!"
"Too slow," Duskmon remarked.
JewelBeemon found himself frozen in place as the shadows constricted his movement. Zephyrmon attempted to get back up and help him when the slithering darkness tied her to the ground, keeping her as immobile as her insectoid comrade. Both captured Digimon tried to speak up when the snakes wrapped around their throats and started choking them.
"No!" Ken gasped as he charged forward, dropping the torch in his hand. "Let them go!"
Ken, practiced in the art of judo, attempted to grab Duskmon while avoiding the sharp weapon and tossing the Digimon to the ground. But he realized he didn't have the physical power to do such a thing as Duskmon smoothly evaded the teenager's hands. In one fluid swipe, Ken's palm was slit by the sword but he tried to ignore the pain. What he couldn't ignore was the feeling of Duskmon's boot crashing into his stomach and sending him flying, putting out the fire on the torch when he landed on it.
The room was thrown into complete darkness and silence once again. Duskmon knew that his shadows had stopped strangling his two victims but they weren't saying anything so he could only assume that they were either dead or unconscious. He didn't want to check because what he really wanted was to slaughter his former host in cold blood. And he wasn't going to waste any more time than he already had.
Farther away from the battleground, Relena was trying to keep Kouichi steady in her arms whilst trying to hold on to her partner's neck fur. Mako, seated behind her, clung tightly to her waist as he bounced up and down on the bear's back. Not too far behind them was Aquilamon and Yolei.
"Do you even know where we're headed?" Yolei asked.
"Not a clue!" Relena replied back. "But do you hear that?"
Yolei attempted to ignore the sound of paws hitting the ground and flapping of an eagle's wings. Once that was out of her mind, she could hear someone shouting 'This way!' and it seemed like Grizzlymon was just following that noise. The older girl was tempted to point out that it could be a trap but what else could they do?
They suddenly saw light ahead of them and when entered the room, they found that it was the same place where they had first encountered Duskmon. To their surprise, Dracomon was down below in the dome, waving for them to join him.
"Kazemon isn't with you guys?" the dragon asked.
"She flew past us after we escaped from Duskmon," Yolei answered. "She must've gone to help Ken fight Duskmon."
Dracomon took that as an acceptable answer as he showed them to the hole he dug near the top which led to the outside. They all felt relieved that they were finally getting out of the dark and cramped underground but as they were heading towards it, they saw wispy shadows block the hole.
"What?!" they gasped.
"Duskmon," Grizzlymon growled turning around.
"But how can that be?" Yolei trembled. "Ken, JewelBeemon, and Kazemon… They were…"
Duskmon stepped into the doorframe, the light illuminating his nightmare of a body, blades on his sides and his eyes trained on his new victims. "Exterminated might be the word you're looking for, my dear. They got in my way and now they're dead."
"How did he get here so fast though?" Mako asked, uselessly trying to swallow down his fear.
"The shadows tell me everything," Duskmon chuckled. "And so does your precious Kouichi. He may not be my host anymore, but I am still connected to him in some way. So long as you have him with you, I will always find you." One of his blades vanished as he raised his hand as if he wanted someone to take it. "So why don't you just give him to me and I'll spare your lives?"
Relena's grasp on the unconscious boy tightened. "Never!"
But then, Kouichi stirred, slowly pushing himself off of the bear and stumbling down onto the ground. "Wait," he groaned. "I'll go with you! Please… Just let them go. That's all I ask." From that Deadly Gaze attack from earlier, he was not only bruised all over the front of his body, but he had lost quite a lot of blood. Even if he Spirit Evolved, he'd likely collapse from the movement.
"Kouichi, no!" Yolei yelled at him. "There's no guarantee that he'll follow through on it. He's just lying to get you to go with him!"
"She's right!" Relena agreed. "You're just walking to your own death!"
Kouichi slowly stood to his feet and they watched him stagger forward. "At least this way, there's a chance. Duskmon… You can destroy me. Just please… let them go."
Duskmon chuckled darkly. "Are you in any position to negotiate?" He then shrugged as he started walking towards his former partner. "But I don't really want to waste any more time or energy fighting two weakling Champions so I'll take that offer."
Aquilamon and Grizzlymon both took offense to that but what could they say? This was an enemy who took down an Ultimate level Digimon and another Legendary Warrior. They would probably do as much damage as feathers would to a brick. But did that mean they should just give up? Their partners didn't seem to think so.
Yolei ran over and grabbed Kouichi by the sleeve, stopping him and causing Duskmon to freeze mid-step as well. "I'm not letting you do this," his upperclassman said with a fire raging behind her eyes and tone. "Do you know how many bruises I got for you? And what about Ken or Zoey? Do you really want their sacrifice to end up this way? We get that you're trying to protect us but you're being really selfish in my opinion."
Relena joined the other girl and took Kouichi's other sleeve. "We're Chosen Children too, don't forget that. Just because Duskmon is your natural enemy and you're stronger than we are, doesn't mean we can't fight back."
"You guys," Kouichi exhaled.
Mako, peeking out from behind Grizzlymon, decided to put in his own two cents. "Besides, one of the reasons we came here is to get back Impmon. What's the point of doing that if we just end up losing more friends in the process?"
"Exactly," Yolei nodded. "So give us a chance to protect you."
"We promise you that it's a better fate than giving yourself up to this monster," Relena added.
Duskmon scoffed and in the blink of an eye, the shadows lining the edges of the walls came to life, whipping around and charging straight for them. But in a flash of red and yellow light, the shadows vanished and Duskmon had to cover his eyes with his arm to keep from going blind. To their surprise, another color joined in the lights, dark blue.
"Relena, where did you get that Data Burst Digivice?" Yolei asked the younger girl.
Relena pulled it off her belt. "Ken and I stumbled upon it when we were searching for you guys."
Suddenly, a voice inside the digivice called out. "Gatomon Data: 100%." And from the screen, a holographic Gatomon started spinning, completing one loop, breaking apart, and getting sucked into Yolei's D-3. "Transfer Complete."
"What in the world?" Yolei gasped.
Mako figured it out quickly enough. "Aquilamon and Gatomon DNA Digivolve into Silphymon! So if you have Gatomon data then…"
Yolei realized that the red glow wasn't from the D-3 but her chest and when she looked down, she noticed a symbol she had never seen before though it could only be described as a crest. It kind of looked like a three-leaf clover with holes in each of the leaves and circles inside of them. For some reason, it made her think back to when she had grabbed onto a raging Aquilamon and shouted that she was his friend or when she had kicked her digivice out of Duskmon's hand. That must've been when it first activated because something told her that this meant passion.
"Perfect for someone as fired up as you," Aquilamon chuckled.
"I'd take offense if it weren't so true," Yolei shot back with a grin.
As for Relena, she wasn't sure what made her whole body burst out in a yellow DigiSoul. From what she had been told, evolving her partner to the next level didn't have a specific time or requirement for when. Was it simply her desire to protect Kouichi from the darkness? Now that she thought about it, she had an irrational fear of the dark while Kouichi and Ken faced something far worse head on. What did she have to complain about?
"Madam, I will do my best to protect you and Mr. Kimura," Grizzlymon stated in his deep voice.
"Don't forget to keep yourself safe too," Relena mentioned.
Both girls raised their digivices and their partners became enveloped in a warm light. "Aquilamon DNA Digivolve to… Silphymon!" "Grizzlymon Digivolve to… Pandamon!"
As Mako had suspected, Aquilamon took on the form of Silphymon, a hybrid beast and human Digimon with the phenomenal speed of Aquilamon and the sensory capabilities of Gatomon. Thanks to those advanced hearing capabilities, Silphymon is able to combat any foe regardless of it being day or night.
As for Grizzlymon, it surprised Relena to find her partner had actually become smaller though he became bipedal and, in her opinion, much more adorable. However, the seriousness that was in his facial expression before still remained, showing sharp focus and dominating determination.
"Hmph, just because you evolve doesn't mean you can defeat me," Duskmon scoffed. "Deadly Gaze!"
The red hot lasers shot out from his eyes once more but the second right before they struck them, they all felt their feet lift off the ground and suddenly, they were placed on top of a ridge, overlooking the soon-to-be battlefield. Silphymon, with a speed that broke the sound barrier, had helped them up there while Pandamon cart wheeled out of the way of the attack.
"Now that the humans are safe, we can take out time taking you down," Silphymon remarked.
"Safe?" Duskmon guffawed. "Did you forget about my powers to control shadows?"
"We didn't," Pandamon stated. "That's what we asked Dracomon to help us out on."
"Hm?"
Suddenly, the room started to dim as they found the openings in the ceiling closing up with dirt and debris. They could hear the sound of claws scraping along the inside of the walls, making sure that the outside sunlight couldn't get in. And it wasn't long until the entire dome was thrown into darkness.
"No more shadow manipulation," Silphymon's voice said.
"But unfortunately for you, we both have excellent night vision," Pandamon stated.
Duskmon paused, letting the silence fall upon them like a heavy blanket for chuckling, breaking it to shreds. "I see! Now this is getting interesting! Two Ultimate level Digimon believe they can defeat the Warrior of Darkness… in the dark!" He stopped laughing, cracking his neck. "I can't wait to see how things turn out for you."
-X-
Oh man, Duskmon is not someone to be trifled with. He knocked the living daylights out of Kazemon, JewelBeemon, and Ken but let's hope that they're still alive. As for Yolei and the others, are two Ultimate level Digimon really enough to take down Duskmon? Will their abilities to see in the darkness be an asset or a detriment? Find out on the next Digimon: Children of the Future!
Wow, I really know how to extend Duskmon's scenes. I guess I didn't want to make things too easy for this group. Anyway, hope you all enjoyed and don't forget to leave a review! I will see you guys later!