Previously on Vengeance: Catrina gets acquainted with Beowulfmon, who has saved her from being bullied by a group of thugs. In the meantime, Milleniumon contacts the DigiDestined and tampers with Ryo and Cyberdramon's attempted Biomerge Digivolution before delivering an ultimatum for them; fight him again or risk the lives of their fellow DigiDestined. The DigiDestined have no choice but to comply, and Gennai assigns a special mission to Ryo – to locate the whereabouts of the Harmonious Ones. And Chaos Specter decides to fully harness the power of the DigiEgg of Darkness in a bid to ensure that his mission will be successful.
"Wake up, sleepyhead."
Catrina drowsily opened her eyes, and was rudely awakened by streams of bright sunlight entering her eyes. She grunted and was about to roll over when she realized that she wasn't sleeping on her usual bed. Her body ached slightly, and in a brief moment of early incomprehension she wondered why was she in an arm of a tall figure wearing pearly white armor, which sharply contrasted her own raven furs. Then everything came back to her in a rush; she and Nanomon discovering Chaos Specter's doings to her home dimension, Lilithmon, they leaving the Velvet Claw, the bar brawl she'd had with three of the bar's rowdy customers, and…
"Beowulfmon?"
An amused chuckled was heard. "That's me, and a good afternoon to you too, Catrina. And just so you know, we've arrived."
"Already? But I've just closed my eyes…"
"For two hours? Yeah, I'd figured. It was lucky that I noticed you starting to doze off on my shoulder, or else you'd have fallen down halfway back."
Catrina grunted again and tried to stifle her yawn. She blinked her eyes again, and saw that they were in a middle of a plain. Grasses were seen growing out at random place, and stones of odd formations stood sturdily at the places where the grass was absent. Trees were scanty, giving the sun a clear path to graciously shine its brilliant rays to the earth. There was a waterhole, and what immediately caught her eyes next was an odd building built beside it.
"So, what do you think?" Beowulfmon asked as he lowered Catrina down slowly. "It isn't much, but I've built it myself ever since I Digivolved to my Ultimate form. Home sweet home."
Beautiful wasn't the word Catrina was looking for as she stared at the rectangular cottage which looked large enough to accommodate such tall Digimon like Beowulfmon. But somehow, it looked cozy and homely. The lower half of the building was constructed by stones, while the upper half and the roof was of wood. The closed door was made of sturdy looking wood, painted oddly in green. The windows were opened, but with her height Catrina couldn't quite discern what was inside the house. Still, she decided that she liked the house.
"Not too shabby," she commented. When she'd gotten no reply from her company, she looked up to see Beowulfmon staring at his house with a thoughtful expression. "What's the matter?"
"That's odd. I could've sworn that I've closed the windows before I left the house."
Suddenly, the door opened, and out walked a humanoid Digimon wearing a beige jumpsuit, with purple cloak and a pointed hat of the same said color. The Digimon was holding a wooden sunflower-shaped staff. As the Digimon looked up, Catrina saw that he had a pale purple skin and a pair of green eyes, which sparkled with mirth.
"Indeed, but I grow tired of waiting for you to arrive, so I magicked myself in and opened the windows to let the air in. You don't mind, do you?"
"Wizardmon!" Beowulfmon said in recognition, and rushed to greet the wizardly Digimon. "It's so good to see you! Of course I don't mind, you're welcome to barge in anytime. It has been too long since I saw you. How long has it been…ten years? Though, I thought you would arrive in the evening."
"I'm happy to see you too. I Digivolved to Ultimate while on my way here and the travel time was cut half. I thought I'd surprise you by arriving earlier than the time I have specified in our conversation a week ago," Wizardmon replied. Then he eyed Catrina and the broken Nanomon, still within Beowulfmon's grasp. "Oh, I see you have company. Care to introduce them to me?"
Beowulfmon looked at Catrina. "You remember when I told you about a friend that could fix up your friend, Catrina?" The BlackGatomon nodded. "Well, Catrina, meet Wizardmon. He's an old friend of mine; we go way, way back. Wizardmon, this is Catrina. I met here this morning at the Old West Tavern." Wizardmon bowed slightly towards Catrina.
Catrina nodded. "A pleasure to meet you. Can you fix Nanomon back to health?"
If Wizardmon was surprised to hear the directness of Catrina's request, he didn't show it. He moved his gaze towards the Nanomon. "Seldom have I healed Ultimate Digimon, but I once cured a Lillymon that was struck by a deadly attack by a Myotismon. I think…fixing your friend here will not be a problem."
"Well, aren't you modest," Beowulfmon commented casually. "But why are we all standing outside here? Catrina, Wizardmon, come on in. You can fix Catrina's friend inside."
