Author's notes: After my account was deleted accidentally, I rewrote some parts of Dark Wing. There is another version, Dark Wing Type 2, that I'm writing that follows the anime more accurately. But for now, I'll focus on finishing the original Dark Wing since I want to wait and see what happens in the Japanese Tamer series. I'll upload the other chapters once I've finished double-checking them. Thanks for your patience.
Author's notes: After some consideration, I've decided to use the Japanese levels, since I'm already using the Japanese names, cards and attacks anyway. Therefore:
Digimon Levels:
Child : Rookie
Adult : Champion
Perfect : Ultimate
Ultimate: Mega
Author's notes: ********* means a scene change.
Digimon Tamers: Dark Wing
Vamdemon's madness takes hold! The showdown begins!
Disclaimer: Digimon Tamers and related elements are registered trademarks of Toei, Bandai and their respective owners and are used without permission.
The sun rose, sending rays of light through windows, signalling the start of a new day. In a modest two-story house, a young girl stirred...
Ruki woke up and blinked. She found herself lying on a couch in a room she didn't recognise, wrapped in a blanket. "What the?" The redhead sat up, looking around. "Where in the world..." Then her eyes fell on a picture on a television which showed a brown-haired, blue-eyed boy slightly older than her and two people she guessed were his parents smiling happily. "Oh..." she whispered, remembering. "This is Ryo's house."
"Ruki, you're awake?" Ruki turned to see Renamon standing beside her. "How did you sleep?"
"Fine, considering the circumstances..." Ruki looked around the living room, asking, "Any luck?"
Renamon shook her head. "None. There was a scent of some sort at the field, but I couldn't make it out."
"Aaaah!" moaned a voice from the stairs. As Ruki and Renamon looked up, Impmon bounded down, stretching his arms. "The beds here are really soft!" Then he noticed the two females staring at him. "What?"
"Ryo could be dead," Ruki growled. "And you're making yourself comfortable?"
"W-well..." Impmon said, trying to defend himself. "It's not like he's going to complain, right? I mean, we might be here for awhile, so we might as well make the best of it!"
"He does have a point," Renamon admitted reluctantly. "I doubt Ryo-san would object to our making ourselves comfortable in his home."
"I know," Ruki agreed. "But it feels wrong enjoying someone's hospitality when they might be hurt or worse..."
"Don't worry," Renamon said, reassuringly. "Ryo-san is a skilled Tamer. He'll be fine."
"I hope you're right..."
"Uh..." Impmon interrupted.
Ruki turned to the small demon Digimon. "What's wrong, Impmon?"
"I found this,' he tossed something at her, "upstairs."
Ruki caught it and gasped in spite of herself. "This is..."
Renamon stepped up and looked at the item, finishing Ruki's sentence. "Ryo-san's D-Ark."
**************
Ryo sneezed as he woke up, gently massaging his throbbing head. "Ah..." he winced as he rose to his feet. "Sleeping outdoors doesn't do much for a splitting headache..."
Cyberdramon growled. "Be thankful you can wake up at all." The black cyborg Digimon rose to his feet and stomped to where his partner leaned against a tree. "We should go."
"Yeah, you're right. I still have to get to a hospit...huh?"
Cyberdramon turned and cocked his head questioningly.
"I'm...okay!" Ryo said, feeling himself. He put his hand to his head wound, but he couldn't feel the wound anymore. In fact, the only thing that told him he had been badly wounded the night before were stinging cuts all over his body and a dull throbbing pain in his head. "But how?" the confused Tamer looked at his hands, a bewildered expression on his face. "I mean, I know all that time in the Digital World let me heal fast, but this is ridiculous!"
"Does it matter?" Cyberdramon growled. "Vamdemon and Devimon are still alive."
"You're right," Ryo agreed, running a hand through his spiky brown hair. "We've got more important things to worry about." He stretched, getting the kinks out of his neck. "Come on. The first thing we need to do is get home and pick up my D-Ark."
