It was definitely a good idea to invite them to stay with her, Gayathri thought, on one Wednesday afternoon.
They had been devastated after Ophanimon's death, and acting on impulse, Gayathri had offered them to stay at her house after the battle with the Puaka Generals. They didn't know what to do, with their mistress gone, having spent thousands of years with her. The magnificent female angel was their mistress, and at the same time, their friend. Though all deleted Digimon had the chance to be reconfigured, but there was no telling when Ophanimon would be reborn as a DigiEgg. That, and the fact that her deletion took place in the human world, made reconfiguration process a lot harder.
Gayathri couldn't say that she knew how Lalamon and Lopmon were feeling, because she had no such experience. And for that, she was thankful. She didn't know what she'd do if she would lose someone dear to her. She'd even cry – though she made attempts to hide it – when her grandparents returned back to their home towns after paying her a visit. This was why she really admired Adam and Liu Ying – how did they cope with losing those who were so important to them? At least, Liu Ying had lost only her father; Adam had lost both parents and an older brother. They had coped well, or so she thought. Adam had an ugly experience when the Puaka Generals assumed the guise of his dead brother, thus reopening old wounds when they revealed their deceptions. The result was disastrous; Gayathri still had the shivers whenever she thought about it. Liu Ying too, had been hurt, when she was kidnapped by the brother of the man who had killed her father. Fortunately, the former leader of the DigiWira team coped rather well – with help from her fellow teammates.
"Tag! You're it! You're it!"
Floramon's voice broke her thoughts. She blinked, and looked at the three Rookie Digimon. Floramon was grinningly patting Lalamon, and then Lopmon, before quickly moving away from them. Lalamon and Lopmon exchanged glances, before looking at Floramon strangely.
Gayathri had to stifle a smile. It wasn't a too-sunny afternoon, somewhat cloudy and breezy, perfect for lounging at the garden. Floramon had obviously decided that a game of tag was due, and had been coaxing the two other Rookies in playing with her. Unfortunately, the flowery Rookie had forgotten to take account of a certain fact.
"Helloooo?" Floramon scooted back towards Lalamon and Lopmon. "You run, I tag. Get it?" She studied the blank looks the other two Digimon had. "What's the matter; don't you know how to play?"
Their indifference didn't faze Floramon, who proceeded to explain the rules of the game. Gayathri smiled to herself as she sipped on the orange juice she had with her, thinking that her partner was wonderful in trying to get Lalamon and Lopmon to talk about their feelings. While they had stopped looking so grieved after Sunday, they hadn't even begun becoming friendly either. But despite that, they weren't being cold as well, and Floramon had taken that as a good sign. Gayathri wondered at their reaction, but thought instantly, that it might have something to do with her own friends.
On Sunday, curious to know about the battle against the Puaka Generals from her own mouth, Bel and Dina had paid her a visit, right after Gayathri and the other DigiWira had taken cared of the Magnadramon menace. Gayathri couldn't explain it, but it seemed that the grieving Rookies had brightened considerably when the girls came, and the girls themselves were pretty smitten with the Digimon.
For instance, she knew too well how fond Dina was for anything that was flower-themed, and roses were her favorite flowers. The demure girl was totally a romantic at heart; Gayathri made a mental note to make a fleeting mention about this to a certain DigiWira she knew. This trait wasn't shared by Dina alone, apparently, for Gayathri had been to Dina's house numerous times, and she couldn't recall what colors of roses that they did not have in their garden. It wasn't so surprising to her when Dina seemed to get along well with Lalamon, whose Mega form was Rosemon.
Similarly, Bel and Lopmon had struck a friendship. It wasn't an all-out bond, but it was a start. Bel had expressed interest in becoming a DigiWira as well, primarily because JD Kamaruzaman was one of the five core members, seeing this as a way for her to get closer to their school's bad-boy heartthrob. Now, Gayathri thought, perhaps that wasn't too farfetched a dream – Adam's sister and future brother-in-law had both become Honorary DigiWira, partners to the Saintly Siblings.
'It'll be great if Dina and Bel also become Honorary DigiWira,' Gayathri mused silently, now watching as Lalamon and Lopmon hesitantly moved away from Floramon, who was counting in a sing-song voice. She had to smile upon the ridiculed looks on their faces. 'It'll be good for Lalamon and Lopmon too, after losing Ophanimon.'
The doorbell rang. Gayathri whipped her head back, towards the direction of the house gate; her brown hair sent cascading down her back. The automatic gate was opened from the insides, letting in the girls Bel and Dina. She smiled, especially when upon the sights of the two girls, Lalamon and Lopmon stopped paying attention to Floramon instantly.
'It does look like the beginning of a beautiful friendship.'
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"So, despite the fact that I already know of your plan," said Lucemon in a condescending manner, in the darkness of the main hall of the Onyx Pyramid, "do explain for the benefit of the others."
"We decided to work together in this one," Shawujinmon explained, glancing sideways to his fellow comrade Astamon. "But, we're going to do this by separating the team up. Divide and conquer. I will attack one faction of the group, Astamon will attack the other half. We've also acquired the help of two Megas for this one, particularly against the Mega-level angels to keep them out of the way."
"You might remember the Avian Shines," Astamon supplied, sounding proud of himself.
"The Avian Shines areUltimates, may I remind you," Doumon stated. "They are indeed strong, but against Aldiyamon Juara Mode and GuardiAngemon, not to mention the other four regular Wira Digital, they won't stand a chance."
"Aldiyamon alone will be able to trash them, despite being in the same element," Persiamon agreed.
"The Avian Shines are Megas now," Shawujinmon said, sounding as if he resented being questioned. "After freeing them, we've used a portion of our power earlier to make them ascend to Mega."
"That changes things a bit now, doesn't it," Lucemon said approvingly, boring holes against the Kappa and Majin Generals' minds with his piercing ice-blue eyes. "And indeed, their Mega forms retain the same element they have had. They will be a match against Aldiyamon and GuardiAngemon."
"Ha!" Astamon cast the Virago and Shaman Generals a triumphant look. "We did think this plan through."
"What plan?" Persiamon retorted with a haughty tone. "You've only got the Avian Shines. I haven't heard of any guarantee that this plan would be a success." She chuckled snidely, twirling her crimson claws which emitted a red sheen amidst the darkness. "I'm willing to bet that anything you've come up with, it won't have the same effect as mine. One DigiWira will die in two and a half weeks from now. When he goes, the partner also goes. From five, they'll become four."
"If you're so great, you'd kill him instantly," Shawujinmon returned. "But of course you wouldn't…or rather, couldn't. Satriamon trashed you the second time you fought."
"You've said it!" Astamon clapped Shawujinmon's back.
Persiamon shook her head. "If you think I'm going to resort to the ways of you alpha-males," she said, giving them a cold glare, "then you're seriously mistaken." The Virago General shot them a superior grin. "Satriamon and I were rather evenly-matched the last time we fought, I'll give him that. But when it's the mind that's concerned, I am the superior and as the result, the Wira Digital will be one member short soon. Now, does anybody else have come up with such a brilliant plan? Hah! I think not!"
She saw Doumon's face darkened at this comment, and could even sense Lucemon's slighttwitch of facial muscles upon her scathing comment. Nevertheless, it had served to get her point across. Her plan was indeed brilliant, and she was willing to wait to see the fruits of her result. Satriamon, or rather, the human that consisted the flaming dragon warrior, would die soon, and with him gone his partner would follow, and Persiamon wouldn't have to even lift a finger on that matter.
"Hmph," Astamon snorted. "While you wait for that flame boy to die, we're gonna finish off the others in no time. Then we'll see who's gonna have the last laugh!"
Persiamon waved at Astamon and Shawujinmon airily. "Whatever. In any case, I wish you the best of luck." She yawned. "Alright, I'm leaving. Time for my catnap."
She sauntered away with a small giggle, leaving Astamon and Shawujinmon seething.
"Calm down. You should know that she's not called the Virago General for nothing," Lucemon said. "It's high time that you prove her wrong, eh?"
The comment caused the Majin and Kappa Generals to blink in confusion. Lucemon usually favored Persiamon, but now he was voicing his support for them?
"Shouldn't you also know by now that I can read your thoughts?"
"Yikes," Astamon flustered. "But, that's like saying that we shouldn't think when you're nearby!" he protested.
"It shouldn't be so difficult, for you," Lucemon said so calmly, that it was hard to discern whether he was intending to insult, or merely stating a fact, "But prove me wrong. I've read your thoughts, and I know of your plan. I must say that you've exceeded my expectations." He stood up and stepped down from his throne. "Go. I must be off, Mystimon and Jetsilphymon have just informed me of something that I need to see it with my own eyes in order to believe it."
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WIRA DIGITAL
Chapter 57 – Storm Descending
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Liu Ying pondered upon Sunday's battle as she watched for her brother playing by the seesaws with some other group of kids at the playground. It had plagued her mind constantly and the only one who could give her the answer was uncooperative. Yet, in retrospect, she knew something was up, no matter how hard one particular blond boy tried to hide it.
For the past three days, she had tried cornering JD every chance she had got, wanting to ask JD about the strange cat-apparition that had struck Xianamon when she attempted to heal Satriamon, as well as JD's sudden return to his brooding habit. Liu Ying had occasionally seen JD brood about at school, but at that time she couldn't care less of what JD was doing. She had disliked the boy so intensely, and the dislike was toned down a little when JD joined the DigiWira team, until the misunderstanding they had was finally resolved in that cave of spiders. They became friends…no, friends would be an understatement. Good friends, she decided, would be a better term.
Good friends that exchanged text messages practically every night and not actually once every night. Her mother had wondered why her phone's prepaid credit seemed to have run low so quickly. But she soon suspected that her daughter had found herself a boyfriend, and despite Liu Ying denying it, her mother didn't pursue the matter further.
Yet, the messages stopped, approximately after their return from the 1500s. Liu Ying wondered why; JD was the one who would instigate the chains of SMS, and she would just go along. It was always like that. She wouldn't send a message first, simply because she didn't want to humor the blonde boy into thinking that she had fallen to his charms, as he had once pointed out. Nowadays, she was actually tempted to text him, but that was hampered by his somewhat bland attitude towards her after Sunday's battle. He wasn't hostile, but Liu Ying thought that he'd lost his usual luster too.
Gone was the usual flirty remarks from his side, his conversation with her had sounded somewhat forced, or rather, guarded.
It was as if he had something to hide.
---
"So," she said conversationally, managing to catch JD by the fountain – the place where he usually brooded when he was at school. "How are you doing?"
JD looked at her strangely. "What do you mean?"
"Come on." Liu Ying thought that her inquiry was rather obvious. "Adam moved out yesterday, right? I was just wondering how you feel about that?"
JD shifted uncomfortably. A frown appeared on his face. "Could get a bit used to. Why?"
Liu Ying was taken aback slightly; the last bit of the sentence had come out as a demand rather than a normal query. But she shrugged it off; perhaps she was reading all these too closely. JD did have a rather intimidating persona.
"It's just that, you two are so close. I think it's rather strange for you to be here, brooding about." JD merely raised his eyebrow, which Liu Ying didn't exactly find to be encouraging. But if she wanted to ask him about what was troubling him, she supposed she'd have to ignore his attitude for the time being. "Adam was looking for you actually, when I met him at the canteen."
"I'll meet him later. Or maybe when we're heading back to our homes." He shrugged.
The dismissal tone in JD's voice unnerved Liu Ying. It wasn't like JD to sound so offhand when it came to Adam. Something was definitely off. She couldn't take it anymore.
"JD, is something wrong?" She allowed a tone of exasperation to escape her voice. JD's attitude had struck her as very odd. She knew JD doted on his cousin a lot since they were made known of this fact. She even remembered how JD had shadowed Adam's every movement the first few days after the discovery; it was rather humorous for her and the other DigiWira, but they knew why – hadn't they all thought that Adam had died? So naturally, when he was revealed to be still alive, the family would be the first to become so overprotective of him. In Adam's case – JD was that said overprotective family.
It didn't seem to be because JD and Adam had fought – she couldn't think of any reason why the cousins would fight. Or maybe, she'd thought wrong. Better make sure. "Did you and Adam have a fight before Adam left your house?"
JD started. "What the hell? Why would I fight Adam?"
His response was vehement; Liu Ying knew that it was true. So they didn't fight. But JD didn't answer her question. "I don't know. You tell me."
"We didn't fight. Whatever gave you that idea?"
Liu Ying shrugged. JD grumbled, glaring at her. She thought he seemed to be contemplating his words.
"We didn't fight, okay! You can ask Adam that if you don't believe me. In fact, we parted on good terms."
"But you don't like it." Liu Ying was treading on thin ice now. JD had, in his annoyance, also let out a tone that sounded somewhat upset. Or dissatisfaction. Or maybe both.
JD scoffed, but didn't answer. The bell rang, signing the end of the recess period. "Shouldn't you get going?" he asked, before standing up and left without a word.
---
The conversation had taken place on Tuesday, the day after Adam returned to his sister. Liu Ying hadn't got the chance to even ask the blonde teen about the mysterious cat apparition. She had immediately made a mental note to wrestle the information out from JD when school let out, but both JD and Adam were gone before she could find them. Times like that, she totally resented having to be on prefect duty, but then decided that perhaps she would be luckier the next day…which was this morning.