Beowulfmon immediately ushered his two companions inside and laid Nanomon with care on a wooden table lying in the middle of his lodge. Catrina took a seat on a wooden chair nearby, noting half-heartedly the interiors of the cottage. Beowulfmon seemed to be uninterested in lavishness, as his house was barely furnished. Yet, he seemed to have taken good care of its cleanliness. Beowulfmon went outside to fetch a pail of water, and placed the water near the hearth to warm it. There were two doors other than the entrance, probably leading to rooms. There was next to no decoration in Beowulfmon's home; the only one was a rather old picture framed with wood placed on a small table at a corner. Curious, the cat peered to look at the picture closer and saw that it was a group picture of, surprisingly, humans. She was about to look to ask Beowulfmon about the picture when her interest was suddenly swayed by Wizardmon, who knelt beside the table where Beowulfmon had placed Nanomon. She scooted beside Wizardmon and watched with interest as Wizardmon performed a series of complex hand movements before directing his right palm towards Nanomon. Faint yellow glow shone from his palm, and to Catrina's astonishment, the broken parts of Nanomon suddenly reconfigured themselves.
"Nanomon!" Catrina squealed in delight, after the mechanical Ultimate opened her eyes.
"Mistress Catrina?" Nanomon said, sounding confused. "Where am I? What happened?"
"Long story short, we're in good company," Catrina said, suddenly feeling as if a pair of eyes was staring at her.
"Mistress Catrina?" Beowulfmon asked. "I thought Nanomon is your friend?"
"I am?" Nanomon said, surprised.
"Well, she is, now," Catrina said hastily. Looking at Nanomon, she continued, "and you, stop calling me mistress. We're both out of…" Her voice trailed off; she didn't really want to divulge their identities to Beowulfmon and Wizardmon, as she'd just known them. And she was sure that they were good Digimon, and good ones tended to hate her former master. Catrina wasn't sure how they would react if they knew she was a servant of Chaos Specter.
"Out of what?" Beowulfmon asked again. Seeing Catrina's hesitation, he looked at Wizardmon. The wizard Digimon nodded calmly as he took a seat on the wooden stool which was previously occupied by Catrina. Beowulfmon then revert his gaze back to the BlackGatomon once again. "Don't worry. You can tell us."
Catrina made up her mind, but she needed to be sure of something first. "I'll tell you, but you have to promise me that you won't kick us out of your house afterwards."
"Don't worry," Wizardmon said serenely. "Both Beowulfmon and I have been through rough situations ourselves. You'll find that we can be very accepting…and forgiving."
There was something comforting in Beowulfmon and Wizardmon that made Catrina felt at ease. Deciding that she could trust them, she regaled her past as a servant of Chaos Specter, her escapades in helping out her former master's cause and her battles with the DigiDestined, up to the time she discovered about her past and her decision to leave her master. All the while her new friends paid close attention, and until she was finished, nobody uttered a single word.
"You know, Catrina…your past sounds quite as much as Wizardmon's here," Beowulfmon said.
"Indeed. I've served two evil masters before, but I haven't really attacked any DigiDestined," Wizardmon said with a faraway look on his face. "I understand completely of how you feel."
Catrina immediately felt at ease; she wasn't going to be thrown out. Truthfully she hadn't any place to go, and she was beginning to enjoy the companies of Beowulfmon and Wizardmon. Also she was afraid that Chaos Specter would send somebody to track down Nanomon and her.
"So, what are you going to do now?" Beowulfmon asked, breaking Catrina's trains of thought. "Do you have any place to go?"
"Frankly…no. We're on the run, remember?"
"I've guessed as much. Would you object if I invite the two of you to stay here…at least for a night? I'd hate to see the two of you leave without having a roof above your heads while you're recuperating from your injuries," Beowulfmon offered. "And of course, if you want to stay here longer than that…by all means…" There was a bashful tone in his voice, which was unfitting to his strong commanding stature. Wizardmon seemed to notice it as well as he stared curiously at Beowulfmon, but opted not to say anything.
Catrina lightened up considerably. "You mean it?" Looking at Nanomon, whose eyes glinted with approval, she squealed, "Yes! We'd love too…thank you."
"It's my pleasure," Beowulfmon said, composing himself. "Of course, you're expected to chip in with the housework…"
"There isn't much to do in the house," Catrina pointed out.
Beowulfmon didn't seem to hear her. "…and the cooking…"
"I don't know how," Catrina protested.
"Learn," Beowulfmon said offhandedly. "And of course, you can always join me sparring. I could teach you some new maneuvers. You sure look like you could use sharpening your skills."
"What do you mean? My skills are sharper than your blades," Catrina shot back, somewhat good-naturedly. Then she realized slowly that this wasn't entirely true. She was well-trained, yes. In fact, she had undergone much training which enabled her to hold her own in many battles. She was able to give Sylphimon a good fight, but what she still lacked was experience. Her experience with Shadow WereGarurumon and his cohorts back at the Old West Tavern came back to her. A plan began to hatch in her mind; she would train with Beowulfmon, improve her skills, and learn new ones at the same time. It would prepare her should Chaos Specter send somebody to force her back to him. And she had a feeling that three particular canine Digimon were ought to be taught a lesson in respecting her.
"On second thought…sparring sounds perfect. I could use that. When can we start?"
VENGEANCE
Chapter 37: Showdown
…..
…..
On the site where the glorious Machine City used to be was now a spiraling heap of charred ruins of the metallic city. After leveling the whole city, Milleniumon had decided to make a home for himself, and had decided to construct a castle. Using his powers and some arty skills encoded in his data he had mould the metals to form a massive palace made out purely of metal. It looked impressive and somewhat artistic, as Milleniumon was always one with a great mind. In the middle of the piles of sands and stones of the desert, the castle stood out, especially by the way the sunlight glittered on the walls of the castle.
In front of the castle, a line of Mega and Ultimate Digimon stood in silence, with Milleniumon standing somewhere in the sides. The two Mega and four Ultimates; WarGreymon, MetalGarurumon, Garudamon, MegaKabuterimon, Lillymon and Zudomon, all had glowing green eyes, signaling their minds being possessed by the dark Digimon of time and space. Their bodies all had a very fine coating of green aura; the reason behind it was unknown.
Milleniumon was chuckling with glee. On his long hands, six Digivices swirled around; each was glowing with the same jade-colored aura as their respective Digimon. He had robbed the captured DigiDestined off their Digivices, and placed them in a deep sleep. Then, he'd channeled his powers through the Digivices to allow the Digimon to Digivolve to their highest-achieved levels, earning himself two powerful Mega Digimon and four relatively strong Ultimate Digimon. Wanting revenge against the DigiDestined for defeating him years ago, he planned to pit the six captured Digimon with the remaining six DigiDestined Digimon. The spell he had placed on the six captives was profound, and almost unbreakable. It would take very powerful sorcerer or angel Digimon to break through his spell, and to Milleniumon's knowing none of the DigiDestined was partnered with Mega sorcerers or angels. He had nothing to be worried about. His plan was at hand; the only way to break through his brainwashing spell was to delete them, and Milleniumon was perfectly sure that the DigiDestined wouldn't have the heart to do that. The possessed captives however would not be limited with said restriction and would give their all to beat their opponents. With that, Milleniumon didn't care who'd end up as victims. Either way, his thrust for vengeance would be fulfilled.
A bright flash of white light pulled him out from his entertaining thought, and Milleniumon hummed with satisfaction upon seeing that the DigiDestined had arrived, with some allies. He recognized the six Ultimates immediately, but hadn't seen the three Champion angels or two feminine Mega Digimon in violet before.
"Ah, finally it seems that you have decided to grace me with a second round battle, have you not, DigiDestined?" he asked patronizingly.
"Shut up, Milleniumon! We gonna beat you and save our friends!" Paildramon exclaimed.
"Such confidence is admirable, but it is not me you have to fight. I shall be sending my new minions to battle you instead."
"Minions?" Dinobeemon growled. "More like prisoners."
"Ken, Ken, KEN…." Milleniumon sneered. "And where is that dear friend of yours? Surely he has not, how you say it…chickened out? It is so unlike him. He is always so heroic, so gallant…cowardice does not really suit him. But then again…he cannot even Biomerge with his dearest partner. 'Tis a pity, really…I would immensely enjoy a good match between myself and Justimon."
"And whose fault is that, I wonder?" Sylphimon said sarcastically.
"Tut, tut…Let us not waste any more time. Hear this, DigiDestined. The rule is very simple. It is very crude, really…but I shall just say it bluntly, shall I not? It's finish them, or be finished by them. Cruel, yes I know…but what do you expect from a bitter, vengeful, major villain such as me? Now then, I shall be watching from my castle, shall I not? Ta!"
As Milleniumon conversed with the DigiDestined, two teleportation beams of pure white light materialized from the back of the metallic palace. The lights ceased, revealing Gennai and HolyAngemon.
"If I know Milleniumon, he won't let the DigiDestined go even though the kids beat him," Gennai said doggedly as he took his Photon Rapier from his inner robe, but didn't activate its laser blade. "So it's up to us to use the limited time we have right now to save them ourselves, while they fight their predecessors' partners."
"This palace must be extremely well-guarded," HolyAngemon cautioned.
"Well, we'll have to take them down then."
"But your plan….are you positively sure we are ready?" HolyAngemon asked. He took Gennai's hand and began flying up to the lowest window they could find. Seeing a window, HolyAngemon swooped in immediately lest somebody would notice them. They had gotten into a large hallway, dimly lit only by the window they had used to get themselves in.
"Sure I'm sure. You should be ok, you're strong enough now as an Ultimate…but for me, well…it's been quite a while since I last did this," Gennai replied, eyeing the surroundings guardedly.
"A while? Several millennia sound closer to the truth," HolyAngemon commented slowly. A small smile flickered on his otherwise serious expression. "What makes you decide to attempt it again? Was it not dangerous for you when you last tried to use it? It could cost you your life, as it had almost happened during that final battle."
"That was a long time ago. The DigiDestined need all the help they can get, and I've seen damages Milleniumon had done before. And besides…I'm willing to take the risk."
"It's foolhardy to just go ahead with this if you are uncertain of the real consequences. And besides, at my best I probably can handle one lone Mega, though I might be forced to delete it wholly with the Heaven's Gate."
"It's just maybe…just maybe…if I can prove that this isn't going to cost anybody's life, then perhaps I can…you know, call them back."
"You missed them, don't you?"
Gennai nodded. "And I still do. They were my friends. But I'm not so sure whether they would for… Hold it." The young warrior halted suddenly from his tracks. His eyes wildly looked around and he thrust his left arm to his side, blocking HolyAngemon from walking even further.
"What is it?"
"I sense Milleniumon's energy signature returning to the palace. We're going to have to lie low for now."
HolyAngemon nodded his agreement. He smiled again slightly. "And you were so sure of your plan."
Gennai snorted in annoyance. "I am still sure of it. But we can't afford to be detected until we find the captured DigiDestined and our friends."
After Milleniumon disappeared in a cloud of black and purple smokes, as if on cue, the six possessed Digimon instantly moved in to attack their friends, out of their will. The effects of the two Mega's attacks alone were deadly; combined with the four attacks from the Ultimates…the result would be chaotic. All six of them then open-fired towards their friends….
"Terra Force!"
"Metal Wolf Claw!"
"Wing Blade!"
"Horn Buster!"
"Flower Cannon!"
"Vulcan Hammer!"
The DigiDestined immediately braced for the impact. They energized their own attacks and were about to counter when suddenly a purple force-field was erected in front of them. Kuzuhamon moved towards the front and with a gentle gesture of her staff she summoned her powers to shield everyone from the attacks. However, the strength came from six attacks joined together was too much for the sorceress to handle alone. The barrier shook violently upon impact, sending Kuzuhamon flying several meters back. Fortunately, she managed to regain her balance just before trampling on the sandy desert.
The three angels Digimon knew that they needed to merge again, and formed Magnadramon again with Piddomon being the center of the triumvirate. The massive dragon then glided forward, making sure that all six possessed Digimon were nearby. Then, calling the most of his threesome powers, he generated his most devastating technique. A circular diagram glowed with bright krypton aura, immediately freezing all six Digimon in place. Dark clouds began to form across the cosmos, and suddenly green lightning bolts streaked down from the sky and electrocuted all six Digimon simultaneously. With loud roars of pain the possessed Digimon fell on the ground, while Magnadramon, drained instantly of his energy due to the awesome attack, collapsed as well and reverted back into d'Arcmon, Piddomon and Angemon.
"DigiDestined…the Celestial Apocalypse attack should have weakened them a great deal. You have the advantage now," Piddomon said jadedly.
"Good luck," Angemon said earnestly, while helping d'Arcmon up. "We angels can only watch now; the attack has greatly drained our powers. But it has done it purposes."
"Thanks, guys," MagnaAngemon replied determinedly.
"Okay," Paildramon said. "Now that they're done, we'll be able to attack. The problem now is to choose the right opponent." He quickly summoned the analyzer to perform a quick scan on all six Digimon, trying to find the perfect way to beat the six possessed Digimon as quickly as possible, without actually harming them.
"Ah can take on that Lillymon on mah own," Rosemon offered quickly. "Ah know how a Lillymon fights, but she will not know mah style. Ah can beat her in no time!"
Paildramon nodded. "Good idea. Now that's one down…how about Zudomon?"
"I think I'll be able to hold him down," Valthrumon said decisively.
"Okay…who's up to face Garudamon? She's a big girl, so maybe there should be two of you to take her down."
"I'll do it," Sylphimon said grimly. "The successor of the crest of Love against the predecessor; Milleniumon must be laughing real hard now of how poetic the situation is."
"And I'll help Yolei," Angewomon offered.
"Ok…I think Ken can handle MegaKabuterimon, insect-to-insect," Paildramon continued.
"Very funny," Dinobeemon muttered. "But alright, I'll do it."
"Wait a minute. Are you putting me against MetalGarurumon?" MagnaAngemon asked. "Because, he's a Mega…"
"And you're an Ultimate archangel Digimon whose power supposedly can handle a Mega's fairly, so you're up. And I think since MetalGarurumon is ice-based…maybe Kuzuhamon can help you out after she recovers herself. You guys fought well together against Chaos Seadramon, I'm sure the two of you can handle MetalGarurumon."
MagnaAngemon thought about it, and realized that Paildramon was right. "Well, alright…but don't tell me that you alone will face WarGreymon? He's the most powerful of the six; you don't stand a chance against him."
Paildramon choked slightly. "Oh…I'm kinda hoping that one of you guys would be able to finish off their battles quickly and lend me a hand…"
"DAVIS!" the other five Transdigivolved DigiDestined roared.
d'Arcmon approached the DigiDestined slowly. "Maybe Phoenixmon is able to help you, Davis."
Paildramon saw how tired d'Arcmon and the other two angels were. He quickly decided against it. "No. Please don't strain yourself any further. I can do this. You've done more than enough."
"Perhaps, it is wiser for you to have MagnaAngemon to back you up, Davis," Kuzuhamon suggested. "I believe I can hold MetalGarurumon until Rosemon defeats Lillymon. She will then be able to assist me in fighting MetalGarurumon."
"Now that's a more sound idea," Paildramon considered. "TK?"
MagnaAngemon nodded with a small smile. "It does sound much better than your plan."
"HEY! Are you saying that…"
"Look!" Valthrumon said suddenly, cutting Paildramon's complaint. "They're waking up!"
"Ok guys…remember the plan. Remember, they're our friends, so don't overdo it. Ok… Let's do it!"
The DigiDestined, Kuzuhamon and Rosemon were ready for their designated opponents as soon as the six possessed Digimon came round. They then saw Lillymon quickly being tackled by Rosemon, who had immediately delivered a vicious flurry of whips against the smaller pixie. Lillymon didn't even have the time to retaliate; Rosemon was simply too strong for her to handle alone. She was the first to fall even before the other five had started to attack. Rosemon grinned in satisfaction when Lillymon was knocked out unconscious. Her clothes were torn while on her face, arms and legs there were many slash marks of Rosemon's sharp whips.
"Well…that was unexpected," Sylphimon said, sweatdropping. "Somehow I don't think Mimi is gonna like hearing about this."
"Ah told you that it's going to be easy," Rosemon said triumphantly. "Now ah can help Kuzuhamon battle that wolf."
After the unexpected turn of event, the DigiDestined immediately revert their attention to the remaining five Digimon, who were wilder than ever after seeing their fellow comrade fell. Zudomon and MegaKabuterimon both launched their attacks towards the DigiDestined, but were immediately countered by Valthrumon and Dinobeemon respectively. Valthrumon and Zudomon looked to be evenly-matched, but MegaKabuterimon was bigger than Dinobeemon. Dinobeemon immediately rectified the problem by creating three clones to help him fight the giant scarab. The fight of insects suddenly turned to Dinobeemon's favor, as MegaKabuterimon couldn't handle four Dinobeemon at once. He managed to destroy one of the clones with his mighty horn, but then the other three Dinobeemon each generated a different attack from one another, confusing him greatly. MegaKabuterimon was the second to fall, being attacked at once by a swarm of poisoned needles, a supersonic roar and a sharp energy blade, which shattered the turquoise jewel encrusted on his shell. His clones disappeared, Dinobeemon then turned to look at Valthrumon, whose battle with Zudomon seemed to be a stalemate so far.
"Cody, need a hand?" Dinobeemon called. He had strained his strength while battling MegaKabuterimon, but Valthrumon looked like he needed aid.
"Sure!" Valthrumon replied.
Dinobeemon then split his body into three once again, attempting to beat Zudomon the same way he'd defeated MegaKabuterimon. However Zudomon seemed to be wiser about this; upon seeing the three Dinobeemon he quickly threw his powerful Chrome-Digizoid hammer towards the dragon-insect. The hammer rammed against the real Dinobeemon, knocking the wind out of him and causing the clones to disappear when the real body wasn't able to control them.
Valthrumon, surprised to see the sudden change of turnabout of event, quickly prepared himself to battle Zudomon on his own once more. Yet, now he'd seen something that he could use to his advantage. Zudomon, wanting to take down Dinobeemon in haste, had thrown his weapon away. Without his powerful weapon, Valthrumon might be able to beat him. It was worth a shot.
"Katchina Bombs!"
Zudomon growled in anger when he saw Valthrumon's clay bombs knocked away his hammer even further. Instead of going after the hammer, Zudomon whirled around and from his horn; he fired a streak of thunderbolt towards the titan of ice. Out of instinct, Valthrumon shielded himself with his spiked guard. The lightning bolt somehow was deflected by the smooth metallic surface of the shield towards Zudomon, electrocuting him enough to knock him out.
Sweatdropping, Valthrumon recollected his breath. Armadillomon was heard chuckling heartily from inside his mind. "Well, that wasn't so hard."
In the meantime, Garudamon took to the sky, with Sylphimon and Angewomon in hot pursuit. Angewomon tried to freeze the giant bird-man but she was too quick for the female angel to pursue. However Sylphimon didn't seem to have the same problem; the Silphymon species were renowned for their speed, and despite some difference the merged form of Yolei and Hawkmon was no exception. She gave chase to Garudamon, who retaliated with her Wing Blade attack. Sylphimon countered the attack with her Top Gun, causing an explosion in midair. The smokes obscured Sylphimon's vision, and before she knew it somebody had kicked her on the back, sending her flying. Garudamon had seized the chance, and seeing Sylphimon lose control of her maneuver the possessed Ultimate didn't hesitate to finish her off.
"Yolei, look out behind you!" Angewomon called cautiously. However Sylphimon wasn't able to pay heed to her call, prompting the angel to take charge of the situation.
But as they say, two heads worked better than one. Before Garudamon could land another kick on the smaller bird-man, her wings were pierced by a powerful arrow of light. She screamed in pain, and turning around Garudamon saw Angewomon, perfectly poised with her bow. Her flight capabilities desecrated, Garudamon could no longer maintain her balance in the air. She quickly aimed for the ground, wanting to fight her opponents on the safety of a solid surface. Yet, her motive was foiled when Sylphimon fired her Dual Sonic, followed by a controlled measure of Angewomon's Heaven's Charm. Both attacks exploded on Garudamon's back, worsening her focus and condition even further. No match for the two females' prowess, Garudamon was the third to be defeated. She crash-landed on the desert ground, sending sands flying haphazardly. And due to her great stature, the effect was like a violent sandstorm, and for a while the other battles were halted.
"Amethyst Mandala!"
"Roses Rapier!"
Deploying their special attacks at once, Kuzuhamon and Rosemon took advantage of the distraction provided by Garudamon's defeat to strike at MetalGarurumon. However, the metal canine was quick to evade as his whole body was equipped with the latest state-of-the-art thermal sensors and detectors. Even with his vision obscured, he could still get a reading of his two opponents, and that proved to be advantageous for him to end the battle quickly. He calculated the strength of his two opponents and quickly decided that he'd eliminate the weaker of the two. The Mega fairy Digimon was coming at him, with her vines ready at hand, but MetalGarurumon grew tired of being batted by her whips, while not really feeling anything. He released a stream of subzero ice blast from his maw, and struck right smack on Rosemon's body. The Mega data was frozen in place, the only thing that remained unfrozen was her head.
"Rosemon!" Kuzuhamon cried worriedly. Eyeing MetalGarurumon with cold fury she waved her staff. "Reverse Spirit Strike!"
At the same time, MetalGarurumon released his Metal Wolf Claw once again to counter the chilly fox specter generated by Kuzuhamon. The two attacks were equally strong and nullified each other. MetalGarurumon prepared to move in for another attack but was hit with waves of violet energy emitted by Kuzuhamon's staff. At the same time his body was also lambasted with thousands of cherry blossoms. The flower storm grew steadily worse, and soon MetalGarurumon was caught inside of it with no hope of escaping.
"I shall not harm an ally," Kuzuhamon said wearily; it was obvious that she was drained of her energy while fighting MetalGarurumon. With another wave of her staff she focused the storm around her opponent's body, constricting the distance of the flower storm until it formed a spherical barrier which contained MetalGarurumon inside of it.
Even though the rest of the DigiDestined and ally seemed to be winning, Paildramon and MagnaAngemon had their hands full in dealing with the strongest of the six – WarGreymon. WarGreymon was a fearsome ally, and the fact that now he was a foe made him made him even deadlier. He had the most experience compared to the other DigiDestined. This was the same Digimon that had beaten MetalSeadramon and Machinedramon of the Dark Masters single-handedly and could hold his own against the far more experienced Piedmon, the leader of the Dark Masters. After so many years, he was still very strong.
Conversely, MagnaAngemon too was one of the most powerful Ultimate Digimon ever existed. His power rivaled that of a Mega. And he too, could hold his own against Piedmon. But unlike WarGreymon, he had managed to outmatch the Mega without even breaking a sweat. It was only his inhibition of fighting a friend that made him seemed to be no match for WarGreymon.
"Excalibur!" he summoned his shining purple energy blade and attempted to stun WarGreymon with it.
"Esgrima!" Paildramon retracted two longer purple blades, similar to Stingmon's Spiking Strike attack, and hoisted them towards the Mega Digimon.
WarGreymon easily countered both blades with his tough armored claws. He then spun himself to form a flaming tornado and knocked away the two Ultimates. "Brave Tornado!"
Paildramon quickly steadied himself while in midair and whipped out his blasters. Firing towards WarGreymon with all he got, he grew weary after seeing WarGreymon didn't even make an effort to move away or counter his attack. It seemed that his Desperado Blaster attack didn't even faze him. Quickly, Paildramon decided to change his strategy, charging his palms with Elemental Bolts. The bolts of fire, ice, lightning and poison were launched towards WarGreymon, but the Mega simply drowned them with a considerably mild version of his thermal fireball attack – the Terra Force.
"He's toying with me!" Paildramon growled in annoyance.
Suddenly, WarGreymon harbored a malicious sneer as he raised his fearsome claws – the Dramon Destroyers – and crisscrossed them in front of his chest. His glowing eyes were bored into Paildramon's brown orbs. Without any warning, the Mega rushed towards the Ultimate and his claws suddenly seemed to be glowing with silvery-red light.
"Davis, get out of there! WarGreymon's claws can destroy all Dramon type Digimon! He'll be able to destroy you!" MagnaAngemon yelled.
Having quick reflexes thanks to Davis's intense soccer training, Paildramon paid heed towards the archangel's warning and quickly zoomed away. Unfortunately for him, WarGreymon seemed to have his mind set on eliminating him. He gave chase to the Ultimate, forcing the dragon warrior to increase his speed and flee the battle ground. He didn't even dare to attempt to fight back, as it would only slow him down, and WarGreymon didn't seem like he was going to give Paildramon another head start. However, he was stunned to see that the famed Mega Digimon suddenly slowed down; something seemed to be holding him. Paildramon noticed a faint golden glow…and he immediately searched for MagnaAngemon, a horrible suspicion already came to his mind.
"TK, you can't be serious!" he shouted towards the royal angel. "Tai won't be able to forgive you for dong this, when he comes around."
"Maybe so, but I don't think Agumon could live with the knowledge that he has killed off a fellow Digimon, and possibly a DigiDestined as well," MagnaAngemon replied grimly. "To save your life, I don't think I have another choice!"
"But…surely the Gate of Destiny is a bit TOO extreme?"
Seeing that Paildramon was about to be finished off by WarGreymon, MagnaAngemon didn't hesitate to summon the deadly Gate of Destiny to stop him. However he didn't really want to pull in WarGreymon inside of it, like the way he'd done with Piedmon and NeoDevimon. He believed that WarGreymon would put up a struggle against the force emitted by the Gate of Destiny, the same way Black WarGreymon had done sometime ago.
However, he'd forgotten one little account. As WarGreymon was under Milleniumon's spell, it had made him less resourceful and rigid. Thus, he didn't really put up a struggle like his darkened persona had done when he was in danger of being absorbed by the gate. Slowly but surely, he was pulled into the gate, and MagnaAngemon had no choice but to cease activating the gate, at the risk of being attacked by WarGreymon out of retaliation as the Mega was close enough to do so. However, help came in the time when it was needed the most, and MagnaAngemon saw five streaks of attacks, coming from his friends, blasting onto WarGreymon's chest armor. The combined efforts of the Celestial Arrow, the Top Gun, the Irritant Buzz, the Desperado Blaster and the Titanic Hammer were forceful enough to throw WarGreymon out of MagnaAngemon's way. Then he saw Kuzuhamon gliding gracefully towards him, waving her staff, letting out a silvery apparition of a chilly fox. The fox swooped towards WarGreymon and went through him, immediately freezing him solid.
By combining their powers and resourcefulness, the DigiDestined and their allies had successfully beaten their possessed comrades. They had won the battle Milleniumon had forced them to partake, and now was the time to receive their end of the deal.
"Alright, Milleniumon! We've won; now give us back our friends!" Paildramon shouted.
The air rippled suddenly, and a holographic image of Milleniumon appeared, smiling hideously. "I am impressed, indeed. But the battle is not over yet. There is still one more obstacle you have to face. And I am sure that this time, it will not be too easy for all of you to win. You shall have to defeat…me, and before that…" On his hands two Digivices appeared and gleamed with blue and red lights.
"But you've said that we could get back our friends if we beat you," Angewomon protested.
"Which is the thing that you have not yet accomplished, dear heart," Milleniumon said sarcastically. "You are victorious, yes…but not against me. To prove yourself worthy to fight me, again…is to prove that you are able to match my strength, by competing with a Digimon beyond the Mega level. And I have a worthy opponent for you to test your skills. You can fight him one-on-one, or two-on-one, or eight-on-one…it shall be up to your own resourcefulness."
The two Digivices around Milleniumon's hand pulsated vibrantly. At the same time, both the frozen WarGreymon and the trapped MetalGarurumon broke free from their confinement with aid of the lights from the Digivices. WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon morphed into two motes of light, with only their helmets being solid. The vaporized part of their body merged together and formed an ivory-armored body, arms and legs before finally the head appeared, hidden underneath a pearly head guard. Green eyes shone brilliantly from underneath the mask. Long, crimson cape was attached on his shoulders, billowing down until his calves. The helmets of WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon latched on each hand of the newly-formed knight Digimon. From the WarGreymon hand guard a thick blade emerged, while from the maw of the MetalGarurumon helmet a cannon emerged.
"This is not good," MagnaAngemon said breathlessly.
"Not good? Whatever did you mean by that…I believe some of you have the pleasure of meeting Omnimon before, have you not?" Milleniumon sneered malevolently. "You know the drills. Ta!"
Looking up the towering figure of Omnimon, the six DigiDestined felt a foreboding feeling. They were already facing difficulty in facing normal Mega Digimon; how would they stand a chance against a royal knight whose power level was beyond Mega? This was the most powerful DNA Digivolved Digimon in their team, even stronger than Imperialdramon Fighter Mode. And the fact that they could no longer form the said Mega didn't really work in their favor.
"This is really unfair," Paildramon muttered.
"Sense anything, Cyberdramon?" Ryo asked, glancing down towards his partner's face.
Cyberdramon was silent; his attention seemed to be focused on their surroundings. The two of them were currently at a place void of anything else except white. Cyberdramon was flying, and Ryo was sitting on top of his right shoulder. There was nothing else; no floor or road to step on nor was there a ceiling or the sky to look up to. There wasn't anything remotely interesting to look at their left or right as well. There was also no indication of the difference between the directions where they had come from, or where they were heading.
"I think I've caught something," Cyberdramon finally replied decisively. "It wasn't like the times when I sensed the D-Reaper a year ago. I can sense four different energy signals, but something is very wrong. They are weak, more or less only equivalent of Champion Digimon instead of the guardians of the Digital World."
"Considering they are imprisoned, and drained off their energy, it isn't much of a surprise," Ryo said. "But we need to hurry. Can you take us there now?"
The Ultimate Digimon snorted derisively, as if what Ryo had asked him was a task which required so little effort on his behalf. "Of course. This is gonna be rough. We're going to exit this intermediate dimension, heading to where I feel these…prickling sensations. Hang on tight."
As Cyberdramon began to move through dimensions, their surroundings changed. The pure whiteness of their ambiance began to darken, and specs of color began to appear. Ryo felt a slightly tingling feeling but brushed it off; it was the feeling that bothered him quite a lot when he first dimension-hopping. He'd grown used to it already after the whole ordeal with ZeedMilleniumon. Ryo noticed the space setting around them.
"We're here," Cyberdramon announced gruffly. He floated, pretty much the same way he did when they were at the white dimension. It appeared as if he was standing on a solid, invisible surface.
Ryo looked around. "I don't see anybody. You sure this is the right place?"
"Positive," Cyberdramon growled. His senses heightened suddenly. "We've got companies…and it's not the guardians."
Thunders boomed, and several meters away from where Ryo and Cyberdramon were at, the air rippled – the same way the calm surface of the water would be when something touched it. The ripples intensified and out from them, two Digimon walked out. One of them looked like a knight in thick purple armor, wielding a massive staff with two similar, diamond-shaped endings. The other was a gigantic brown brachiosaurus equipped with deadly artilleries; three long cannons were mounted on its back, ready to shoot anybody who stood in its way.
"Halt! By the commands of our illustrious master, Chaos Specter, nobody is permitted here!" the knight announced loudly.
"We have orders to exterminate anybody that trespasses this threshold!" the dinosaur added with a mechanical-enhanced voice.
Not recognizing them, Ryo whipped out his D-Power to check out the data of the two Digimon.
"Craniummon; vaccine type Mega level Digimon. This royal knight Digimon wields a staff capable of pulverizing anything that comes into contact with it. Its attacks are End Waltz and God Breath."
"Cannondramon; data type Mega level Digimon. This Cyborg Digimon conquers its foes with Dino Cannon and Grenade Storm."
Ryo jumped down from his partner's shoulder. "Looks like they're not gonna let us through easily. Ready to Biomerge, buddy?"
"Always," Cyberdramon replied. "Milleniumon can't hope to tamper with our Biomerge Digivolution here."
Biomerge Digivolution
"Biomerge Activate!"
"Cyberdramon….Biomerge to….Justimon!"
Biomerging into Justimon, Ryo and Cyberdramon were now ready to battle Craniummon and Cannondramon. However, could Justimon alone fight off two equally strong Mega Digimon? As the warrior Digimon flew off to battle the two minions of Chaos Specter, he was least aware of two pairs of blue eyes, watching him from a distance, watching his every move.
…..
…..
Author's Note:
This is a rather quick update from me before the double festivals at my place. Anyway, thank you for the reviews. I really enjoyed seeing the responses to previous chapter; that picture Chaos Specter has seems to spark out quite a speculation.
Dark Qiviut –Did you mean the DigiEgg of Darkness, instead of Kindness?
DTV, blazing fury – As for your questions….what do you think? Four guys and one girl, sounds really familiar, don't you think:D
Yami Vizzini – Hope you enjoyed the update.
Bluesv20 – Chaos Specter's identity is resurfacing, and there's a LOT of story behind him and what he is now. I just hope I'll be able to write it properly.
Arking, dark672, Cows Are Cool – Thanks.
Gerjomarty – There is a tie-in between the reason Chaos Specter decides to spare Catrina's baby form and the mysterious Lilithmon. For Ryo and Ken, I think it'd be interesting to make them a little awkward at first, after not meeting each other for a long time. This is actually a set-up to a future chapter plot, but I'm not entirely sure whether it would work or not. It will still be an interesting subplot in this Milleniumon arc; at least I hope it will be. I think I might have written Catrina's change of heart a little too quick, but it will not be a complete 180 degrees change. And as for your final deduction about the girl and Lilithmon…we'll see.
Anthony – Welcome to Vengeance. Don't worry; I still have some plans cooked up for them.
