A/N: Sorry for the delay in this chapter, I was out of town most of the weekend and so I had no choice but here it is!
"I wish I could have you on the show," Zack tells Patamon cheerfully, the Digimon peering down at him from atop his head. "You could help the Zigman and I take over JBL's show, it'd be siiiiiiiiiiick!"
"That'd be fun," the Digimon says, clearly without any real idea of what Zack's talking about.
He catches on and pulls out his phone, grinning up at the Rookie Digimon. "Here, I'll show you," he tells his partner, holding the screen up and pressing play on a video so that Patamon could see it. They're laughing over Zack and Dolph's latest hijinxs, Dolph himself wandering over with Impmon once they realize what Zack and Patamon are doing, glad that Luke hadn't had a true mission for them but had just wanted them to explore the Data sector a little, get a lay of the land.
Make sure everything is as peaceful as it seems. Due to this, none of them are staying close together, all of them splitting into little groups. Miz, Heath and AJ are wandering towards some cliffs, moving out of sight, and Seth and Alicia had stopped a ways back, overseeing their Digimon picking flowers from a nearby field, and everything's so quiet and simple that for awhile Zack thinks he can see the plusses of living in this world, in this sector.
Dolph has just pulled out his phone, loading one of his favorite videos to show the Digimon when Zack feels something suspicious- like they're being watched, or... Before he can speak up and ask the others if they sense it too, Patamon and Impmon start discussing Clem Layfield and how he looks like Heath, wondering if Lopmon knows his partner has a twin out there. Zack and Dolph exchange glances before bursting out laughing. Zack's suspicions are forgotten as they continue to traipse through the grass, Dolph holding his phone so all of them can watch more of the JBL show, witnessing Dolph and Zack's progression in "taking over".
There's a whisper of something in the air but Zack passes it off as the video playing, his eyes locked on the small screen, when something explodes, the dirt raising up beneath their feet and raining mud and gravel down around them, throwing them to the ground and leaving them sprawled against the surface. Zack groans and blinks, glancing around. The sky is still bright blue overhead, and if not for the dirt caking his skin and clothes, he'd almost think nothing had happened... but it's clear it has, because he's stiff and sore, pain radiating up his back. He grunts and reaches out, feeling what has to be Dolph's arm. "Bro? Hey, bro, did you get the name of that truck?"
There's no answer. Zack quickly twists around, glancing over as best as he can... all he can see from this angle is Dolph's hair gleaming in the sun and not much else. Patamon is stirring, his wide blue eyes fluttering open, but Dolph is motionless and Zack can't see Impmon, assuming he's on the other side of Dolph. Grunting, the broski decides to give up on laying around, forcing himself up and glancing around before inching closer to Dolph. "Bro?" he whispers, unsurprised to find him unconscious. He feels around a bit, fear growing as Dolph remains unresponsive until finally... he finds a sizeable rock under Dolph's head and grimaces, a new kind of fear overwhelming him. Dolph has a history with concussions, and a blow like that... "It's ok, bro. We'll get you back to earth, the trainer'll check you out... I'll-"
His words are abruptly silenced when Patamon cries out, "Brachiomon! Zack, move!"
Not understanding, the former US champion looks up to find a Digimon that resembles a dinosaur with golden skin and blue stripes crisscrossing up its formidable body lumbering slowly towards them, its long neck shifting this way and that although deep brown eyes never leave them. "What in the...?" he breathes out, his hands still extended towards Dolph, frozen in midair. His Digivice begins to rattle in his pocket and he watches blankly as Patamon Digivolves into Darcmon once more, immediately flying forward and trying to withhold the approach of Brachiomon. But he's quite large in comparison to the freshly Digivolved Digimon's lithe form and Darcmon is quickly overwhelmed by his teeth, tail and sweeping claws, even with his staff and sword flashing as he parries and thrusts the weapons at the dinosaur. Zack's just thought to move, trying to sit Dolph up so he could shift him, finally spotting Impmon a few feet away, when there's a desperate scream behind him and he turns in time to see Darcmon hanging, suspended in midair, as Brachiomon roars and twists his head around, headbutting him down with so much force that he leaves a lengthy crater in the ground. "No!" Zack cries out as he lays there, lifeless.
Impmon down, Ziggler not responding, and now Darcmon... All Zack can do is stay there, watch in shock as Brachiomon heads towards him, eyes locked right on him. He swallows, frozen in place, until he can feel the warmth of the Digimon's breath against his face. "No," he mumbles, realizing that not only is he in the Digimon's sight, but so is Dolph. And, once bored of them, he'll more than likely turn his attention to Darcmon and Impmon and then the others and... "No, no..." He twists again and grabs Dolph under the arms, trying to lift his dead weight. "C'mon, bro, c'mon- we have to move, we can't... can't take over JBL's show or do anything else we talked about if you don't help me a little bit here." He's breathing heavily, tears beading in his eyes, when Brachiomon's shadow forms over him, blocking out the sun and leaving Zack feeling chilled.
Having no choice but to rest Dolph back down on the ground, he grips the first thing he thinks of and stands up, facing off with the much taller Digimon, who snorts derisively at him, almost knocking him off of his feet again. Zack's eyes narrow as he stands between the creature and Dolph. "Are you serious, bro?!" he demands, lifting his arm and throwing the rock that Dolph had landed on. It strikes Brachiomon across the bridge of his nose and the creature roars viciously, shaking his head from side to side to ease off the pain from the blow. Taking advantage of the moment, Zack scrambles, finally managing to lift Dolph up and slinging his arm around his shoulder. "Gotcha, bro, come on, we can- we can make it..." He thinks Heath and Alicia are closer, but he's not sure, heading in that direction anyway. He hopes that it'd be enough to get away but also keep Brachiomon from finishing the job with Impmon and Darcmon still laying vulnerable nearby.
Unfortunately, Brachiomon isn't willing to let them go that easily, another explosion sounding behind them and sending them down once more. Zack tries to correct this, grabbing Dolph once more, but Brachiomon is on them already and he and Zack stare at each other. "I'm not giving up," Zack tells him, unable to hide how his voice wavers even as he grips Dolph's arm, determination burning in his eyes. "I never have, in anything... Some extinct blob of data like you isn't going to change that... C'mon, bro..." He's just dragged Dolph back up, trying not to react as Brachiomon steps forward, his leg leaving a shadow over the two wrestlers as he prepares to stomp them into the ground, when Zack's Digivice comes to life again. He almost drops Dolph in shock but only just holds on, watching in shock as Brachiomon draws away, roaring warily as the device floats out of Zack's pocket and hangs in midair, thrumming so violently that Zack worries it's going to split in two. Instead, there's another flash of light nearby and Zack realizes that the rock he'd used to attack Brachiomon is glowing from feet away.
He frowns and gingerly steps forward to pick it up from where it'd fallen after bouncing off of Brachiomon's nose. He's barely touched it with his free hand, the other still supporting Dolph, when it explodes in light, the rock cracking into small pieces and revealing a small disc that floats in midair before rushing past Zack and floating near his Digivice. Zack's jaw drops as the light concentrates, the Digivice forming a beam that blasts through the crest and strikes Darcmon's motionless form and causes him to float as well. "Wha-... what's going on?" he mumbles, still clinging to Dolph's limp form desperately.
Darcmon's eyes look golden when he suddenly comes to, standing up straight and looking down at Zack as the glow intensifies, the strength behind it surprising the Digidestined. "It's going to be ok, Zack. You unlocked your Digital Crest... I can become stronger now... Strong enough to defeat Brachiomon." He smiles down at his partner before closing his eyes and allowing himself to be overwhelmed by the light, releasing a sigh as he calls out, "Darcmon Digivolve to..." When the flowing data field that surrounds the creature dissipates and Zack can see again, the human-like Digimon has become a large, white beast with four legs, two ending in sharp talons and the other two wide claws. His body is wide and white, with blue stripes crossing his midsection and each leg, large wings erupting from his shoulders and a soft looking tail whipping against his legs. To finish off the impressive package, his head seems to be that of an eagle-type creature, piercing blue eyes visible just past his beak. "Hippogriffomon!"
He moves, and he moves fast. Zack barely has time to feel the breeze as the Digimon flies past them, countering Brachiomon's attempt at attacking with his head again by releasing an intense blast of heat from his beak until he's close enough to slash up the dinosaur's chest with his forefront claws, sending Brachiomon falling back with a brutal roar. "HEAT WAVE!" Another blast of hot air comes from Hippogriffomon but Brachiomon recovers quickly, blasting back with a bubble that starts to boil the further it travels. Hippogriffomon shakes his head, releasing a squeech that hurts Zack's ears even from this distance, the sound waves blasting into the melded together attack and sending the boiling bubble back towards Brachiomon, exploding into his vulnerable flesh and causing him to roar in agony as the stench of burnt flesh fills the mid-afternoon air. Hippogriffomon, visibly tired of this fight, takes to the air once more before diving atop the dinosaur Digimon and shredding what's left of his flesh with his talons, leaving him to delete on the ground.
As his partner de-digivolves in midair, returning to Patamon's form and landing easily next to Impmon, Zack settles Dolph back down on the ground and lightly taps his face. "Bro, you can wake up now," he says, worry bleeding in through his teasing. "Trouble's gone. C'mon. You know, you left Patamon and I to handle that all on our own... some friend you are. We kicked ass and you slept through the entire thing."
Dolph doesn't react and Zack's really starting to worry when... "'Bout time you stepped up and did something, kid," Dolph says groggily, his fingers fumbling and reaching out until he grips the sleeve of Zack's shirt. "Hurts," he groans, learning quickly not to try to open his eyes since the sun is directly overhead, shining down upon them.
"I know, bro. I know. We'll catch up with the others and get you to the trainer's, it'll... it'll be ok." He's not sure about that, the possibility of another of Dolph's title reigns getting hindered by a concussion leaves him sick and anxious, but there's not much else he can do about it now. He's just about to pull Dolph back to his feet when Patamon returns to his side, Impmon stumbling after him. "You guys alright?"
"Yes," Impmon says simply, staring up at Dolph with a searching gaze.
Patamon is also staring at Zack but for a different reason, something hanging off of his ear. "Zack, this is a tag," he tells him lowly, nodding encouragingly as Zack reaches down and collects the item, staring at it. "It'll hold your crest. Speaking of..." With his hands free now, Zack finds his Digivice on the ground and recollects it. He's barely touched the crest however, when it floats upwards and slides effortlessly into the tag, fitting perfectly. "You can wear it around your neck, it'll be safe there," his partner explains. "Hiding it while you compete should also be easy... it could fit into your boots..."
He nods, resting his fingers against the small piece of glass that that crest is now behind, examining the markings on the yellow item. They oddly resemble a sunbeam, he thinks, which seems fitting somehow. "What is it?" he finally asks, looking over at Patamon.
The young Digimon smiles calmly. "It's the crest of Hope, Zack. You never giving up on saving Dolph, on escaping Brachiomon, activated this power, allowed me to Digivolve past the Champion level. I can now achieve the Ultimate level of power as Hippogriffomon."
"Siiiiick," Zack breathes, amazed that he was the first to achieve such a thing. Placing the necklace safely around his neck, he leans over and smiles at Dolph. "C'mon, bro. Let's find the others and go home."