**************
Meanwhile, back at Shinjuku...
"Good morning, Matsuda-san!" Juri said cheerfully as she entered the Matsuda family bakery.
"Oh, hello, Juri-chan!" Takato's mother Mie replied. "You're here early!"
"I came to check on Takato-kun before going to school," the girl explained, holding up her book bag.
"Oh," Mie replied. "As a matter of fact..." She turned and called out. "Takato!"
"Coming!" The boy in question walked out from behind the counter, munching on a piece of bread. He still looked a bit ill, but much better than he did the day before. "Katou-san!"
"Morning, Takato-kun!" Juri said, greeting the boy with one of her best smiles. "It's nice to see you back on your feet!"
"I couldn't let him stay in bed any longer," Mie said, mock glaring at her son. "He was getting too comfortable."
"Mom!" Takato wailed. Mie laughed and waved him away.
"Come, come!" she said. "You might be too sick to go to school, but you can at least do some chores!"
"Uh...couldn't I walk Katou-san to school?" Takato begged.
"Only if you can actually GO to school," hs mother replied sternly. "Now why don't you go make your bed?"
"Yes, mom..." Takato offered a weary smile, letting Juri know resistance was futile. "See you later, Katou-san. Ja ne!"
Juri giggled at the expression on his face. "Okay, Takato-kun. I'll be back after school!" She waved and left the bakery.
Takato watched her leave, then noticed his mother staring at him, a smile on her face. "Okay, okay! I'm going!"
**************
Vamdemon stood before the Black Gate, four cards hovering before him as he channeled his Dark Power through them, giving them abilities he decided would be useful to him. He laughed to himself as he cards flew to his hand. "With these in my grasp, Devimon will have an unpleasant surprise when he returns..." Underneath his mask, his eyes glinted with evil intentions. "Now, to see to the Tamers..."
**************
"Ryo-san is still missing, huh?" Kenta said as he sat with Juri, Hirokazu and Lee during lunch.
Lee nodded. "That's what Ruki said when I tried calling her just now."
"I hope he's alright..." Juri thought out loud.
"Don't worry," Hirokazu assured her. "Ryo-san's the best Tamer there is! No way Vamdemon or Devimon could ever take him out!"
"Maybe," Lee said, "But I'm worried about why Vamdemon and Devimon went after Ryo like that. I mean, if they went after Ryo, who's to say they won't go after Shuichon or one of us next?"
The others became silent as the implications came through. "Lee-kun," Juri said softly. "Do you think they'd go after our families?"
"I wouldn't put it past them," Lee told her.
"They definitely seem like those kind of guys..." Kenta said, stroking Marine Angemon's head as the little Digimon hovered beside him.
"Yeah, well if they go anywhere near my family," Hirokazu said determinedly, "Guardromon and I'll kick their..."
Suddenly, a huge explosion sounded through the air, shaking the ground and knocking the Tamers off their feet. "What was that?" Kenta wondered as he got to his feet and offered Hirokazu a hand up.
"Something not good, that's for sure..." Lee mused as he narrowed his eyes, facing the direction of the sound. He ran towards the source, calling over his shoulder. "Terriermon and I'll go on ahead! The rest of you get Leomon and the others!"
"Marine Angemon and I will go too!" Kenta said, running after the olive-skinned boy. Meanwhile, Juri and Hirokazu headed for Guilmon's bunker.
**************
Ruki stood in front of the bloodied crater in the wall that encircled the field Ryo's knife had been found on. "..." She traced her hand against the blood trail, wondering what Ryo must have felt, having his head smashed into the wall like that.
"Ruki," Renamon said, appearing beside her. "We can't do anything more here."
"Yeah," Impmon agreed bounding over the wall. "If that Tamer guy was still around, we'd have found him by now!"
"Are you saying we should just give up?" Ruki said, turning and glaring at them.
"I'm just saying we should have faith in Ryo-san," Renamon said, trying to calm her down. "He'll be alright. Remember, he isn't alone."
"You're right," Ruki said, smiling softly. "There's no way that idiot would let anyone kill him so easily."
**************
Takato ran for Guilmon's bunker, panting more than usual. "Guilmon!"
The brown-haired boy smiled as the familiar form of his red dragon Digimon partner emerged from within the bunker, his bright golden eyes lighting up as he saw the boy coming. "Takato!" he called happily, running up and tackling him to the ground like an oversized dog. "Are you okay now?" he asked, getting off and peering at his partner quizzically.
"I'm still a little sick," Takato admitted. "But I'm better now."
"Takato!" Hirokazu and Juri appeared on the path, running up them while their partners came to meet them. "What are you doing here?"
"I heard the noise and came to get Guilmon in case you needed help," the goggle-wearing boy replied. "Do you know what's going on?"
"We don't know yet," Juri told him. "Lee-kun and Kenta-kun went ahead to see."
"Then we'd better go and help," Leomon said to his partner. "There's something in the air that's making me nervous..."
Tamer and Digimon alike nodded in agreement, and the group began making their way to the city.
****************
Vamdemon laughed as people scattered, stumbling over their feet as they made a panicked break for safety. "Ah, I've missed this part of being alive...so to speak." He waved a gloved hand and sent a woman running, screaming in terror as a flight of bats flew at her, squeaking and squealing as they mobbed her. As the helpless woman flailed her arms to try to get the bats away, Vamdemon laughed. "Who needs an army?" he laughed. "I'll cover the world in Darkness by myself!"
"Blazing Fire!" A green firebolt exploded among the bats above the woman, scattering them. Vamdemon moved his head to see Lee, Terriermon and Kenta running towards him.
"We should've waited for everyone else," Lee sighed as Terriermon leapt into battle while the woman ran for safety. Kenta nodded.
"We have to do something, right?"
"Aaaaaah!" Swiveling their heads, the two boys saw a group of children Shuichon's age huddling fearfully in the crossfire.
"That's all we need," Lee moaned. "Terriermon, you ready?"
"Okay!" As his human partner held up his D-Ark, the green-hued, dog-rabbit Child Digimon leapt forward, using his ears to glide towards Vamdemon.
"Card Slash!" Jen yelled, bringing his D-Ark up in a smooth martial arts move. "Matrix Evolution!"
"Matrix Evolution."
**************
"I've found something of interest," Zhuqiaomon reported to the other Holy Beasts. "A huge amount of Dark energy condensed into an area in the Real World."
"Do you think that is what the Messenger seeks?" Xuanwumon asked.
"I would not put it past him." The red-hued Holy Beast swiveled his head, fixing his eyes on the map of the Digital World they had placed at the centre of the chamber. "The source of the Dark energy does not seem to be in my sector though."
Qinglongmon's four eyes narrowed. "You mean it is coming from beyond our realms?"
"Possible," Zhuqiaomon replied. "But I can't be sure..."
"But what does the Messenger plan to do?" Baihumon wondered aloud. "What is he planning?"
**************
At that moment, Devimon flew through the sky, above the clouds to avoid prying eyes. At one point, he passed a airliner, but the only one who saw him was a young boy who started shrieking when the demonic Digimon passed his window and glared at him. Right now, however, he was deep in thought. "Vamdemon, you never change..." Suddenly diving down, he burst through the clouds and slowed to a halt above a beach. Looking around, he could make out fishing boats and huts nearby. "So..." he said to himself. "This is where that Dark energy is coming from?" His eyes scanned the beach. "There." Spreading his wings, the Adult to to the air, skimming over the blue ocean away from land.
**************
"Ruki, I think you should see this."
Ruki looked up from where she was sitting and arranging her cards. "What is it, Renamon?" she asked, annoyed that she had spent the day looking for Ryo without finding a single clue as to his fate.
"See for yourself." As Ruki stood and walked towards her, the fox Digimon nodded at Impmon, who clicked the television remote to raise the volume.
Ruki watched as a newscaster spoke into a camera, looking like she was in a helicopter. "- appeared not more than half an hour ago! Since then, there's been nothing but chaos as people try to escape-"
"Bloody Stream!" A bolt of crimson lightning passed the newscopter, barely missing them.
"Rapid Fire!" As the sound of an explosion reached them, the reporter continued.
"We've just recieved word the JSDF has dispatched forces to halt the monster's rampage. For now, we're pulling back before we get in the way."
As the reporter signed off, Impmon switched the television off. "Things just get better and better..." he sighed.
"The station?" Renamon asked Ruki.
"Let's go. We can find out what happened to Ryo from Vamdemon."
"You could just ask," said a familiar voice from the doorway. Ruki, Renamon and Impmon turned to see Ryo, bedraggled and scruffy-looking but still alive, standing at the door, a smile on his face. "Nice of you to come all the way here, Ruki."
Ruki smirked. "Someone had to help you," she replied, tossing his D-Ark at him. "Are you okay?" she asked, her voice taking on a concerned tone.
Ryo nodded, pocketing his D-Ark. "Yeah, I'm fine, surprisingly." He showed her the cuts on his arms. "I was worse off last night, but I'm full-healed now."
"How did that happen?"
The older Tamer shrugged. "What was the hurry?" he asked her.
"Vamdemon's appeared in Shinjuku," the redhead told him. "We're going to put a stop to him once and for all."
"I'll go with you," Ryo said. "Just give me a few minutes to change, get my cards and get Cyberdramon."
"Cyberdramon?" Ruki repeated.
"Yeah," Ryo replied as he started climbing the stairs to his room. "He evolved and chased Vamdemon and Devimon off. Otherwise..."
"Oh. Where is he now?"
"In the forest waiting for me to come back. He would've been too noticable."
Ruki was silent for a moment. "We'll meet you at the station," she said.
"Right." With that, Ruki, Renamon and Impmon left while Ryo dashed up the stairs.
**************
"Jen! Kenta!" Takato, Hirokazu and Juri ran up to them, their partners behind them.
"Takato!" Kenta greeted. "Feeling better?"
"Yeah," the brown-haired boy replied, holding up his gold and red D-Ark. "Let's do it!"
Rapidmon landed closeby, his armour singed from a near miss of Vamdemon's Bloody Stream. "I'm ready whenever you are!"
Jen nodded. "Okay! Takato!"
"Card Slash!" Bringing his D-Arki up, Takato willed the card in his hand into a Blue Card. "Matrix Evolution!"
"Matrix Evolution."
"Guilmon, evolve!" A light encased Guilmon in an egg of red glowing energy as he evolved into his Adult form. "Growmon!" Charging forward, the Demon Dragon felt another change as the Blue Card's power surged through him. "Growmon, evolve!" Light shone from his body and red metallic armour formed around Growmon's body as he increased in size. His arms became covered with bladed gauntlets and twin jets were visible on his folded wings. A mask of sorts formed around his face and he gave a mighty roar as the new arrival announced his name. "Megalo Growmon!"
"Leomon!" Juri said, taking out her D-Ark. Her partner stepped forward, drawing his sword before dashing towards Vamdemon.
"Guardromon!" Hirokazu said. The mechanical Digimon activated his jets and charged at the vampiric Perfect.
As the Digimon charged, Vamdemon smirked, drawing one of his four cards. "I have cards of my own, wretched children," he said, throwing the card up into the air. "Nightmare Soldiers!"
**************
Meanwhile, Ruki and the two Digimon waited impatiently at the train station. "Where is that guy?" the girl growled.
"He must be getting Cyberdramon," Renamon reasoned.
"Never liked that guy," Impmon muttered. "Nobody should be that eager to fight."
Renamon and Ruki both raised an eyebrow. "You're a fine one to talk," Ruki said.
Renamon allowed herself a slight smile. She opened her mouth to speak, but then whirled around, her fur bristling.
"Renamon?"
"We have company."
Ruki looked up to see Ice Devimon and Musyamon standing on the station's roof. The ice demon smiled. "Hello, Ruki."
Reviews, comments, suggestions and criticisms (constructive or otherwise) are welcome and can be sent to Withoutmorals@antisocial.com
Author's notes: After some consideration, I've decided to use the Japanese levels, since I'm already using the Japanese names, cards and attacks anyway. Therefore:
Digimon Levels:
Child : Rookie
Adult : Champion
Perfect : Ultimate
Ultimate: Mega
Author's notes: ********* means a scene change.
Digimon Tamers: Dark Wing
Vamdemon's madness takes hold! The showdown begins!
Disclaimer: Digimon Tamers and related elements are registered trademarks of Toei, Bandai and their respective owners and are used without permission.
The sun rose, sending rays of light through windows, signalling the start of a new day. In a modest two-story house, a young girl stirred...
Ruki woke up and blinked. She found herself lying on a couch in a room she didn't recognise, wrapped in a blanket. "What the?" The redhead sat up, looking around. "Where in the world..." Then her eyes fell on a picture on a television which showed a brown-haired, blue-eyed boy slightly older than her and two people she guessed were his parents smiling happily. "Oh..." she whispered, remembering. "This is Ryo's house."
"Ruki, you're awake?" Ruki turned to see Renamon standing beside her. "How did you sleep?"
"Fine, considering the circumstances..." Ruki looked around the living room, asking, "Any luck?"
Renamon shook her head. "None. There was a scent of some sort at the field, but I couldn't make it out."
"Aaaah!" moaned a voice from the stairs. As Ruki and Renamon looked up, Impmon bounded down, stretching his arms. "The beds here are really soft!" Then he noticed the two females staring at him. "What?"
"Ryo could be dead," Ruki growled. "And you're making yourself comfortable?"
"W-well..." Impmon said, trying to defend himself. "It's not like he's going to complain, right? I mean, we might be here for awhile, so we might as well make the best of it!"
"He does have a point," Renamon admitted reluctantly. "I doubt Ryo-san would object to our making ourselves comfortable in his home."
"I know," Ruki agreed. "But it feels wrong enjoying someone's hospitality when they might be hurt or worse..."
"Don't worry," Renamon said, reassuringly. "Ryo-san is a skilled Tamer. He'll be fine."
"I hope you're right..."
"Uh..." Impmon interrupted.
Ruki turned to the small demon Digimon. "What's wrong, Impmon?"
"I found this,' he tossed something at her, "upstairs."
Ruki caught it and gasped in spite of herself. "This is..."
Renamon stepped up and looked at the item, finishing Ruki's sentence. "Ryo-san's D-Ark."
**************
Ryo sneezed as he woke up, gently massaging his throbbing head. "Ah..." he winced as he rose to his feet. "Sleeping outdoors doesn't do much for a splitting headache..."
Cyberdramon growled. "Be thankful you can wake up at all." The black cyborg Digimon rose to his feet and stomped to where his partner leaned against a tree. "We should go."
"Yeah, you're right. I still have to get to a hospit...huh?"
Cyberdramon turned and cocked his head questioningly.
"I'm...okay!" Ryo said, feeling himself. He put his hand to his head wound, but he couldn't feel the wound anymore. In fact, the only thing that told him he had been badly wounded the night before were stinging cuts all over his body and a dull throbbing pain in his head. "But how?" the confused Tamer looked at his hands, a bewildered expression on his face. "I mean, I know all that time in the Digital World let me heal fast, but this is ridiculous!"
"Does it matter?" Cyberdramon growled. "Vamdemon and Devimon are still alive."
"You're right," Ryo agreed, running a hand through his spiky brown hair. "We've got more important things to worry about." He stretched, getting the kinks out of his neck. "Come on. The first thing we need to do is get home and pick up my D-Ark."
**************
Meanwhile, back at Shinjuku...
"Good morning, Matsuda-san!" Juri said cheerfully as she entered the Matsuda family bakery.
"Oh, hello, Juri-chan!" Takato's mother Mie replied. "You're here early!"
"I came to check on Takato-kun before going to school," the girl explained, holding up her book bag.
"Oh," Mie replied. "As a matter of fact..." She turned and called out. "Takato!"
"Coming!" The boy in question walked out from behind the counter, munching on a piece of bread. He still looked a bit ill, but much better than he did the day before. "Katou-san!"
"Morning, Takato-kun!" Juri said, greeting the boy with one of her best smiles. "It's nice to see you back on your feet!"
"I couldn't let him stay in bed any longer," Mie said, mock glaring at her son. "He was getting too comfortable."
"Mom!" Takato wailed. Mie laughed and waved him away.
"Come, come!" she said. "You might be too sick to go to school, but you can at least do some chores!"
"Uh...couldn't I walk Katou-san to school?" Takato begged.
"Only if you can actually GO to school," hs mother replied sternly. "Now why don't you go make your bed?"
"Yes, mom..." Takato offered a weary smile, letting Juri know resistance was futile. "See you later, Katou-san. Ja ne!"
Juri giggled at the expression on his face. "Okay, Takato-kun. I'll be back after school!" She waved and left the bakery.
Takato watched her leave, then noticed his mother staring at him, a smile on her face. "Okay, okay! I'm going!"
**************
Vamdemon stood before the Black Gate, four cards hovering before him as he channeled his Dark Power through them, giving them abilities he decided would be useful to him. He laughed to himself as he cards flew to his hand. "With these in my grasp, Devimon will have an unpleasant surprise when he returns..." Underneath his mask, his eyes glinted with evil intentions. "Now, to see to the Tamers..."
**************
"Ryo-san is still missing, huh?" Kenta said as he sat with Juri, Hirokazu and Lee during lunch.
Lee nodded. "That's what Ruki said when I tried calling her just now."
"I hope he's alright..." Juri thought out loud.
"Don't worry," Hirokazu assured her. "Ryo-san's the best Tamer there is! No way Vamdemon or Devimon could ever take him out!"
"Maybe," Lee said, "But I'm worried about why Vamdemon and Devimon went after Ryo like that. I mean, if they went after Ryo, who's to say they won't go after Shuichon or one of us next?"
The others became silent as the implications came through. "Lee-kun," Juri said softly. "Do you think they'd go after our families?"
"I wouldn't put it past them," Lee told her.
"They definitely seem like those kind of guys..." Kenta said, stroking Marine Angemon's head as the little Digimon hovered beside him.
"Yeah, well if they go anywhere near my family," Hirokazu said determinedly, "Guardromon and I'll kick their..."
Suddenly, a huge explosion sounded through the air, shaking the ground and knocking the Tamers off their feet. "What was that?" Kenta wondered as he got to his feet and offered Hirokazu a hand up.
"Something not good, that's for sure..." Lee mused as he narrowed his eyes, facing the direction of the sound. He ran towards the source, calling over his shoulder. "Terriermon and I'll go on ahead! The rest of you get Leomon and the others!"
"Marine Angemon and I will go too!" Kenta said, running after the olive-skinned boy. Meanwhile, Juri and Hirokazu headed for Guilmon's bunker.
**************
Ruki stood in front of the bloodied crater in the wall that encircled the field Ryo's knife had been found on. "..." She traced her hand against the blood trail, wondering what Ryo must have felt, having his head smashed into the wall like that.
"Ruki," Renamon said, appearing beside her. "We can't do anything more here."
"Yeah," Impmon agreed bounding over the wall. "If that Tamer guy was still around, we'd have found him by now!"
"Are you saying we should just give up?" Ruki said, turning and glaring at them.
"I'm just saying we should have faith in Ryo-san," Renamon said, trying to calm her down. "He'll be alright. Remember, he isn't alone."
"You're right," Ruki said, smiling softly. "There's no way that idiot would let anyone kill him so easily."
**************
Takato ran for Guilmon's bunker, panting more than usual. "Guilmon!"
The brown-haired boy smiled as the familiar form of his red dragon Digimon partner emerged from within the bunker, his bright golden eyes lighting up as he saw the boy coming. "Takato!" he called happily, running up and tackling him to the ground like an oversized dog. "Are you okay now?" he asked, getting off and peering at his partner quizzically.
"I'm still a little sick," Takato admitted. "But I'm better now."
"Takato!" Hirokazu and Juri appeared on the path, running up them while their partners came to meet them. "What are you doing here?"
"I heard the noise and came to get Guilmon in case you needed help," the goggle-wearing boy replied. "Do you know what's going on?"
"We don't know yet," Juri told him. "Lee-kun and Kenta-kun went ahead to see."
"Then we'd better go and help," Leomon said to his partner. "There's something in the air that's making me nervous..."
Tamer and Digimon alike nodded in agreement, and the group began making their way to the city.
****************
Vamdemon laughed as people scattered, stumbling over their feet as they made a panicked break for safety. "Ah, I've missed this part of being alive...so to speak." He waved a gloved hand and sent a woman running, screaming in terror as a flight of bats flew at her, squeaking and squealing as they mobbed her. As the helpless woman flailed her arms to try to get the bats away, Vamdemon laughed. "Who needs an army?" he laughed. "I'll cover the world in Darkness by myself!"
"Blazing Fire!" A green firebolt exploded among the bats above the woman, scattering them. Vamdemon moved his head to see Lee, Terriermon and Kenta running towards him.
"We should've waited for everyone else," Lee sighed as Terriermon leapt into battle while the woman ran for safety. Kenta nodded.
"We have to do something, right?"
"Aaaaaah!" Swiveling their heads, the two boys saw a group of children Shuichon's age huddling fearfully in the crossfire.
"That's all we need," Lee moaned. "Terriermon, you ready?"
"Okay!" As his human partner held up his D-Ark, the green-hued, dog-rabbit Child Digimon leapt forward, using his ears to glide towards Vamdemon.
"Card Slash!" Jen yelled, bringing his D-Ark up in a smooth martial arts move. "Matrix Evolution!"
"Matrix Evolution."
**************
"I've found something of interest," Zhuqiaomon reported to the other Holy Beasts. "A huge amount of Dark energy condensed into an area in the Real World."
"Do you think that is what the Messenger seeks?" Xuanwumon asked.
"I would not put it past him." The red-hued Holy Beast swiveled his head, fixing his eyes on the map of the Digital World they had placed at the centre of the chamber. "The source of the Dark energy does not seem to be in my sector though."
Qinglongmon's four eyes narrowed. "You mean it is coming from beyond our realms?"
"Possible," Zhuqiaomon replied. "But I can't be sure..."
"But what does the Messenger plan to do?" Baihumon wondered aloud. "What is he planning?"
**************
At that moment, Devimon flew through the sky, above the clouds to avoid prying eyes. At one point, he passed a airliner, but the only one who saw him was a young boy who started shrieking when the demonic Digimon passed his window and glared at him. Right now, however, he was deep in thought. "Vamdemon, you never change..." Suddenly diving down, he burst through the clouds and slowed to a halt above a beach. Looking around, he could make out fishing boats and huts nearby. "So..." he said to himself. "This is where that Dark energy is coming from?" His eyes scanned the beach. "There." Spreading his wings, the Adult to to the air, skimming over the blue ocean away from land.
**************
"Ruki, I think you should see this."
Ruki looked up from where she was sitting and arranging her cards. "What is it, Renamon?" she asked, annoyed that she had spent the day looking for Ryo without finding a single clue as to his fate.
"See for yourself." As Ruki stood and walked towards her, the fox Digimon nodded at Impmon, who clicked the television remote to raise the volume.
Ruki watched as a newscaster spoke into a camera, looking like she was in a helicopter. "- appeared not more than half an hour ago! Since then, there's been nothing but chaos as people try to escape-"
"Bloody Stream!" A bolt of crimson lightning passed the newscopter, barely missing them.
"Rapid Fire!" As the sound of an explosion reached them, the reporter continued.
"We've just recieved word the JSDF has dispatched forces to halt the monster's rampage. For now, we're pulling back before we get in the way."
As the reporter signed off, Impmon switched the television off. "Things just get better and better..." he sighed.
"The station?" Renamon asked Ruki.
"Let's go. We can find out what happened to Ryo from Vamdemon."
"You could just ask," said a familiar voice from the doorway. Ruki, Renamon and Impmon turned to see Ryo, bedraggled and scruffy-looking but still alive, standing at the door, a smile on his face. "Nice of you to come all the way here, Ruki."
Ruki smirked. "Someone had to help you," she replied, tossing his D-Ark at him. "Are you okay?" she asked, her voice taking on a concerned tone.
Ryo nodded, pocketing his D-Ark. "Yeah, I'm fine, surprisingly." He showed her the cuts on his arms. "I was worse off last night, but I'm full-healed now."
"How did that happen?"
The older Tamer shrugged. "What was the hurry?" he asked her.
"Vamdemon's appeared in Shinjuku," the redhead told him. "We're going to put a stop to him once and for all."
"I'll go with you," Ryo said. "Just give me a few minutes to change, get my cards and get Cyberdramon."
"Cyberdramon?" Ruki repeated.
"Yeah," Ryo replied as he started climbing the stairs to his room. "He evolved and chased Vamdemon and Devimon off. Otherwise..."
"Oh. Where is he now?"
"In the forest waiting for me to come back. He would've been too noticable."
Ruki was silent for a moment. "We'll meet you at the station," she said.
"Right." With that, Ruki, Renamon and Impmon left while Ryo dashed up the stairs.
**************
"Jen! Kenta!" Takato, Hirokazu and Juri ran up to them, their partners behind them.
"Takato!" Kenta greeted. "Feeling better?"
"Yeah," the brown-haired boy replied, holding up his gold and red D-Ark. "Let's do it!"
Rapidmon landed closeby, his armour singed from a near miss of Vamdemon's Bloody Stream. "I'm ready whenever you are!"
Jen nodded. "Okay! Takato!"
"Card Slash!" Bringing his D-Arki up, Takato willed the card in his hand into a Blue Card. "Matrix Evolution!"
"Matrix Evolution."
"Guilmon, evolve!" A light encased Guilmon in an egg of red glowing energy as he evolved into his Adult form. "Growmon!" Charging forward, the Demon Dragon felt another change as the Blue Card's power surged through him. "Growmon, evolve!" Light shone from his body and red metallic armour formed around Growmon's body as he increased in size. His arms became covered with bladed gauntlets and twin jets were visible on his folded wings. A mask of sorts formed around his face and he gave a mighty roar as the new arrival announced his name. "Megalo Growmon!"
"Leomon!" Juri said, taking out her D-Ark. Her partner stepped forward, drawing his sword before dashing towards Vamdemon.
"Guardromon!" Hirokazu said. The mechanical Digimon activated his jets and charged at the vampiric Perfect.
As the Digimon charged, Vamdemon smirked, drawing one of his four cards. "I have cards of my own, wretched children," he said, throwing the card up into the air. "Nightmare Soldiers!"
**************
Meanwhile, Ruki and the two Digimon waited impatiently at the train station. "Where is that guy?" the girl growled.
"He must be getting Cyberdramon," Renamon reasoned.
"Never liked that guy," Impmon muttered. "Nobody should be that eager to fight."
Renamon and Ruki both raised an eyebrow. "You're a fine one to talk," Ruki said.
Renamon allowed herself a slight smile. She opened her mouth to speak, but then whirled around, her fur bristling.
"Renamon?"
"We have company."
Ruki looked up to see Ice Devimon and Musyamon standing on the station's roof. The ice demon smiled. "Hello, Ruki."
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