---
"This is getting old," JD remarked, when Liu Ying found him not by his usual brooding spot, but a place more common – the basketball court. The boy had traded his school shirt for a black T-shirt, and was currently alone at the court, shooting some basketballs. He was alone; apparently he had made it clear that he didn't want to be disturbed prior to the solitary game. Liu Ying knew this simply because she had overheard a group of boys grumbling about JD wanting to be alone at the court, and if they knew what was good for them, they'd leave.
"Don't worry, I'm not here to drill you about whether you and Adam have fought."
"How comforting." JD shot the basketball, causing it to go through the loop impressively.
"Nice shot." Liu Ying decided that perhaps a little warm-up conversation wouldn't hurt. It would perhaps benefit, even.
JD shrugged. "Okay, what do you want to know? Or are you simply here to stare at me, like those girls over there?"
Liu Ying blinked; she hadn't realized that there were others around the empty court. She soon saw them retreating from the corner of the school's Block A, their giggles so faint that she would have missed them if JD didn't point them out for her.
"Very funny," she said, rolling her eyes. At least JD was warmer today. Well, here goes. "Remember Sunday? When I tried to heal you…this cat thing suddenly appeared? I was wondering what was that all about. It was kind of spooky."
"Never thought you're one who's easily spooked." JD made another perfect throw, somewhat effortlessly.
"Don't change the subject."
He shrugged. "I don't know." He proceeded to retrieve the ball and began doing some dribbles. Seeing that Liu Ying was giving him a skeptical look, he snorted. "What?"
"Why do I find that so hard to believe?"
"Why don't you want to believe me?" he countered, throwing the ball again towards the loop. But this time, he missed – the ball made a huge racket when it came into contact with the metallic loop instead of going through it. He cursed colorfully under his breaths.
Liu Ying saw that something had disrupted JD's attention – it shouldn't be too hard for him to make another perfect throw.
"You made me heal you longer than I should have that day," she pointed out. "You moved my hands over your chest, though I didn't recall seeing any injury there. You said that you felt pain there so I thought that perhaps it was an internal injury. Then this creepy cat appeared, and struck me, and became a ball of black light before going back into your chest…" She heaved a deep breath, watching carefully as a disturbed look crossed JD's face. "It was weird, that's all. You can't blame me for asking you all these. And don't even say that nothing is wrong."
"Look," JD said, not bothering to get the ball that he had missed. He was gazing towards her piercingly, though not menacing. "Mind your own business, okay?"
Liu Ying didn't expect this hostility. She was only concerned, and JD had pushed her away so rudely. She'd thought that the blond would open up to her; he did it without prompting during that time when he had accidentally injured Adam.
"Fine." She turned around and was about to leave, before turning her head back, looking at JD across her shoulders. "I'll ask the others then. Maybe they know something."
She was about to walk away, when her wrist was grabbed so suddenly and so forcefully. She was pulled back with such strength that it almost pulled her off the cemented ground. JD loomed over her, and the look on his face made her blood ran cold. She didn't know why, but this was the JD that nobody dared to mess around with. And it occurred to her, that even during their period of enmity, JD had never given her such forbidding look. The look JD was giving her now was akin to how he looked when he was the Red ShadoWira.
"Don't." That was all he said, before he let go of her wrist. The forbidding look on his face vanished. He looked at her with an unreadable expression, somewhat apologetic as his gaze trailed towards the wrist where he had grabbed her so tightly just seconds ago. Then with a grunt he walked away, leaving Liu Ying bewildered.
---
She totally didn't expect JD to act so brashly towards her that way. It wasn't like him; well, at least, not to the team. JD didn't actually hurt her, but the intensity of that single word he had uttered before letting go of her wrist really went inside her heart. It wasn't an order, nor was it a threat. Underneath the growl-like voice JD had used, Liu Ying had also caught a hint of plea within, masked by roughness. The fact that Liu Ying knew that JD wouldn't hurt her made her able to hear past the growl.
So it has to be something connected to that strange cat thing, Liu Ying deduced.And JD's afraid that I'll go to the others about this. But…what's he so afraid about? Everyone, sans Manny, saw how he was in pain after Magnadramon attacked him. And he expected us not to ask about it? Who does he think we are?
She sighed resolutely. She hadn't approached anybody about this – JD had asked her not to, she wanted to think it as that. But who didn't JD want her to approach? Their teammates? The Digimon?
JD, what are you hiding?
The winds suddenly picked up, and she was snapped out of her thoughts. Her long black hair was pulled up by the winds with such a force that her head felt like it was yanked up by an unseen force. Tingling sounds were heard from the sky, and she looked up, eyes widened to witness an oval gateway opening. Her Digivice blinked, Labramon had detected another Digimon's presence. Quickly she looked for Liu Meng, as the other women there gathered their children. She could hear a loud avian screech coming from the gateway, and as she pulled her dumbstruck brother from the seesaw he was on, she looked up and saw a great white bird emerging.
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JD heaved his breaths slowly, clutching his heart as he leaned towards a tree. Sweat trailed down his face and arms as a mild pain erupted from his heart. It forced him to control his breathing. Breathe too hard, and the pain became more acute. But after a few seconds, the pain began to dissipate and he was able to breathe again.
"Damn it…" he growled. It was the accursed tattoo again, always making its presence known when he strained himself too hard. 'Goddamn it, it's only a simple jogging!'
Manny caught up with him; he and JD were jogging together that afternoon, but JD would always attempt to lose him by picking up speed. Manny had sensed that the older boy wasn't in the mood to talk, having just mentioned about his conversation with Liu Ying earlier before Manny could say anything. He offered his hand, but JD slapped it away.
"Damnit, I'm not helpless!"
"I've never said you were," Manny returned quietly. "I just want to help."
JD muttered something before pushing himself back up. His breathings became even, he no longer looked pained. "I'm alright," he panted.
"Maybe we should stop." Manny could clearly see that the blond was far from alright.
"No, really, I'm fine." JD jogged away, and this forced Manny to follow him.
The reason Manny had asked JD for a round of jogging together that afternoon was of course, to ask him about the tattoo. Gayathri had told him of Magnadramon inducing some heart pain for JD, and she didn't know how to ask JD about it herself, so she had asked him to ask for her. Manny's alarm was instantly set off; he knew that Magnadramon wasn't the real cause of the tattoo, but somehow the dragon had managed to lift the protection Hang Tuah had given JD back in the 1500s. He'd wanted to talk to JD since Sunday, but JD had been preoccupied on both Sunday and Monday, helping Adam pack as well as spending time with his cousin before he moved out. Tuesday, Manny had promised to take Debbie out to the playground, so that left him with this day. Since he was the only other DigiWira who knew about the cursed tattoo, Manny had expected that JD would be willing to tell him about the tattoo.
He had thought wrong. Despite agreeing to his offer, JD refused to talk about anything that concerned the tattoo. Liu Ying had tipped him off earlier, saying that the blonde wasn't in the mood to talk about his cousin's departure either. The reason JD accepted the offer to jog together, Manny soon realized, was to test how far he could go with physical strains until the tattoo induced the pain.
The clear sky suddenly thundered, causing the two teens to halt in alarm. Bolts of thunder coalesced in the sky, colliding against each other before forming a gateway. JD cursed, and Manny's eyes widened as a humanoid in white emerged from the gateway. It was a magnificent sight; the humanoid bore avian qualities, judging from his white helmet that was patterned to look like a white falcon. This humanoid, clearly male, had a golden shield on one arm and a long sword brandished with his right hand. A golden metal falcon orbited around him as he looked down towards the two DigiWira.
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"Now?" asked Astamon impatiently. "I'm so itching to see my sweetheart already!"
"Not yet," said Shawujinmon, scanning the ground from the safety of the skies. He saw one of the Avian Shines – Valdurmon – emerging at a distance, where they had previously seen one of the DigiWira girl, and had quickly ordered the majestic bird to go there. Then, noticing the former villainous ShadoWira together, he had decided to pinpoint Valkyrimon, the humanoid Avian Shine, towards their locations. Valdurmon and Valkyrimon would be too strong for Xianamon, Satriamon and Samudramon, and soon, Shawujinmon expected, that Aldiyamon Juara Mode would be called in for battle. His plan would work beautifully if GuardiAngemon appeared too.
"There!" With glee, the Kappa and Majin Generals watched as Aldiyamon and GuardiAngemon appeared from a complex of buildings, speeding towards the threats of the day. Aldiyamon made a swerve towards the location where Satriamon and Samudramon were seen battling Valkyrimon, while GuardiAngemon sped ahead towards Valdurmon and Xianamon. "Right. Now Astamon, remember the plan."
"Of course I do," Astamon huffed. "What I'm curious about is – why you're going with me instead of that fishtailed Wira Digital?"
Shawujinmon gave a sinister beaked smile. "When we're done with the flower girl, Samudramon is as good as destroyed too. It's like killing two Birdramon with one stone."
Astamon sighed. "I wish we wouldn't have to eliminate my sweetheart…she and I look so good together."
Shawujinmon looked like he wanted to gag. "You know too well that she won't want to be with you, no matter how hard you try. Stop dreaming already. And besides," the Kappa General observed his two hands, "we've invested a lot in making sure that this plan is fruitful. We will have to work together."
"I still don't get much of it," Astamon said. "Why do we really need the Avian Shines? We could have just attack the Wira Digital together in our Mega forms."
"You're forgetting one thing," Shawujinmon pointed out. "All of us Darkshadows have the element of darkness powering us, although not as concentrated as the Puaka Generals'. Due to this, we're not strong enough, one on one, against a Mega Digimon empowered by light. I still have my doubts should I go up against Aldiyamon Juara Mode."
"So? There are two of us, in case you're forgetting. Angel boy can't beat us both," Astamon said vehemently.
"You're forgetting that the Saintly Siblings now side with Aldiyamon. Aldiyamon Juara Mode and GuardiAngemon, as well as four other Wira Digital, will be more than we can handle. Just look at what happened to the Puaka Generals," explained Shawujinmon. "The Puaka Generals as Belphemon and Daemon were both powerful, but Aldiyamon was able to garner the powers from everyone and delivered the most concentrated form of his light attack against them. And might I remind you that the Puaka Generals were both superior than us in terms of power, in case you forgot."
"Oh…"
"Now you know why we need the Avian Shines, who are both creatures of light," Shawujinmon concluded. "They serve as decoys so that Aldiyamon and GuardiAngemon won't interfere with our plan. I've seen how Aldiyamon Juara Mode was against Magnadramon, also a creature of light; they were at an even footing. None was more powerful than the other."
Astamon grinned, clasping both hands together. "And with the angels battling the Avian Shines, we – even in our Ultimate forms – will be able to take down one Wira Digital."
Shawujinmon smiled back, eyes glinting. "Precisely."
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"Something's up," Gayathri said, as an explosion was heard coming from a direction quite far from where she was. She winced, watching the sky as flocks of birds scampered away from the direction where the explosion had come from. There was a hint of burning smell as well, though she couldn't be sure. Shrieks and sounds of car horns blaring however were proofs that something indeed was awry.
"Digimon!" Floramon gasped, looking around her. No Digimon other than her, Lalamon and Lopmon were around, but what else could it be? There was this tingling feeling that she couldn't explain, but being a Digimon she could, in a way, sense any Digimon nearby. Though her senses were not as acute as Labramon's, she was more in tune with the winds and nature, and they enhanced her senses. She didn't see it, or them, but through the winds and nature, she could tell that there were other Digimon close by. And dangerous ones, at that.
"Oh, no," Dina gasped softly as the girls stood up from the stools at Gayathri's garden.
The automatic gate suddenly opened and the family's Mercedes Benz swerved in at top speed. Gayathri flinched as the car came to a complete stop, and the driver seat's door flung open, admitting Anding out. The man looked visibly flustered as his eyes met Gayathri's.
"I saw a giant bird attacking near your school, Xianamon and someone who looks remarkably like her are fighting it," he informed breathlessly. "And a man in white is battling Satriamon and Samudramon at the area where I think that JD kid stays at. And when I'm on my way back here I saw the angels – Aldiyamon and GuardiAngemon – coming from Adam's place. Aldiyamon's gonna help Satriamon and Samudramon from the looks of it, and GuardiAngemon was headed towards Xianamon and the giant bird."
"I should go," Gayathri said to her friends and Anding, gesturing for Floramon to follow her. "They need my help."
"Good luck, girl," Bel said and gave her best friend a thumb-up for encouragement.
"Be careful," Dina whispered, eyes shining with worry.
"I will. Floramon, c'mon."
They were just about to step out from the house, when a foreboding sight greeted them. Pillars of waters burst from the roads which had just been repaired from the earlier fight the neighborhood had suffered. Sounds of machinegun blared all around. Gayathri let out a gasp; she knew exactly who could have caused this. The perpetrators weren't exactly making the effort to not let their presences to be known. She took out her Digivice with shivering hand, and called out the Digital Access command.
Puspamon flew amidst the chaos and reached the municipal center, where Shawujinmon and Astamon stood in midair, back to back. