"Where do you think we should go ask after this?" Gayathri inquired. "Nobody we asked seems to know where's the nearest abandoned warehouse."
"Maybe we're doing it wrong." Manny rubbed his chin as he thought back about the last five persons they had asked. "We've asked a young man, a girl, a mother with three boisterous kids and a crying baby, a gruff man who…could use a bit of mouth-freshener and deodorant, and a man who's new in town. I think maybe we should look for someone older who's stayed here long enough."
"Good idea," Gayathri said. Her eyes caught a shop. "I'm rather thirsty. Maybe we can go to that shop and get some drinks…then we can ask the shopkeeper. The shop looks rather old; I bet the owner must be just as ancient." She grinned at the joke.
Manny smiled back. "I could use a cold drink myself."
"Manny and Gayathri go on a date…" Penguinmon's voice blared from Manny's Juara Digivice. Instantly, the two DigiWira halted and Manny's cheeks colored. "Hey Floramon, continue the song!"
"That's not how the song goes, and you sure don't have the right voice to sing!" Floramon said snobbishly. "The song's like this…Manny and Gayathri sit under a tree…"
"Oh, whatever! I know the lyrics after that! Ok…they sit under the tree. K-I-S--"
"Alright, stop right there you two!" Gayathri hissed, blushing amidst the two Digimon's singing. The two Digimon ignored her and continued their songs. It was lucky that nobody was around them, or they'd wonder why there were four voices coming from two people.
"First comes love…then comes marriage…" Floramon sang.
"…and then the baby in the carriage!" Penguinmon finished and laughed heartily.
"Penguinmon…" Manny said with an exasperated tone. Suddenly, a glint crossed his eyes as he grinned at Gayathri, indicating her to play along. "Penguinmon, how'd you like to be the main dish for dinner tonight?" he asked with a carefully tailored low-tone voice.
If it weren't for the fact that he was smiling, and if it weren't for the fact that she was facing him now, Gayathri would have thought that the evil Blue ShadoWira had returned. It surprised her, actually, as Manny rarely, if never, attempted a joke – which made his mock threat towards Penguinmon even funnier. She had to conceal her mouth to stop laughing, their current predicament momentarily forgotten.
Penguinmon's laughter died down instantly. It was clear that he too hadn't seen that coming. A brief second passed in stunned silence before the Rookie sputtered out, "Not…not funny!!"
"Aww, why not? I heard Manny's a decent cook. Oh, while you're at it, maybe you can make side-dish out of Floramon," Gayathri said with a satisfied tone, smiling back at Manny.
"…shutting up now," Floramon muttered grudgingly.
"You guys have no sense of humor," Gayathri giggled.
"Humph! Says you. I only laugh at funny thing!" Penguinmon retorted. "Do you know how boring it is in this pocket dimension?"
"I don't hear Patamon and Agumon complaining," Manny pointed out.
"That's because they're scared that JD would strangle them to deletion if they spoke up…" Penguinmon muttered.
Manny and Gayathri chuckled at that remark. "You're lucky he's not here to hear that. Somehow I don't think he'd appreciate you speaking about him like that," Manny said.
"Oh, I don't know. JD has quite a sense of humor," Gayathri said. "Maybe he'll use his fire power to roast you alive."
"Humph. Aren't you the comedian?" Penguinmon then snorted and didn't say a word.
Manny and Gayathri then entered a shop to buy some drinks, and some snacks for their disgruntled partners. After paying the shopkeeper – a wizened woman with white hair pulled back in a large bun who was manning the counter – Manny and Gayathri exchanged glances and Gayathri gave a small nod.
"Excuse me, but do you know of any abandoned warehouse around here?" Manny asked politely.
The old lady peered through her glasses suspiciously at the two DigiWira teens. Her gaze was shifted back and forth between them and the wrinkles on her forehead creased deeper. She glanced outside and saw that it was getting dark, before looking at the two teens again. All of a sudden she looked angry.
"Do you think that I don't know what you two are up to? A boy and a girl going to an abandoned warehouse, just the two of you, at this time of day?!" she said furiously. Her wrinkled face reddened and her eyes shot up wide, glaring at the teens. She stood up and pointed them the door. "I certainly do not condone of this kind of behavior! It's inappropriate! Get out from my shop, and go home right now!"
The DigiWira were stunned at the woman's outburst. What could have set off this woman's temper? Seeing the woman reaching for a feather duster, the two of them immediately exited the shop. Manny was bewildered while Gayathri looked furious herself.
"How rude of her! And you were asking so politely for the direction!" Gayathri seethed. "What nerve."
"Oh my God…" Manny said, finally realizing what the woman had meant. "I think we do look suspicious, asking around for an abandoned warehouse when it's nearing dusk and there are only two of us…" His face reddened with embarrassment. "We've given her the wrong impression. No wonder she said that it's inappropriate…she must have thought that we're going…uh…" He stopped there; face now so red that it would put tomatoes to shame.
Gayathri thought about it, gasped and blushed as well. "But…she couldn't…I mean…we're just…oh never mind…"
The two of them stood there by the roadside, transfixed and were avoiding each other's eyes.
"Oh, this is silly," Gayathri finally said. "We know that we're not doing anything wrong or inappropriate. That lady can assume whatever she wants. She doesn't know who we are, she knows nothing! Humph!" To emphasize her annoyance of the shopkeeper's assumption, she turned back and stuck out her tongue.
Seeing that brought a smile back on Manny's face as his blush subsided. "I sure hope Adam and JD are luckier than we are."
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"Excuse me." Adam smiled courteously upon greeting an elderly man who was sitting at a roadside stall, reading a newspaper.
The fifty-something-year-old man looked up from his newspaper and took in the features of the young boy standing in front of him, and a taller older boy with blonde hair standing several meters behind him. "Yes?" he inquired.
"This might sound rather odd…but do you know if there's an abandoned warehouse around here?" Adam hoped that his question didn't sound too odd. After all, what kid would be looking for an abandoned warehouse? He looked back at JD, who gave him an encouraging faint smile – he'd refused straight-out to be the one asking and Adam saw his point. A Caucasian-looking kid asking about abandoned warehouses would be even more suspicious than local kids asking about them. Thus, when the team split into two to cover more ground, Adam was the one who had been asking around for any warehouse as told by Youkomon, while JD would hang around in the background. JD would also be the one who would contact Manny and Gayathri in order to get the updates on their part.
So far, for the past one hour they had spent asking around, nobody was able to give them any helpful answer. They had gotten locations of several warehouses, but none were abandoned.
"Abandoned warehouse?" The man observed Adam more keenly after pushing his glass up. He put his newspaper on the table. "Why would you be looking for an abandoned warehouse, son?"
Adam inhaled and remembered the excuse JD had supplied to him. He had been repeating it five times out of eight people they had managed to ask. "We're playing scavenger hunting and one of the tasks is to get to an abandoned warehouse and retrieve an item there. Unfortunately, I'm new at school and the club who's sponsoring the scavenger hunt has forgotten to supply the direction to the abandoned warehouse because supposedly, everyone knows where it is. And my friend over there is a foreign exchange student – he's even more unfamiliar to this town than I am."
The man nodded, but still had the puzzled look on his face. "Isn't it a bit late for you to still playing games? It's almost dark."
"We're way behind schedule because both of us aren't that familiar with the town yet," Adam said with a smile. "Luckily the main objective of this game is to finish it, not winning it."
"Oh, I see." The man nodded, seemingly satisfied with Adam's reasoning. He thought for a brief fraction of a minute before nodding again with a smile. "As a matter of fact, I do know of one abandoned warehouse not too far from here. Do you want me to say the location, or if you have a pen and paper I can draw out a rough map for you to get there."
"That'll be great. Thank you," Adam said and took out a small notepad and a pen from his jeans pocket. It was lucky that Manny had thought of getting those before they split up. Adam gave the notepad and the pen to the man and watched keenly as the man sketched a crude map.
"As far as I know, there's only one abandoned warehouse around here. And I've stayed here for nearly twenty years now. It used to be a warehouse for a furniture company back in mid-90s, but during the economy downfall times the company was forced to close down. The warehouse has been abandoned since. It's located at the outskirts of the town, over Bukit Dahlia." The man looked up from the notebook and beckoned Adam to come closer to him. "See that Petronas gas station over there? What you should do is to turn right after passing the gas station, and walk straight until you reach a junction. If you're walking there it'll take you about fifteen to twenty minutes." As he told that he drew out arrows on the diagram. "It's a T-junction and you should go straight. From there you can see some rows of shops, several office buildings, a couple of restaurants and a mosque. While walking, keep your eyes straight in front of you and you'll soon see some undeveloped grounds stretching towards some hills after passing by the mosque. Those hills are Bukit Dahlia. To get there you'll need probably another thirty minutes or so. When you reach the hill, walk up there until you reach a paved clearing and you'll find the warehouse."
'It does sound like a good place to hold someone hostage,' Adam thought. "Thank you very much, mister. You've been a really big help to us," Adam said smilingly as he took the notepad.
"You're most welcome, son." The man returned Adam's smile and adjusted the thick glasses on his nose. "Good luck with that game of yours. Be careful, too. I don't understand why your club needs you two to go there – it's a very secluded area and who knows who hang around there. And by the time you two arrive there it will be around eight. You should take a taxi if you have some cash with you."
Adam nodded. "Maybe we should. Thanks again. Goodbye, mister." He walked towards JD with an eager smile.
"Looks like you've got it." JD jerked his eyebrows up once to emphasize his question. He offered the Coca-Cola he was holding towards Adam, who took it without much thought and drank from it before handing it back to him.
"Not sure whether it's the warehouse we're looking for, but the man said that it's the only abandoned warehouse around here, so I think we should check it out." Adam showed his cousin the rough map. "But we should get a taxi…it's getting real late." He looked up at the darkening sky with a grimace.
JD nodded and took out Adam's cell phone, which he'd been holding with him while Adam asked around for locations. "Let me call Manny and Gayathri and have them meet us here. Then we can hail a cab and go there together."
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WIRA DIGITAL
Chapter 40 – DigiWira in Distress, Part III
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"This is it." Adam looked around the dark vacant surrounding. A kilometer behind them was the mosque where the man had told him, and way further the mosque was the shops. Where the four of them were at right at that moment was at the roadside of a very empty road. The four DigiWira looked at the lightless Bukit Dahlia, with aid only by the moon. "It looks kinda creepy."
"Don't be such a baby." JD stepped by his cousin and squint his blue-green eyes to get a clearer look at the hill. It was a rather large, somewhat flat hill. He could only see trees from where they were standing. And although he wasn't looking at Adam, he knew that his cousin was glaring at him due to the comment, but chose to ignore it. "I don't see any warehouse. Trees are rather thick though, you could probably hide several dead elephants inside and still people won't notice."
Manny took out his Juara Digivice and activated the digital map. The four DigiWira held their breaths when they saw that they were close to Liu Ying's Digivice signal. The scanning scale was the most narrowed down scale so they knew that Liu Ying couldn't be that far off. The warehouse inside the hill would be the one where the kidnappers were holding her.
"Think we should call the police?" Gayathri fidgeted, looking around them. Nobody was around – the area was deserted.
"Nah. What for? We can handle this," JD said confidently. "Those kidnappers won't stand a chance against the four of us."
"But remember, Youkomon told us that one of the Darkshadow Brethren generals is waiting for us," Manny cautioned. "I still don't understand how the kidnappers manage to work together with the Darkshadow Brethren."
"Maybe they are under a spell like you guys," Gayathri suggested, and squirmed upon seeing that both Manny and JD tensed at the comment. "Sorry…I was just stating a fact."
"It's…alright." Manny shook his head. "And you might be right, Gayathri."
JD cracked his knuckles and gave a low growl. "Well, spell or no spell, that's no reason to…" His words died down when his gaze fell on his cousin, and he was reminded once again of the ugly fact that he had kidnapped Adam once while under Karatenmon's spell. "I mean…we still have to save Liu Ying, so let's get moving."
"Do you think we should Digital Access before going there?" Gayathri asked.
"Not here. We might be seen." Adam gestured towards the hill. "We'll Digital Access there. The trees are thick enough to provide cover."
It took the DigiWira ten minutes to reach the foot of the hill and they followed a narrow, somewhat steep, paved road up. For a while, they walked in silent anticipation, not knowing what to expect. All the while, Manny had the holographic map displayed and they saw that gradually the four dots were getting closer and closer to the single yellow dot. JD, being the eldest and the largest of all, led the walk and the other younger DigiWira suddenly bumped onto the blonde's back when he suddenly halted.
"Look." JD pointed forward. Several meters in front of them were a closed rusty gate with wire fences. The road widened behind the gate into a paved clearing and an old-looking warehouse stood there silently, dark and mysterious under the pale moonlight. Details of the warehouse couldn't be seen as shadows loomed from the bare stone prominence set right behind it. Large piles of moldy broken furniture could be seen at the corner of the gate. A small truck with flat tyres and rusty paint was parked by the furniture piles, obviously abandoned for years.
"It seems deserted." Adam walked past JD to try opening the gate. He pushed the gate and it moved with a loud creak. "It's unlocked…how odd."
"You think they're waiting for us?" Gayathri asked nervously. "This might be a trap."
"If it's so, then we better Digital Access." JD took out his Digivice and looked at Adam. "Do the honor, Adam."
The DigiWira leader nodded and together they raised their Digivices, and were about to press the buttons which would release their partners, before a piercing sound came from out of nowhere and four thin lasers shot towards their Digivice, forcing the DigiWira to let them go. Alarmed, they turned up and saw two Duskmon standing on top of the stone prominence behind the warehouse, eyes shining red with deadly force.
"I'll take your Digivices, kiddies." A sly voice appeared from the shadowed part of the warehouse. The DigiWira turned sideways and saw a black-haired man wearing a black tank top and dirty black jeans, with tattooed arms and his right shoulder bandaged with bloodstained cloth. The man looked at them with a scowling and sneering face. The DigiWira were about to bend down to retrieve their Digivices when the sound of a clicking gun made them freeze. "Ah, ah, ah…don't move a muscle, DigiWira. Or you'll taste the gun. Put up your hands where I can see them."
Hesitantly, the DigiWira did as they were told and watched as the man with the gun sauntered towards them. The Duskmon on the hill leaped down and landed silently behind the man's back.
"Who are you?" JD barked, glaring at the man.
The man chuckled as he halted, staring at the tallest DigiWira who looked as tall as him at six feet height. "Riley Lau, and I'm the one who kidnapped your dear friend Miss Chang." Sneering, Riley pointed his gun towards JD. The warehouse door sprang open and two men walked out from it. One was a bald guy with a portly beer-belly, wearing a dirty white singlet and dark pants. The other man was with curly short hair dyed bright orange, wearing a green T-shirt and denim jeans. All of them looked equally as menacing as Riley. "Pick up those flashy little trinkets, boys," he instructed the two men.
"Guys!!" A familiar cry was heard from inside the warehouse. The DigiWira couldn't see past the door where it was so dark, but they recognized the voice anywhere.
"Liu Ying!!" Gayathri gasped. "She's in there."
"Well, duh," Riley snorted. "Where else would she be? You've seen her Digivice signal from your own Digivices."
The DigiWira were bewildered and stared at Riley. How did he seem to know a lot about them?
They watched as the two men were about to collect their Digivices, before JD yelled, "Adam, stop them!"
"Juara Digivices!" Adam immediately vanished in swirls of bright light orbs, and the Digivices disappeared along with him. He reappeared again at a distance with the Digivices in his hand. "I got them!" Adam fumbled with the four Digivices and pressed on the buttons. "Patamon, Access! Penguinmon, Access! Agumon, Access! Floramon, Access!"
The four Rookie Digimon shot out from the Juara Digivices and stood in front of Adam protectively. Their eyes widened upon seeing their partners in danger and their bodies became rigid. Their arms raised up, ready to attack as their eyes were affixed on the man who was threatening their DigiWira partners.
"I warned you," Riley said with a bored tone, and aimed his gun towards the nearest target – JD. A thunderous bang was heard following a bright spark of light, causing Gayathri to shriek in terror. Her scream was amplified and pink spiraling energy waves blasted towards Riley, throwing him off his feet. "What the hell…" he snarled and quickly got back up on his feet. He anticipated seeing one DigiWira dead from the gunshot, but what he saw caused him to swear loudly in disbelief.
JD, who had closed his eyes in reflex upon seeing Riley pointing the gun at him, opened his eyes and saw the gun bullet hovering just a few meters in front of him. The bullet was letting out wisp of gas and a very faint sound indicating that it was still moving, albeit so slowly, as if there was a force was slowing it down from reaching its target. For a moment, he froze wide-eyed before his ears caught a pained grunt coming from inside as the bullet pushed itself towards him, now almost reaching his sweaty forehead. 'Liu Ying…?'
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Inside, Liu Ying was watching the whole thing and upon seeing Riley pointing the gun at JD she'd quickly summoned her telekinetic power. She didn't have time to think – she only willed her power and hoped that she was quick enough. Now, she was gritting her teeth hard and sweat poured down her face profusely as she used all her energy to attempt pushing the bullet away. It was an arduous task for a speeding bullet was nearly unstoppable – and Liu Ying knew she wouldn't be able to stop the bullet from hitting its target soon. Her power was only slowing the bullet down. Her temples throbbed painfully and she felt that if she gritted her teeth harder they would chip off each other due to the force. 'I can't…hold…on…'
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"Josh!!" Adam cried out quickly and JD was teleported out of the way just before the bullet regained its momentum – barely missing its intended target and hit a tree instead. JD reappeared beside Adam and soon was followed by Manny and Gayathri, whom Adam had also teleported, taking advantage of the sudden chaos. Everything had happened within the span of less than a minute. Turning around, Adam saw his usually cocky cousin visibly pale under the moonlight. The blonde was visibly shaking all over - a sight which caused Adam to frown with worry. "You alright, Josh?"
JD nodded wordlessly, trying hard not to show how shaken he had been due to the close brush to death he had just experienced. He had faced more dangers before – Karatenmon, Dragomon, the Puaka Generals – a bunch of crooks shouldn't scare him. But then again, the gunshot was real. If it weren't for Adam's and Liu Ying's interferences, the bullet would shot through his head. He would be dead. Thinking about that made him shiver; his knees buckled and he would have fall onto the tarred ground if his cousin wasn't quick enough to support him.
"T-thanks, Adam…" He smiled weakly. "I owe you one."
Adam shook his head. "You don't owe me anything. We're family, and we're friends." He was very relieved that his cousin was alright, but couldn't suppress the strained groan from escaping his mouth as his own knees buckled – JD was bigger than him, and thus heavier. "….heavy…" Hearing that, the blonde quickly straightened himself up.
"Do me a favor?" JD gazed at his young cousin's inquiring face before continuing with a firm, albeit still slightly shaky voice. He snorted in disdain at his show of weakness. "No mentioning this to anyone other than the team, ok?" Adam made a zipping motion over his mouth, and JD let out a strained smile. "Umm…no mentioning about this at all, ok?"
"That'll cost you a tub of Pralines and Creams ice-cream, though," Adam said thoughtfully, causing JD to stare at him in confusion. The sight of a shaky JD was not something he was used to seeing and Adam knew that his cousin needed a gentle prodding to return to his normal self. "And I'm serious. But you can share." He watched as a crooked grin finally appeared on JD's face – and Adam knew that his old cousin was back to normal.
"Fine. Deal."
"Are you ok, Josh?" Agumon asked worriedly as he approached his DigiWira partner. "You scared me back there."
JD flashed his lopsided grin. "Nice to know someone really cares instead of taking advantage of the situation." He gave Adam a fleeting glance and saw his cousin giving him a bemused look.
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Manny and Gayathri, having recovered from the threat quicker, turned their attentions towards the thugs and the Duskmon. They weren't sure of what to do – fighting in their Wira Digital forms was definitely overkill against the three thugs. Penguinmon and Floramon looked more than ready to take on the thugs, but the Duskmon were Ultimates.
Seeing them unsure, Riley and the two thugs laughed as they advanced towards them. Riley stared at Gayathri with a sneer. "You, little girl, are in serious trouble!"
Hearing the threat unnerved Gayathri, but it was Floramon who retaliated to it. "Rain of Pollen!!" The Rookie Digimon sprayed glowing green pollens towards the three thugs. Instantly they sneezed continuously, spewing out curses as Floramon giggled haughtily. "That's what you get for trying to mess with us!"
"Hey, Floramon! Don't hog all the fun!" Penguinmon trotted towards the sneezing thugs – a funny sight, seeing that he was a very stout bird, but it wasn't as funny when one realized what he intended to do. He jumped towards the thugs, landed in between them before spinning around like a spinning top, swinging his flippers furiously. "Endless Slaps!!"
The three thugs fell on their back after receiving the onslaughts from the two Rookie Digimon. Manny and Gayathri laughed at the funniness of the situation – they knew that Floramon and Penguinmon were both pretty harmless and that they wouldn't cause fatal injuries upon the thugs. However things turned nasty when they were blasted with lasers coming from Duskmon, sending them tumbling back towards their partners.
"Penguinmon!"
"Floramon!"
The two Rookies were injured, but luckily it wasn't a direct hit – had it been a direct hit it would have hurt the thugs as well, and that was not the Duskmon's intentions. Nevertheless, they were out of commission and Manny and Gayathri were forced to digitize them back inside their Juara Digivices where their injuries would heal slowly. They glanced helplessly towards their friends and saw that Adam and JD were about to merge with their partners. That comforted them – at least there would be somebody who could deal with the Duskmon.
"Digital Access Digivolution, HAAAA!!"
"Hey, you two – how about taking someone your own size?" Satriamon thrust his arms forward and shouted: "Shadow Flame Helix!!"
A fiery orange dragon and a hissing black flaming serpent sped out from Satriamon's outstretched arms and coiled around the two Duskmon. Behind the dragon man, Aldiyamon flew out and released his Radiant Faith, slamming the two Duskmon against the wall. The Duskmon immediately got back up on their feet and let out angered growls as they set their eyes on Aldiyamon and Satriamon.
"Go look for Liu Ying! I'll handle these guys!" Satriamon said. He watched Aldiyamon flying inside the warehouse before turning his gaze towards the Duskmon. The thugs, upon seeing him, had immediately scampered away, save for Riley Lau who stared at him with reddening eyes. "I have a bone to pick with you later," he growled menacingly, basking in the satisfaction of seeing the man squirm. "Hey, Manny, Gayathri, make sure this worm doesn't escape while I deal with these guys. And try stopping those running pinheads too, will you?"
Satriamon sped towards the Duskmon while Manny aimed towards the two running thugs. With a deep breath he released a jet of high-pressurized water from his hand towards the pavement, flooding them with water which caused the two thugs to slip and fell face-on.
"Snotty brats! You all have fallen into a trap!" Riley declared.
Gayathri stared at the man with narrowed eyes. "It's a trap alright…but who caught who?" she shot back with a superior smile. Then, deeming the man as uninteresting to look at Gayathri turned her attention towards Satriamon who took on the Duskmon single-handedly. Satriamon laid a fiery punch upon one of the Duskmon's eye armor, burning it, causing Duskmon to howl. The other Duskmon had its Kris blades slashed by Satriamon's Dragonforce Striker. Before long, it could be decided already that who would end up as the victor. And it seemed that after his close brush of death, the JD half of Satriamon was in the mood for destroying evil Digimon.
Seeing Manny's attention focused on the other two thugs and Gayathri on Satriamon, Riley reached towards his sock and took out a blade hidden underneath it. Grasping it tight, he made a lunge towards Gayathri. "This would wipe the smile off your face, girly!"
Gayathri turned, horrified, and her natural reaction upon seeing a man wielding a blade lunging at her was to recoil and scream. In her case, her scream blasted Riley back on the pavement. A faint crack was heard and Riley let out a pained moan as his eyelids fluttered rapidly.
A flaming explosion took place and the DigiWira saw Satriamon standing victoriously with no Duskmon in sight, with the devil-may-care lopsided grin on his face.
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Aldiyamon flew inside and the radiance his wings emitted illuminated the dark warehouse. He instantly saw Liu Ying tied to a chair, struggling to break free. But before he could say something, several glowing red scrolls were blasted towards him from the sides. The scrolls pasted all over Aldiyamon before electrocuting him with scarlet thunderbolts. The exalted knight was instantly weakened and fell on his knees as a dark chuckle was heard. The lights from his wings becoming fainter, Aldiyamon saw the profile of a purple-furred humanoid fox donning a gray monk robe gazing at him with piercing ice blue eyes.
"Greetings, Aldiyamon. Don't worry – those scrolls won't kill you. But I would like to test how far you can take on my Thousand Curses!" Doumon let out blasts of paper scrolls upon the weakened Aldiyamon, but this time around the angelic knight was quick enough to teleport out of sight. Grunting in annoyance, Doumon fired his scrolls in random directions.
"Sneak attack?" Aldiyamon's voice rang out of nowhere. "Two can play that game, Doumon! Radiant Faith!"
With Aldiyamon nowhere in sight, Doumon couldn't exactly pinpoint Aldiyamon's location, and thus couldn't avoid a stream of holy energy beam which blasted him from the side. Aldiyamon reappeared in front of the force-field which was containing Labramon. He laughed upon the sight of Doumon without his black monk hat, wanting to irritate the monk due to an ulterior motive.
Doumon snatched his hat and wore it before glaring at Aldiyamon. He aimed a sleeved arm towards the angelic knight and released his Thousand Curses.
Aldiyamon smirked and vanished in orbs of light, causing the paper scrolls to stick on the force-field. "Fooled ya!"
"NO!" Doumon realized his folly as the magic spell in the paper scrolls cancelled the spell of the force-field. The barrier and the scrolls vanished and Labramon was free. Angrily he summoned out a giant paintbrush and drew a purple symbol at rapid pace. He readied himself and caught faint hints of light orbs rematerializing. Quickly he bellowed: "Talisman of Night!!"
Aldiyamon, fresh out of his teleportation, was instantly blasted against the wall and crashed through it. Doumon levitated and smirked with malice upon seeing the prone body of Aldiyamon, trying to get up. "Oh no you don't, troublemaker. Have rest. Talisman of Night!!"
Aldiyamon screamed as another magical symbol was shot upon him. The symbol burned through his armor and sapped out his power. Having been attacked by the Shaman General earlier, Aldiyamon could not withstand another direct attack. Unrelenting, Doumon continued by firing his Thousand Curses which pasted themselves all over Aldiyamon's body. The scrolls shone with menacing red aura, and Aldiyamon found himself immobilized completely, from head to toe.
"If you're so smart, why not try figuring out how to escape your current predicament, hmm?" Doumon taunted. "Oh, that's right. You can't move. How silly of me. Allow me to assist you in getting up!"
Doumon swoop down gracefully and grabbed Aldiyamon by the neck. Whilst in midair, crackles of electricity shocked Aldiyamon while Doumon laughed as the electric bolts spiraled around his body. The priest-like general looked invigorated as his eyes shone with dark purple aura. "How nourishing," he said with a mocking smile.
A loud snarl was heard as Satriamon jumped in. He saw what Doumon was doing and growled angrily. "Let him go, sucker face!"
"Of course, but NOT until I've drained him of his energy," Doumon said with glee, as Aldiyamon's head limped down. The exalted knight Digimon no longer radiated with pure white light as he usually did.
Satriamon leaped up in blazing flames towards Doumon, only to find himself lambasted by Doumon's Thousand Curses. The scrolls electrocuted him, but Satriamon flexed his body back with a feral roar and his body burst into flames – incinerating the scrolls completely. He landed on the floor with a smirk. "Your hocus-pocus won't work on me, papa fox!"
Doumon narrowed his eyes irritably at Satriamon's remark and threw Aldiyamon towards the dragon man. "Take him then. I have all the power I need."
Satriamon caught Aldiyamon and held the unconscious white knight in a semi-cradling position. A flash of white ensued and Aldiyamon regressed into Adam and Patamon, both unconscious.
"Satriamon, we'll watch over Adam and Patamon," Gayathri said as she and Manny entered the warehouse. "You go and fight Doumon."
Satriamon laid Adam and Patamon gently at Gayathri and Manny. "Take cover in the forests. I have a feeling that things are going to be nasty around here."
"Indeed it will," Doumon chuckled, fixing Satriamon a piercing stare. He stretched out his right palm and a symbol materialized over it. Then he grabbed it as it solidified into metal, and used it as a weapon. "Talisman Star!!" He threw the metallic symbol towards Satriamon, using it as a boomerang.
The Talisman Star bounced away upon contact with Satriamon's golden gauntlet and burst into data. "You call that an attack, you sorry excuse of a general?" Satriamon mocked.
Doumon chuckled. "Perhaps I've underestimated you. You are after all the one who's sent Karatenmon to his doom. It's time for me to get serious." Doumon swung his right arm back and his paw burst with dark purple flames. A smirk crossed his stern face, indicating a dastardly plan in the making. "Maybe this will impress you. Radiant Faith!!"
Satriamon gaped in shock upon hearing the attack, resulting in him being blasted by a beam of purple light squarely on the chest. He was sent flying against the wall, but thanks to his armor he wasn't seriously injured. However he was bewildered of the attack Doumon had used upon him. Quickly he scrambled back on his feet, and his armor now sported a small crack in the middle. "That…that was Aldiyamon's attack! How the hell did you…"
"Indeed. Having absorbed his power I have gained knowledge in executing his attacks." Doumon raised his arms sideways and a purple firebird burst from his body. "I'm sure you will recognize this attack as well. Solaris Firebird!!"
"Shit! Dragonforce Striker!!" Satriamon summoned a fiery red dragon to counter the firebird, but his effort was in vain. Doumon's Solaris Firebird fully overwhelmed the dragon before slamming upon his body. His armor cracked even more and Satriamon was slammed to the wall once again. Clutching his pained chest, he looked up, only to see that Doumon was now wielding a familiar silvery-purple sword. "Damn it…you're not going to use his attack against me, fox face!" he snarled and summoned all his remaining power.
"Oh but I already am using it…" Doumon said haughtily, and raised the dazzling sword of light. "Heavenstar…"
Satriamon channeled all his power into his gauntlet, and it blazed with furious, pulsing fire. A low growl escaped his mouth. Inside, JD's thoughts raced. 'You're behind all this all along…you and that son-of-bitch Riley. You're the mastermind behind Liu Ying's kidnapping, and you hurt my cousin. You'll pay for that.'
"Dragonforce Striker…"
"…GLADIUS!!" Doumon slashed the air vertically and caused a dimensional rip. From it a pillar of lavender light burst forth, shooting up through the warehouse's roof before it moved towards Satriamon, who was still energizing his attack.
A flaming dragon snaked out from Satriamon's gauntlet and hovered in front of its wielder. Satriamon swung his gauntlet arm back before making a punching motion, completing the supercharged attack's name. "…POWERED UP MODE!! HAAAAA!!!!"
The red dragon roared mightily and streaked towards the incoming pillar of light. It coiled its serpentine body around the pillar and there was a struggle of power as the pillar attempted to move and the dragon stopping it. Before long, the two attacks burst into data particles, blinding everyone around them with a bright explosion of light.
xxx
xxx
"Amazing!" Manny and Gayathri gasped at the same time, outside the warehouse. They saw a pillar of light and a red dragon bursting out from the roof and the explosion that ensued thereafter. A soft groan was heard coming from Adam, who was being supported in between Manny and Gayathri.
"Adam…you're awake!" Manny said.
"What happened?" Adam asked with a hoarse voice. "I feel like I've been hit by a truck."
"Nu-uh. Try rabid priest fox," Gayathri said with a smile. Adam smiled weakly at the comment. "Doumon absorbed your power, which caused Satriamon to run amok. They're fighting right now."
"What…what about Liu Ying and Labramon?"
Gayathri pondered about it thoughtfully. "They weren't inside the warehouse. We didn't see them."
"But…I saw Liu Ying – she was tied to a chair!" Adam insisted.
"Adam, we saw you as Aldiyamon tricked Doumon into attacking the force-field he'd surrounded Labramon. So Labramon managed to escape," Manny deduced, laying a hand on his stricken friend's shoulder. "I think Labramon managed to free Liu Ying and they've both gotten to safety using another way. Maybe they're behind the warehouse. Maybe they're looking for us right now."
Gayathri nodded while Adam still looked unconvinced. "Manny's right Adam. We better get to safety too. Come on."
Together they retreated, but in the darkness they couldn't see their way clearly. Their feet knocked over something semi-rigid and they were all thrown onto the floor. A loud howl of pain ensued and the DigiWira sweatdropped. They turned around and saw Riley writhing in pain. The man stirred slightly and opened his eyes, meeting the DigiWira's gazes. Hatred sparked from the man's eyes.
"You…you little banshee!" he shouted at Gayathri. He tried to move but instantly yelped upon the slightest attempt. "My hip…you broke my hip you little bitch! I can't move."
Instantly, Manny and Adam could see Gayathri fuming with anger, and backed away. The DigiWira girl glared at Riley furiously.
"First that trollop comment from Garudamon, now banshee and bitch from you! What's with you bad guys?! I am a DECENT girl with a DECENT background and a DECENT upbringing! You're the immoral one around here you horrible man! You kidnapped Liu Ying, you nearly killed JD and you nearly killed ME! And yet you have the decency to call me such spiteful names when it is you who are the moral-depraved one around here! Just looking at you now makes me sick, sick, SICK!" Every 'sick' said by her was accompanied by a kick on Riley's side, followed by a solid stomp on his right thigh. Riley howled again, spewing out curses amidst his pain. "Serve you right!" she said, and stuck out her tongue.
Manny and Adam looked at each other, both were sweatdropping and were trying so hard not to smile – the sight of their bubbly petite friend trashing a criminal was truly a gem.
Something shining fell out from Riley's pocket. Gayathri blinked upon seeing a familiar golden contraption. "Oh my gosh! That's…"
xxx
xxx
Liu Ying and Labramon emerged from the back of the warehouse, having found another exit door. They ran as fast as their feet could carry them, wanting to get to the other DigiWira. Liu Ying's first instinct was to help JD, but then she'd realized that her Digivice was with Riley. She needed to find it first.
When they arrived at the courtyard of the warehouse, they were stopped short upon seeing Gayathri stomping upon a prone figure of Riley. Gayathri was heard shouting at Riley and from the sound of it, she was very upset and angry at the same time. Then she saw Gayathri picking up something, and Liu Ying's heart skipped a beat upon realizing that Gayathri had found her Juara Digivice.
"Gayathri! Manny! Adam!" The duo rushed towards the others.
"Liu Ying! Labramon! You're safe!" Gayathri squealed in relieved delight and the two girls embraced.
To Liu Ying's surprise, Gayathri was crying. "I was so, so worried!" the petite girl said. "Kidnapped! I couldn't believe it when Adam and JD told me about it. I…"
"I'm so glad that you all came for me," Liu Ying said, stopping Gayathri from her ramblings. She smiled gratefully at Adam and Manny who joined the reunion. "Thank you for coming for me."
"You'd have done the same thing for us," Manny replied, returning his friend's smile.
"You came for me when I needed your help the most," Adam said softly, referring to his own kidnapping about a month ago. He smiled slightly. "It's only fair if I returned the favor…but I'd do it anyhow."
"Thank you." Liu Ying nodded and cast a look at the prone figure of Riley, who was moaning softly, seemingly in pain. "What happened to him?"
"Gayathri trashed him," Adam said with a laugh. "You should have seen her. That guy suffered a broken hip from what I gather, courtesy of one supersonic scream. And as if that's not enough he also has received three kicks and a stomp."
"I saw that." Liu Ying shook her head amusedly at the now-blushing Gayathri. "It was…rather funny, actually. What did he do to you?"
"Umm…he called me some names which I don't appreciate." Gayathri's expression was sour. "And he tried to kill me, and almost killed JD! He kidnapped you. In my opinion he totally deserves that broken hip of his and more!"
Liu Ying's expression darkened. "That reminds me…" She walked towards Riley and knelt beside him. The thug sensed a presence by his side and turned to face Liu Ying who was glaring at him with a deadly expression. The thug's eyes widened and he gasped in shock.
"YOU! How…how did you…" Before he could finish his sentence, Liu Ying slapped him loudly on his right cheek. Riley sputtered out some saliva and choked in shock.
Growling softly, Liu Ying stood up and with a glare at the man who had kidnapped her she kicked Riley hard on the hip, knowing only too well that it would only aggravate his injury. She couldn't care less. Her anger returned and tears formed on the brims of her eyes. She swung her arm, causing Riley to double over – making his pain worse. She didn't care, and almost swung her hand again before a strong hand grasped her wrist.
"Liu Ying…that's enough," Manny said softly. He saw the pain-stricken look on his friend. "Don't do this, Liu Ying. You're better than this."
"No!" Liu Ying whisked her hand free from Manny. The DigiWira saw a tear trickling down her face and was surprised of Liu Ying's sudden mood change. She swung her hand and Riley was sent tumbling several meters away. "You don't know him! He…he planned this for years! All because he wanted to set his brother free…" Liu Ying stared at each DigiWira. "His brother was the one who killed my father." The DigiWira gasped upon hearing the revelation. Another tear fell from Liu Ying's cheek – she had struggled so hard to keep her emotions in check that day, and they all now flowed out freely, unrestrained, uncontrolled. "He planned to extort a ransom of two million ringgit from the Deputy Prime Minister because he knew that Dato' Sulaiman Daud would pay up. My father died protecting the Dato', and this…this ANIMAL planned to exploit this knowledge for his own personal gain. He even made a pact with Doumon to make sure he gets what he wants, and Doumon took advantage of this to lure all of you here. He…he doesn't deserve to live."
Liu Ying trembled and tears flowed freely from her face. Seeing that, Gayathri rushed forward and pulled the taller girl in an embrace, soothing her. That only caused the usually composed girl to sob on Gayathri's shoulder. Labramon whimpered and slumped down, fully affected of her partner's furious waves of emotions.
"Liu Ying, don't let your anger get to you," Adam said with a low but firm voice. "I did the same mistake and you know what happened."
Liu Ying's crying halted and she looked up, seeing Adam looking so desolate. She hiccupped twice and slowly pulled herself back together. Gayathri took out a tissue from her pocket and offered it to her, which she accepted graciously to wipe her tears.
"It's now only a matter of time before Satriamon beats Doumon and we all can go home," Adam said encouragingly. "Let justice deal with Riley and his goons."
"I'm afraid that it won't be that easy, DigiWira!" A cold voice echoed in the middle of the night.
The DigiWira and Labramon looked at the warehouse and saw Doumon emerging from the roof, holding a limp Satriamon on the neck. They gasped as Doumon threw Satriamon carelessly on the roof. The unconscious Satriamon slid down the steep roof and nearly crashed onto the ground if it weren't for Liu Ying's timely intervention. She lowered Satriamon on the ground, and the dragon man devolved into JD and Agumon, both knocked out. The fallen duo was then teleported by Adam close to them.
"I have Satriamon's and Aldiyamon's powers now!" Doumon declared with glee. "All of you are at my mercy once and for all!"
"We won't let you win!" Liu Ying said, staring at Doumon defiantly. Her tear-brimmed eyes shone with sheer determination.
"What can you do to me?" Doumon taunted. "With the powers of fire, darkness and light complimenting my own magical skills, I am invincible! The Darkshadow Brethren shall be victorious and the Master will be set free from his imprisonment!"
"You're forgetting that my partner and I can still stop you!" Liu Ying said, and her body burst with yellow aura. Labramon barked her agreement and she too glowed with the same aura.
Digital Access Digivolution, HAAA!!
In a flash of golden light, Liu Ying and Labramon vanished and Xianamon stood in their place. The ethereally beautiful sorceress levitated to the sky and set herself in fighting pose. She was still radiating with the same golden aura that her composite forms had generated prior to her awakening – making her appear even more impressive amidst the dark moonlit sky. She was like a beacon in the darkness.
Doumon snickered as he summoned Satriamon's Dragonforce Striker Gauntlet on his left arm, and wielded Aldiyamon's Heavenstar Gladius Sword with his right hand. The two powerful weapons radiated with flames and light, both dark purple in color as Doumon charged towards Xianamon.
"Dragonforce Striker!! Heavenstar Gladius!!"
A fiery purple dragon and a wave of lavender light were shot towards Xianamon. Immediately the sorceress countered with her Diamond World Mandala but the magical energy waves were consumed by the combination of the attacks. Xianamon soared towards the sky and evaded the furious waves of power, which caused a massive explosion as they slammed against the hill in front of the warehouse. Trees were uprooted, some destroyed. A fire soon erupted from the forests as the result of the explosion.
"These new powers are absolutely amazing! Here! Take on these, witch! Shadow Flame Helix!! Solaris Firebird!!"
Xianamon gasped and tried evading the dragon, the serpent and the firebird that were heading her way. She managed to do so but the flame-based techniques caught on some more trees and the fire was aggravated even more. She could hear the DigiWira coughing as smokes became thicker.
'He is as strong as two people now. And there is only one of me…' Xianamon thought despairingly. The golden aura around her body intensified and the black eyes on her fox mask shone with yellow lights. She felt herself astral-projecting without her will, and gasped upon seeing an exact copy of herself now standing beside her. The only difference was the garbs – the other Xianamon's outer garb and fox mask was periwinkle blue instead of light yellow.
"What happened?" Xianamon thought out loud.
The second Xianamon smiled. "You said that there was only one of you and Doumon had the power of two Digimon. So…here I am." The second Xianamon had a lighthearted approach in speaking, contrasting to the formal way of speech Xianamon usually cultivated. "Your desperation gave birth to a new attack – the Duo Focus. It's an evolution of the astral projection power, only that instead of projecting your spirit out of your body, it duplicates you instead, and you get yours truly. So now, I think we're more than able to kick some old priest's butt! After all, two heads are always better than one!" Xianamon II giggled and shot towards Doumon.
Xianamon stared at her blue-garbed replica incredulously, but decided to process the new information later. Quickly she followed her clone.
Meanwhile, the DigiWira were staring at the sudden turn of event with awe.
"Whoa…check out Xianamon!" Adam said in disbelief. He was sitting in a kneeling position, with the unconscious JD's head supported on his thighs. Agumon had already been digitized back inside JD's Juara Digivice for the dinosaur Rookie to heal.
"You mean Xianamons!" Gayathri said, her eyes looking back at forth from Xianamon and Xianamon II.
"Amazing!" Manny said simply.
"Hey you! Yeah, you! You with the forever-sulking face!" Xianamon II hollered, waving her fly whisk frantically to draw Doumon's attention. Doumon looked up, and Xianamon II grinned. "Now that I've got your attention – take this, you brazen old coot! Matrix World Mandala!!"
Similar to Xianamon's Diamond World Mandala, the Matrix World Mandala also generated an ancient magical rune in the air but it let out burst of white energy wave towards the enemy instead of golden and sapphire, along with ruby-colored projectiles. It slammed upon Doumon, who was too surprised to move, hurling him towards the warehouse. A loud crash was heard, but Doumon reemerged a split second after, looking angry. That however, didn't frazzle the Xianamon clone. She merely looked on with a conspiratorial grin, seemingly waiting for something to happen while Xianamon stared at them, confused.
"Three…two…one…boom!" Xianamon II giggled, and all of a sudden Doumon writhed and contorted in agony.
"What did you do to him?" Xianamon inquired, hovering close to her duplicate.
"Oh, you'll see…" Xianamon II smirked. "Ah never mind, I'll tell you. Our attacks are more or less the opposite of each other. Similar to the fact that I'm Yin and you're Yang. Your Diamond World Mandala can heal your friends while just doing some normal physical damage to your foes. My Matrix World Mandala however attacks the opponent from the inside. It'll do some scattering of data inside his body. Kind of like a computer virus. Pretty nifty, eh?"
Xianamon smiled. "It sure is." She decided that it was the perfect time to attack him and flew towards Doumon. "Jade Needles!!"
"Pffft. You call that projectile assault? No, no…that simply won't do. Let me show you how it's really done, sister." Xianamon II crossed her arms in front of her body and uncrossed it, letting out shining needle projectiles radiating cold aura. "Soul Freezing Needles!!"
The silver needles joined the jade needles as they rained upon the flustered Doumon, pricking and jabbing him on various sites of his body. Doumon shrieked as the Jade Needles poisoned him, slowly sapping his energy away while generating a stabbing pain sensation from the insides. The Soul Freezing Needles however proved to be deadlier – they caused a sudden drop of temperature to a subzero level on the insides. Doumon shivered and immediately summoned the flames from the power he had taken from Satriamon, and the chill subsided. However the flames died away too and Doumon's expression contorted in rage as he realized what was going on. That duplicate Xianamon had corrupted his data composition – rendering him unable to use some of his attacks. It would take a great deal of magical power on his behalf in order for him to resist the lingering effects of his foes' attacks. He summoned his paper scrolls and quickly recited an incantation which would remove the traces of the Xianamon's spells on his body. It worked.
Looking up, he snarled at the two sorceresses and decided to let out all his absorbed power. Lifting his arms he recalled the Dragonforce Striker Gauntlet and the Heavenstar Gladius Sword, before a pair of metallic wings materialized on the black spires he wore on his shoulders. A sinister plan came to his mind.
When he absorbed Aldiyamon's power, he had managed to get a glimpse of the angel's mind and saw another incredible technique which Aldiyamon had been holding back. It was the attack that had nearly destroyed the Puaka Generals, summoned by combining all his techniques into one. It was strong enough to defeat the Puaka Generals in their DNA digivolved Mega form – what if Doumon combined his power and the powers he had absorbed into one? It would probably cause wide-scale destruction on the human world! Doumon liked the idea.
Chuckling darkly, he continued summoning all his powers. His body shook as more power flowed all over his body. Fiery purple dragon, blazing black serpent and lavender firebird swirled around him, roaring, hissing and screeching menacingly. Flames erupted from his entire body. The sword shone bright as a star while the gauntlet emitted bright sparks of fire. Red paper scrolls spun around his body in malevolent rapidness, and his giant paintbrush materialized in front of him, pointed towards Xianamon.
"Now you're going to get it, witches!" Doumon cackled maniacally. "Behold! Aldiyamon's deadliest technique! FINAL PURIFICATION!!"
Waves of energy began to burst from his whole body and the two Xianamon braced themselves. But then another unexpected thing occurred.
Doumon suddenly shrieked in pained agony as the overflowing powers refused to leave his body. He fell back and his body contorted in an odd angle in midair. He convulsed horribly, screaming and howling as the flames consumed him. The serpent, the dragon and the firebird incinerated his ceremonial outfit and scorched his purple furs. The sword, the gauntlet and the giant paintbrush slammed against his body, inflicting severe wounds. Dark liquid leaked out from the wounds. His paper scrolls, enchanted to attack his enemies, plastered on his body instead, electrocuting him severely. Doumon howled with defeat as he plummeted towards the ground, creating a small crevice upon impact, followed by an explosion.
"What happened to him?" Xianamon wondered in awe as the smokes that resulted from the explosion began to subside.
"Don't know, but you know what they say. If it's not broken, don't fix it." Xianamon II waved her hand airily and beckoned for them to approach the crevice.
The two Xianamon peered above the crevice. Xianamon wrinkled her nose in disgust while Xianamon II giggled. "Hmm…looks like whatever the now-naked priest was trying to do have backfired. He looks weaker than an In-Training now. My work here is done. Ta!" Xianamon II glimmered in faint gold light and her body became translucent and ghost-like before she slowly seeped back into Xianamon's body. It was a fascinatingly strange experience for Xianamon, but she was glad that the Duo Focus technique was unleashed just in time. Sighing with relief she went towards the other DigiWira.
"What just happened there?" Gayathri wondered. "One moment Doumon was going to attack you, and then…he was the one who got attacked by his own attacks. Okay, now I'm getting confused."
"The Final Purification has backfired," Adam explained before Xianamon could reply. He shivered slightly, knowing all too well the reason why the attack had backfired. "It's an attack too powerful for an Ultimate Digimon to handle because it's done by combining all my other techniques into one. Aldiyamon Fury Mode got deleted while executing the attack against VenomDevimon." He grew quiet as Xianamon, Manny and Gayathri stared at him – all of them remembered that fateful day.
"But…as I recall Aldiyamon managed to execute the Final Purification perfectly in our battle with Gulfmon," Xianamon pointed out.
"As Aldiyamon, I've learned how to control it the second time around, but I won't use it unless it's absolutely necessary. The battle with Gulfmon was the first and the last time I used it. I think I can handle the attack when the merged techniques are of my own…but apparently Doumon tried to merge a little bit too much power in his attempt to destroy you. He couldn't handle that much power and it rebounded…which is a good thing," he added as an afterthought with a grin.
"I better finish him off now once and for all." Xianamon headed towards the crevice, peered over it and gasped.
"Xianamon, what's wrong?" Adam called out curiously when he saw Xianamon frazzled.
The sorceress Wira Digital turned around. "Doumon is gone!"
"For good?" Gayathri wondered. "Maybe the strain of that backfired attack finally got to him. Maybe he got deleted silently while we're talking."
"I don't know," Xianamon said, unsure of Gayathri's ideas but more than willing to believe it. It had been a long and tiring day. "I certainly hope so." Xianamon returned to her composite selves – Labramon had gone one step further in her devolution and was now Shaomon.
Liu Ying looked at the three thugs. "Oh no…" she said, realizing something. "They know about us. What if they give away our identities to the press? We'd be exposed."
"I hope that you'll remember that the next time you decide to head to a battle and forget to inform me!" A male voice called out, causing the DigiWira to look around in confusion. From the gate, they saw a familiar man running towards them.
"Jackie!"
The digital human plus their computer teacher plus their DigiDestined guardian stopped by them, panting as he tried to catch his breath. He looked at the four teens with an affronted look on his sweaty face. "I'm supposed to watch over you guys! Luckily I managed to find my way here – the fire on the forests plus the Digimon battle had alerted the locals around here. I think I've broken the speed limit while rushing here – I'd probably get a ticket tomorrow delivered to my office. The police and the firemen are on their way here…" Loud sirens were heard approaching from a distance.
"Jackie, what do we do about those kidnappers?" Liu Ying asked urgently. "They know about us…they'll tell the media about us."
Jackie gave the DigiWira a conspiratorial smile. "Not if I can help it."
xxx
xxx
The abandoned warehouse had become a lively place that night. News about Digimon battle and the appearance of the Wira Digital there, and Batu Caves previously, had provided excitement for the townspeople. Policemen scoured the entire warehouse, and some paramedics tended to Riley and his accomplices who were unconscious and injured. Reporters could be seen trying to enter the warehouse premise but they were halted by several burly policemen.
Liu Ying saw that one of the reporters was none other than Rita Kaur, and behind her was her cameraman friend. She was the loudest of all the reporters who demanded to be permitted to enter for her to make a report. Liu Ying turned her head away and tugged at the blanket which was offered to her by a policeman – apparently someone who knew her late father. She was sitting at the back of an ambulance, and looked up to find a kind-faced female paramedic offering her a cup of drink and a bar of chocolate.
"You poor girl. You must be terrified," the paramedic said with pity. "Kidnapped and caught in the middle of all those Digimon battles. It's really lucky that you are not injured. Eat the chocolate, dear; it'll help calm your nerves."
Liu Ying was far from terrified but took the chocolate and the drink anyway to please the paramedic staff. "Thank you."
"If you want anything, just ask any of the medics around. They'll help you. I have to inspect those kidnappers – they're still unconscious."
Liu Ying nodded and watched the paramedic walking away. She wasn't worried – Riley and his gang would not have a single memory of the fact that Liu Ying and her friends were the Wira Digital. Jackie had modified their memories – the benefit of being a digital human – making them forget about their Digimon knowledge. Any trace that would link the Wira Digital and Liu Ying was wiped out from the crooks' memories. As far as they knew, they had been at the wrong place at the wrong time. It was a kidnapping gone horribly wrong for them. Then, Jackie and the other DigiWira had taken off with Jackie's car, while Liu Ying remained there to provide the statements for everything that had happened there. She had told the policemen her part of the story – she was kidnapped by Riley and explained the reasons of the kidnapping, sans the part of luring the other Wira Digital to come to the warehouse. She'd also described in great detail of the battle between the Wira Digital and Doumon, and when asked about the injuries the crooks had sustained, Liu Ying told them that they had been caught in the fire while trying to flee away. The Wira Digital had saved her and had taken off when they were absolutely sure that she was fine and that the authorities were on their way here. Everyone believed her.
A commotion at the gate brought Liu Ying's attention back from her reverie. She saw the police shouting for the undaunted reporters to clear the way as a luxurious Mercedes Benz with tinted windows drove through it. Liu Ying wondered who could be coming when the back door opened and she saw her mother stepping out, followed by her grandfather.
"Mama! Grandpa!" She threw the blanket, jumped down from the ambulance and rushed towards her mother.
"Ying! Oh, oh!" Evelyn Chang was overwhelmed with relief and ran at her daughter. Mother and daughter embraced each other tearfully and Grandpa Chang soon joined the family embrace, glad and relieved to see that his granddaughter was safe. They ignored the camera flashes and the excited chattering from the reporters. Then Evelyn pulled back and studied her daughter carefully. "Ying…are you ok?"
Liu Ying smiled and wiped her tear. "I'm alright. My friends…they came for me," she added with a low voice. "There is Digimon involvement with the kidnappers, but the kidnappers won't remember anything. We took care of that part. It's a plot to get the ransom money, to free the man who killed Papa, and to destroy the Wira Digital."
Evelyn hugged her daughter again in relief; the words Liu Ying had just said flew over her head. She'd have to ask her daughter to give her a detailed story when they were back at their house. For now, she was glad to see her daughter again. She let her daughter go after a few seconds. "Ying, I want you to meet somebody." She beckoned towards a man who stepped out from the back seat. Instantly the reporters were left in stunned silence, wondering why he was there as well with the family of the kidnapped girl.
"The Deputy Prime Minister…Dato' Sulaiman Daud!" Liu Ying gasped in surprise. The reporters by the gate became frenzied and tried to take photos, but they were effectively blocked by the police who immediately took charge of the situation.
"Greetings, Liu Ying. I'm so happy to see you alright," Dato' Sulaiman said, and extended his hand with a warm smile. "Consider me a friend of your family."
"It's an honor to meet you, Dato'," Liu Ying said and took his hand.
They saw the paramedics pushing a wheeled stretcher with Riley on it, and the Deputy Prime Minister beckoned for them to stop wheeling. Riley was already awake and stared at Liu Ying and the Deputy Prime Minister with hate-filled eyes. "So you are Raymond Lau's brother. I'm glad to say that you will be joining your brother in prison soon enough. Evidences are all against you and I will personally vouch for Miss Chang Liu Ying's statements, should it come to that, in order to make sure that your evil acts would not go unpunished." The Deputy Prime Minister's face was set firmly as he mentioned that to the criminal, and one who looked at the man's face would know that this was not just any idle saying. It was a promise that would be carried out.
Riley merely let out a snarl and the Deputy Prime Minister beckoned for the paramedics to take him away.
"Thank you," Liu Ying whispered gratefully, relieved and satisfied that Riley was going to pay for his crimes.
xxx
xxx
"Hey, look." Astamon gestured to the hollow window, where amidst the dark night atmosphere a violet flash of light emanated.
"He's back!" Persiamon rose from the stone seat where she was leisurely relaxing, and was about to go to the window before meeting the figures of Astamon and Shawujinmon. "Hey, out of my way booze-breath! Move aside fish-face. Pure beauty coming through!" She shoved the two Generals aside and peered out of the window.
Shawujinmon fumed while Astamon shook his head as he leaned towards his fellow general. "Don't pick a fight with her. She's got a mouth that can send even Mega Digimon packing. I think that's why she's called the Virago General." The two generals snickered at the joke before joining Persiamon – the hollow window was big enough to fit all three of them.
They all peered out, and saw at the bottom of the step pyramid's stairs laid a battered prone figure that they at first didn't recognize.
"Hey, who's that ugly naked guy?" Astamon said with his slightly tipsy voice. He blinked twice, trying to get a better look at the humanoid with vulpine characteristics. He thought that the fox looked familiar and glanced back at the two columns of blue light which were housing the comatose Rookie forms of the Puaka Generals, gazing at Renamon longer before turning back to look at the seemingly unconscious purple-furred fox in confusion. "Mephistomon's relative maybe?"
"You dolt!" Persiamon smacked the Majin General on the head, causing Astamon to yelp. She turned back to look at the fox and exclaimed with a shocked voice. "That's our friend! It's Doumon!"
The three Generals scrambled out from the hall and rushed down the five hundred steps towards Doumon. Persiamon looked over the Shaman General's severely battered form. Her eyes twitched – she had never seen Doumon without his ceremonial robes and had to admit that Astamon's mistake was understandable.
"You two, take him up!" she ordered the other generals.
From the hall above, Lucemon observed as Shawujinmon and Astamon carried Doumon while Persiamon fussed over them. His icy eyes glowed white, before a smile formed on his pallid face as images of the battle between Doumon and the Wira Digital crossed his mind. 'Looks like you were successful in absorbing Aldiyamon's power, but grew overconfident and the powers backfired on you.' An evil smile graced his face as he turned to look at the comatose Puaka Generals. 'You have drained the powers from Satriamon, Samudramon, Xianamon and Puspamon via their Digivices. That should have rendered them powerless, but when Aldiyamon made his entrance instantly the four were back. That is normally impossible…unless…'
The Hellion General's eyes returned to normal as he took out a gleaming black gem from his belt. It was shaped like an arrowhead cut in half. His finger trailed the smooth edge of the half-arrowhead gem. 'Grademon has cut the Soul Crystal into half in our battle three hundred years ago – separating it back into the Ivory and Obsidian Gems. I have the Obsidian Gem with me. Grademon is nowhere in this Digital World, but the Ivory Gem must have been passed down to the guardians of the DigiSpheres these past three centuries. No doubt the Ivory Gem is now within the possession of the Wira Digital for they are the heirs of Grademon. The Ivory Gem is always drawn to the power of light…'
Lucemon smirked as he kept the Obsidian Gem back in his pocket as he walked back to his private chamber when he heard the noises made by his fellow brethren. He walked along a narrow passage, lowering his angelic and demonic wings so that they appeared to be a half-leathery, half-feathery cape. His sharp mind continued its trails of thoughts. 'Once separated the Soul Crystal could never be united. Over the three centuries, their powers would grow. The Wira Digital now are remarkably powerful now that there are five of them. They had troubles fighting Karatenmon and Lilamon when their number was not complete. But they nearly destroyed the Puaka Generals when Aldiyamon ascended to power.'
'The Ivory Gem must be powering up the five Wira Digital right now. And I am pretty certain that Aldiyamon has used the Ivory Gem to restore the powers of his friends. I cannot reclaim it back, but…' Lucemon smirked again. 'No matter. The Obsidian Gem's power has also grown, and without its lighter twin its power is easily tainted. It will certainly aid us in defeating the Wira Digital. All I have to do is to wait for my team to be complete.'
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Dear Papa,
It's been a long and hectic day today. I was kidnapped by Riley Lau – the brother of the criminal who had shot you. He planned to extort money from our family AND the Deputy Prime Minister, and he also wanted to get his brother out from prison. He also has complotted with Doumon – another Darkshadow Brethren general – to lure my friends to where I was held in order to finish us off once and for all. That plan didn't work out, for my friends managed to come to my rescue and I, as Xianamon, managed to beat Doumon. I'm not sure whether he was gone for good – Gayathri said that it had seemed like it, but somehow…I'm not sure. I hope he does. But I have a feeling that this won't be the last time I saw him.
Dato' Sulaiman Daud has taken the time to personally come along with Mama, Grandpa and Meng to make sure that I am alright. He really is grateful for your sacrifice. Thinking about that makes me sad, but I know that you're always watching me. And I'm really proud of you, Papa. All the police I've met today know about you and respected you, or at least have heard about you. You are a hero for everyone…and you're my hero.
Dato' has invited us to have lunch at his house this weekend. He also has promised that he will make sure that Riley would be sentenced to prison for life, just like his brother.
I'll talk to you again tomorrow, Papa. Mama insists that I stay at home tomorrow. I think she's still worried, and I think I'm going to enjoy a day off just to rest.
Goodnight, Papa. I love you.
Liu Ying smiled wistfully as she closed her diary. It was already past midnight and she was lying on her bed. On the large cushion beside her bed, Shaomon could be heard snoring softly. She envied her partner for being able to sleep – all the excitement she experienced that day had made her restless. She couldn't sleep – she was not sleepy at all but her mother had insisted that she'd go straight to bed.
Her cell phone let out a soft music – indicating an SMS. She wondered who would be sending her a message that time of the night. To her surprise, it was a message from one of the DigiWira.
Hey. How you doin'? Still awake? Just wondering, that's all. And bored. Can't sleep and Adam's already off to dreamland.
Liu Ying contemplated whether to reply to JD's message or not. It was really late. But then again, she wouldn't be going to school tomorrow, and she couldn't sleep as well. And she thought that it was rather nice of JD to ask of her wellbeing. It made her smile.
I'm ok. Can't sleep as well. What are you doing up at this time of night? Shouldn't you be sleeping by now?
Less than a minute later, a reply came.
Doumon KO-ed me for so long during the battle I can last the whole night without sleep. And I've been up later than this time and still manage to wake up in time to school. Plus I now have a live alarm clock rooming with me. No worries.
Liu Ying smiled at the nonchalant reply and typed out a reply. That's comforting to hear. I'm not going to school tomorrow so I don't have to worry about waking up early. My mother insisted that I stay at home tomorrow. She said I need time to recover.
Really? No school for you tomorrow? Lucky you. Wish I got kidnapped too.
She ended up exchanging SMS back and forth with JD for the next three hours.
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Author's Notes:
There you go; the end of the small Liu Ying arc. How are the surprises I've included in this chapter? I think all the DigiWira get their chance to shine in this chapter. I think I have neglected the Digimon a lot, so this chapter kind of makes up for it. Labramon/Youkomon has played her role in alerting the DigiWira, and Floramon and Penguinmon have their moments.
I especially have fun writing the part where Riley Lau gets his just desserts. Serve him right, in my opinion.
I have enhanced Doumon's abilities and have given him the power-absorbing ability, which isn't stated in his profile. But hey, it makes him a deadly enemy.
Along with this update I have also included some snippets of how I came up with Xianamon in my blog. Check it out if you're curious.