As the Dark Tribe and Earth Tribe Digimon fought around them, MagnaVeedramon and the other unaffected heroes and heroines held nervous looks as they looked at their possessed friends, each controlled and empowered by the Dark Lady herself, the holy knight Digimon and those close to him saw their former allies looking at them with an impassive stare.
Growling lightly to the situation, MagnaVeedramon spoke through the link in his D-Bracer as he said quietly. "Jeri, Novicmon, I know you guys can hear me."
Hearing the holy knight Digimon's voice from her D-Bracer, Jeri snapped out of her panic as she brought her arm up, where she heard MagnaVeedramon then say. "You two need to help the Earth Tribe as best as you can while we try to save the others."
"But…" Jeri started to say, the brunette partly in a mental anguish to see Takato, Rika and their partners once again under their enemy's control, the memories of Nagamon and his attack on the group returning to the forefront of her mind.
"Jeri, we promised Titanusmon we would help, they need you." MagnaVeedramon cut in with a great seriousness in his tone, adding as he looked to his possessed friends. "I promise I will save them."
Ending the communication, MagnaVeedramon continued to look at his control friends as he started to say. "Guys, you have to fight her, you…"
But before he could finish, MedievalGallantmon shot towards MagnaVeedramon with blinding speed, almost catching the holy knight Digimon off guard as he quickly used his energy blades to block the possessed knight Digimon's strike, before letting out a loud groan as the blade not only collided with his weapons, but sent both flying backwards, with MagnaVeedramon's feet skidding across the ground in the process.
"Your pleas are pointless, they are mine. Now, show me your strength, hero!" The Dark Lady declared through her puppets, before MedievalGallantmon pushed MagnaVeedramon back, who was on shock by the increase in power his controlled friend now possessed, before snapping out of it as he saw the possessed knight Digimon swing his halberd, sending out waves of dark purple flames towards the holy knight Digimon.
"Magna Saber!" MagnaVeedramon declared in response to the attack, adding power to his energy blades as he cut through the dark flame attacks, before seeing a familiar dragon spirit, though now made of dark energy, form around MedievalGallantmon's being, which then shot towards the holy knight Digimon.
"Holy Strike!" The Digimon of Miracles called out in reply, unleashing a blast of light energy at the corrupted version of Rage of the Wyvern, the collusion of light and dark based energy causing a massive shockwave, which caused MagnaVeedramon to groan loudly from the strain, feeling the dark force pushing back against his own attack.
Then, with a great cry, MagnaVeedramon managed to push the dark energy to the side, sending it crashing into the ground nearby and creating a massive crater in the process.
Despite deflecting the attack, however, MagnaVeedramon wasn't given a moment to rest as MedievalGallantmon once again rushed at him, delivering a swift kick to his former ally's stomach and sending the holy knight Digimon flying backwards with a cry, before rushing after his foe as the possessed knight Digimon brought his flaming halberd up to strike MagnaVeedramon down.
But reacting quickly, MagnaVeedramon brought his blades up and blocked the strike, pushing his possessed friend back as the two began parrying and trading blows with one another, with the holy knight Digimon feeling the strain from fighting his empowered foe, while the possessed form of MedievalGallantmon kept the same cold demeanor MagnaVeedramon had come to expect from the Dark Lady.
Seeing the heroes now fighting amongst themselves, Lamashtumon gave a feral grin, before turning to her forces as she shouted with a dark glee. "The Dark Lady is with us, my warriors! Strike the Earth Tribe down, reduce them to rubble and claim their precious Divine Stone in her name! For the Dark Lady, for the Dark Tribe and for Victory!"
With their Dark General's words, along with feeling the Dark Lady's presence amongst them, the Dark Tribe forces felt renewed as they continued their assault upon the Earth Tribe's forces, with Lamashtumon taking to the skies as she rushed towards the battlefield, her entourage following, while the SkullColossimon and ShadowColossimon let out loud bellows as they began marching towards the city, ready to crush it beneath their feet.
Seeing the colossal Dark Digimon on the move, Lightbearer Ophanimon desired to go and help the Earth Tribe Digimon in their struggle, but found herself unable to leave as she was in conflict with the possessed form of MysticSakuyamon.
"Let us see if you have any resolve, Little Light." The Dark Lady's voice said over Rika and Renamon's, bringing MysticSakuyamon's staff up as a familiar energy formed around her feet, letting Lightbearer Ophanimon know which attack was coming, but this left the Digimon of Light unclear as to how it had changed.
It was then that dozens of MysticSakuyamon's fox spirits, only corrupted by the Dark Lady's influence s formed around the possessed mystic Digimon and rushed at Lightbearer Ophanimon, who flew to the sky as she dodged some of the dark spirits, before retaliating as she declared. "Divine Calling!"
Summoning her rings of light, Lightbearer Ophanimon fired blasts of energy at the dark fox spirits, pushing them back slightly or knocking them back, before one broke through and slammed into the celestial Digimon, causing her to cry out as she was sent crashing into the ground below.
Struggling to get up from the attack, the Digimon of Light then quickly rolled to the side, missing being struck as the possessed form of MysticSakuyamon slammed her foot into the ground where Lightbearer Ophanimon was lying, the ground cracking beneath her boot, before the celestial Digimon got to her feet.
"Striking Light!" Lightbearer Ophanimon then announced as she rushed at her possessed friend, who blocked each of her strikes with her spear, as though brushing off her foe's attack.
"You are weak, you are unworthy. You let the Light direct you, and in the end, it will bring you only pain and suffering." The Dark Lady commented through her puppet, pushing Lightbearer Ophanimon back as she then told the Digimon of Light. "Ending your existence now will be an act of mercy compared to what is coming."
"You're wrong..." Lightbearer Ophanimon replied through a tired pant as she did her best to keep her balance, looking up at the possessed form of MysticSakuyamon and knowing her enemy was looking back at her through her friend's eyes, where the Digimon of Light said back with a determined look in her eyes. "The Light gives hope, brings people together and gives them strength you would never understand. We will free our friends from your spell and end this madness you brought on Witchelny!"
"We shall see." The Dark Lady merely remarked through her puppet, before MysticSakuyamon rushed once again at Lightbearer Ophanimon, who did her best to dodge each strike, knowing the power now running through her possessed friend's body, while trying to figure out a way to save her from the Dark Lady's grasp.
Nearby, SacredPhoenixmon continued to step backwards with hesitation as the possessed form of Samudramon slowly approached her, his now flaming blades outstretched as he looked ready to strike her down.
"Let him go or I'll…!" The Digimon of Love tried to say in a confident tone as she held her spear out, ready to fight if necessary, though hoping she would not have to hurt Samudramon in the process.
"Or what?" The Dark Lady questioned through Samudramon, adding in a cynical tone. "All you will do is harm your beloved, you cannot harm me, and we know you have neither the strength or courage to do what is necessary. It took coming to this world for you to even have the courage to speak to him. You are weak, and you will die alone and afraid."
The possessed form of Samudramon then swung his blades in SacredPhoenixmon's direction, sending out shockwaves of dark purple flames, causing the Digimon of Love to take to the skies in order to avoid the powerful attack, before rushing down as she prepared to strike, thinking to herself with some agony. 'I'm so sorry, Samudramon, please forgive me.'
"Phoenix Knuckle!" The Digimon of Love declared as her fist ignited in flames, where she moved to strike at Samudramon, hoping to at least knock him down until they could find a way to free him from the Dark Lady's control.
However, the possessed form of Samudramon merely brought his blades together, blocking the attack as SacredPhoenixmon let out pained groan, trying to give it her all to push through her enslaved lover's defenses, only to let out a cry as Samudramon pushed her back, causing the larger Digimon to skid across the ground a few times in the process.
"Perhaps you'll provide some entertainment after all." The Dark Lady commented through Samudramon, before leaping at SacredPhoenixmon, who used her spear to block a strike from Samudramon's blades as she quickly got up, the two parrying attacks and trading blows as they fought, with the fusion of Sora and Biyomon desperate to save those they loved from the clutches of their foe.
In the skies above, meanwhile, GaleSilphymon was doing her best to dodge blade strikes from CrimsonAldamon, doing everything in her power to try and get through to her beloved as she clashed her shuriken with the possessed Warrior of Flame's blades.
"Takuya… please… fight her, I know you can do it, you're the strongest person I know…" GaleSilphymon said through the pain she felt as she tried to hold back the dark infused strength of CrimsonAldamon, only for her pleas to fall on deaf ears.
"He is not strong enough to stand against me, none of you are." The Dark Lady said through CrimsonAldamon, before pushing GaleSilphymon back as dark purple flames gathered in his hands, where the Warrior of Wind quickly took off as her possessed lover began firing a series of fire blasts at her, before turning to see a massive sphere of flame gather in his hands.
"Arcane Twister!" GaleSilphymon announced as she swung her shuriken, sending out a massive twister toward CrimsonAldamon.
Countering the attack, however, CrimsonAldamon threw a great fireball at her, causing a massive explosion which sent the Warrior of Wind crashing to the ground with a cry.
Struggling to get back up, GaleSilphymon saw something shooting down from the sky at her, where she quickly moved out of the way as CrimsonAldamon's fist slammed into the ground, his fist breaking through the ground and causing a small shockwave, forcing the Warrior of Wind off the ground as she took back to the sky, where her possessed lover followed soon after, putting GaleSilphymon back on the defensive as she tried to hold off Takuya, hoping the others were faring better and found some way to free their friends and her boyfriend from the Dark Lady's hold.
"Blazing Blade!" Marcus called out below, meanwhile, the more headstrong and stubborn of the group using his flaming sword to cut through the dozens of corrupt vines that shot out of the ground, all trying to either wrap around him or pierce his armour, before moving out of the way as the possessed form of Yoshi rushed at him with twin thorn blades, placing the fire knight on the defensive as he dodged Yoshi's attempts to strike him down.
"What is holding you back, hero? Afraid to strike at the woman you are too afraid to admit your love for?" The Dark Lady questioned through Yoshi as familiar energy orbs, now dark instead of violet, appeared around the possessed DATS member's being and began firing energy blasts at Marcus, who quickly moved to defend himself.
"Firewall!" The Fire Knight called out as he created a barrier of flame around him, deflecting most of the blasts, before one got through and struck him in the chest, sending him flying back with a cry, where he landed a few feet away, feeling pure pain and agony from the powerful attack as the possessed form of Yoshi stalked towards him with her thorn blades ready to strike.
"I'll show you who's afraid! Flaming Destruction!" Marcus snapped back as he fired a blast of flame at Yoshi, where a dozen dark vines emerged from the ground and blocked the fire, dissolving in the process as the possessed Rose Knight saw Marcus get to his feet and glare at her.
"My feelings for her are none of your concern. I am not afraid of fighting Yoshi if it means I can save her from you, now let her go or I'll make you pay for this." The Fire Knight declared, only to glare even more as he heard the Dark Lady chuckle lightly through Yoshi's form.
"Arrogant and prideful. Destroying you will be a pleasure." The Dark Lady remarked through Yoshi, before the possessed Rose Knight then shot towards Marcus once again, the two clashing their weapons as the Fire Knight did his best to avoid her quick and speedy strikes, hoping and praying that the other can find some way to break the Dark Lady's grip on Yoshi's mind.
As Marcus tried to get through to Yoshi, LordShoutmon kept his guard up as the possessed forms of both ShaolinArresterdramon and AncientMervamon circled around him like sharks about to strike at their prey.
"Guys, if you can hear me, I..." LordShoutmon started to say, the Digimon King hoping to reach his friends, but found he had to quickly move out of the way as AncientMervamon swung her flaming sword at him.
And continuing in the assault, ShaolinArresterdramon drove in with his staff, this causing LordShoutmon to groan from the strain he felt from his possessed friend's empowered strength opposed against him.
But before he could react to anything else, the fusion of Mikey and Shoutmon was then sent flying back, courtesy of a powerful kick to the stomach delivered by AncientMervamon, where LordShoutmon struggled to get back to his feet as he saw his possessed friends walking towards him.
"They cannot help you, your majesty, you are alone and will die at their hands." The Dark Lady said through both ShaolinArresterdramon and AncientMervamon, before the amazon Digimon brought out her serpent arms and sent out a blaze of dark purple flames at LordShoutmon, who quickly responded to protect himself.
"Courageous Spirit!" The fusion of Mikey and Shoutmon yelled in retaliation as his light aura construct formed around him, bringing its arms together as the dark flames struck, where LordShoutmon let out a pained groan from the strain.
Opening his eyes slightly, LordShoutmon then looked in shock as a black blur shot at him, with the possessed form of ShaolinArresterdramon not only breaking through the aura construct, but grabbing the fusion of Mikey and Shoutmon by the throat, pushing LordShoutmon out of the construct and slamming him into the ground below as the construct faded.
"Victory Slasher!" LordShoutmon then bellowed as he swung his blade as his possessed friend, where ShaolinArresterdramon quickly jumped back to avoid the strike, before the possessed fusion of Tagiru and Gumdramon was joined by AncientMervamon as the pair rushed to strike at LordShoutmon, who did his best to block and avoid the strikes from the controlled pair.
Groaning as several dark empowered strikes bombarded his being, LordShoutmon continued to stand his ground, hoping that the others were alright as he tried to figure out some way to save his friends from the Dark Lady's control.
Nearby, Sagemon spared a glance at LordShoutmon as he fought off ShaolinArresterdramon and AncientMervamon, wishing he could help his friend against their possessed allies, but knew he could not leave as the possessed form of BardMusimon slowly stalked his way towards him and ShogunOujamon, where the sage-like Appmon saw the internal struggle going on within the fusion of Eri and Dokamon.
The part of the warrior Appmon that Dokamon made up wanted to fight, to free his friend from their enemy's hold, while the part that Eri made up was afraid of harming the one closest to her, for him to suffer and feel pain because of her.
"Fight her, BardMusimon! I know you are stronger than this!" ShogunOujamon let out, the Eri side of the Appmon hoping to reach their close friend beneath the Dark Lady's hold.
"You give him too much credit, he cannot face me." The Dark Lady remarked through her puppet, before BardMusimon struck one of the strings on his guitar.
Upon doing so, the guitar let out a powerful sonic attack, causing both Sagemon and ShogunOujamon to fall to their knees and cry out in agony as they covered their ears, feeling pain and vertigo from the sonic attack, while both Dark Tribe and Earth Tribe Digimon in the area to cry out in pain, before they broke apart into Data particles.
Shaking in pain, Sagemon and ShogunOujamon removed their hands from their ears and opened their eyes just in time to see the possessed form of BardMusimon point his arm crossbow at them, the arrow igniting in dark purple flames as he fired it into the air, where it multiplied into hundreds of flaming arrows that gained dark dragon heads as they turned and headed down towards the two Appmon.
"Ultimate Search Strike!"
"Savage Slash!"
Working together, Sagemon's energy attacks strike many of the dark arrows, while ShogunOujamon used their blades to deflect and block as many of the arrows as possible.
Looking to see the possessed form of BardMusimon still standing in the same spot, Sagemon quickly rushed towards his friend, hoping to strike at his guitar at least to prevent him from using it again.
"Sage Cutter!" The fusion of Haru and Gatchmon declared as they rushed to strike at their possessed friend, ignoring ShogunOujamon's call to stop and not hurt BardMusimon, knowing that this was the only way to stop the Dark Lady's assault on them.
However, before Sagemon could strike, the possessed fusion of Astora and Musimon strike another cord on the guitar, sending out a powerful sonic wave that not only caused great pain to Sagemon, but sent the sage Appmon flying backwards, crashing into ShogunOujamon as the pair skidded and rolled around the ground in pain.
Slowly getting back up, Sagemon and ShogunOujamon looked to see their possessed friend heading towards them again, leaving both concerned as they tried to figure out how to save BardMusimon from the Dark Lady's hold, along with the rest of their possessed friends.
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As the rest of the heroes and heroines fought their possessed friends, TerraKhanmon led his forces against the invading Dark Digimon, the stone warrior cutting through a series of DeathKnightmon, feeling fatigue getting the better of him, before the sounds of loud roars caught his attention, causing him to look up and see a SkullDracomon and BloodDracomon heading towards him, ready to finish him off.
But before the pair of dark draconic Digimon could strike, both were struck by a combination of fire, water and light blasts, disorienting the Dark Digimon, before a pair of large boulders slammed into them, causing both Dark Tribe Mega Digimon to dissolve into Data particles.
Looking to see who came to his aid, TerraKhanmon saw MasterGeomon, Jeri and Novicmon rushing towards him, with the rock warrior looking with some curiosity to see the Digi-magic runes on the human girl's arms, before looking around as he took in the battle.
It was then that TerraKhanmon saw the other heroes and heroines fighting amongst themselves, where he was about to comment on their foolishness, before he noticed the dark changes within half of them, causing Titanusmon's champion to question. "What is happening?"
"The Dark Lady has possessed them." Novicmon informed in reply, adding as he looked to his friends battling their controlled allies. "They are trying to free them from her control while preventing them from causing too much harm to your forces."
"This is powerful dark magic, TerraKhanmon." MasterGeomon then said as he looked at the fighting heroes with concern, adding in shock and fear at the Dark Lady's power. "The Dark Lady is not here, physically, but her power not only reaches from the Dark Tribe's territory, it has allowed her to possess and control multiple beings at once, not even I can hold back a power like that!"
"We have to do something!" Jeri declared, hating the sight of her friends and loved ones fighting one another under the control of their enemy, where the brunette looked to the Earth Tribe's chief mystic and asked. "Isn't there anything we can do?!"
"The Dark Lady's spirit and power infects them like an affliction, there isn't anything I can do to help them." MasterGeomon replied with some sorrow, feeling frustrated that he could not do anything to help the heroes in their time of need.
Upon hearing the earth mystic's words, however, Jeri's eyes widened as an idea formed in her mind, where she quickly brought up her D-Bracer and began looking through the Digimon info within.
Novicmon watched on with confusion as he saw Jeri looking at the information on their friends, before she stopped at the info for Lightbearer Ophanimon, where the brunette looked through her friend's abilities, letting out a loud cheer as she saw what she was looking for, where Jeri then used her D-Bracer to try and contact the Digimon of Light.
It might be a long shot, but it was their only hope.
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Blocking another strike from the possessed form of MysticSakuyamon, Lightbearer Ophanimon let out a loud cry as she pushed her friend back, panting from exhaustion as the possessed mystic floated a few feet from her.
"Kari, Gatomon, can you hear me?" The Digimon of Light then heard Jeri through her D-Bracer, hearing the urgency in her voice.
"You can save them!" Jeri then declared, causing Lightbearer Ophanimon's eyes to widen in surprise as the brunette said. "Your Heaven's Light ability not only heals but removes afflictions, her possession is an affliction! You can save them!"
Nodding silently, Lightbearer Ophanimon knew what she needed to do, before starting her friends, and causing the possessed heroes and heroines to look confused as the Digimon of Light called out. "Get them together!"
Acting quickly, Lightbearer Ophanimon flew above MysticSakuyamon as he called out with might. "Holy Judgement!"
Firing the powerful blast of energy, the Digimon of Light watched as the possessed form of MysticSakuyamon, who blocked the blast with her staff as she was pushed down into the ground below.
Seeing what Lightbearer Ophanimon was doing, the other freed heroes moved quickly to strike at their possessed friends.
"Holy Strike!"
"Sacred Flame!"
"Hurricane Spiral!"
"Corona Dash!"
"Omni Force!"
"Wisdom's Gaze!"
"Heartbreaker Force!"
Working together, the other seven heroes and heroines struck at the possessed group, pushing them towards MysticSakuyamon, the possessed heroes and heroines tripping over one another as they collided with each other.
Flying closer to Lightbearer Ophanimon, MagnaVeedramon looked to his beloved as the Digimon of Light looked to him and said. "I need your strength."
Nodding in reply, MagnaVeedramon placed his left hand on her shoulder, allowing his energy to flow into Lightbearer Ophanimon's being, before the Digimon of Light held her hands out and down towards her possessed friends as she called out. "Heaven's Light!"
Casting forth the aura of light down at the group of possessed heroes and heroines, Lightbearer Ophanimon, MagnaVeedramon and the others watched as their friends convulsed in pain as dark aura's formed around them.
"Fight her, guys!" SacredPhoenixmon called out, praying that this would work.
"You can do it!" LordShoutmon then called out with his own faith, the Digimon King deeply believing in his friends.
"Get… get out of me…!" Samudramon then said through his pain, his real voice breaking through the Dark Lady's influence as CirmsonAldamon and BardMusimon then cried out together. "Let us go!"
At that moment, the possessed group threw their heads back as they let out great cries of pain, the dark auras turning back into shadows as they shot out of the group's bodies, with the former possessed returning to normal, much to the happiness and relief of the other heroes and heroines.
However, the joy and happiness then turned to shock and horror as the group noticed a small dome of dark energy at the center of the group, with Lightbearer Ophanimon and MagnaVeedramon realizing as they finished the healing ability that it was a corrupted version of MysticSakuyamon's Fox Seal, protecting the possessed mystic from Lightbearer Ophanimon's purifying light.
When the dark barrier dropped, the still possessed form of MysticSakuyamon then floated high into the air, the dark shadows that were released from the freed heroes and heroines shooting up after her as Samudramon and the others collapsed from the drain they felt, with all but Lightbearer Ophanimon and MagnaVeedramon coming to check on them as all the heroes and heroines looked to see the shadows entering and surrounding MysticSakuyamon's being, causing her appearance to change even more.
The mystic Digimon's robes vanished and her armour changed to a dark purple, with skeletal and flower designs forming on it, while her shoulder pads turned into dark purple human skulls, each with a pair of horns coming out of their eyes.
From her back, a large shadow flowed out, forming a cape of pure darkness, along with six spider-like legs, while her spear morphed into a staff that resembled a spinal cord with a humanoid skull, one with four horns and dark purple gems in the eye sockets.
Finally, the fox mask dissolved into shadows, revealing the covered dark purple eyes of MysticSakuyamon, while a crown of bone formed on her forehead, with four horns coming out around her head, all linking to a dark purple gem at the center.
"A worthy effort, but futile in the end." The Dark Lady said through her final puppet, with the possessed form of MysticSakuyamon looking down at the heroes and heroines as her eyes glowed brightly, sending out a shockwave of energy as the heroes and heroines shielded their eyes, while a legion of corrupted fox spirits began to swarm around the possessed mystic Digimon.
Gritting their teeth, feeling the dark power possessing MysticSakuyamon now stronger than before, the heroes and heroines knew that the battle had only just begun.
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Author's note: So most of the group is free, but MysticSakuyamon still remains under the Dark Lady's grasp. Will they be able to save her and stop the Dark Tribe's invasion? Stay tuned to find out as the battle continues.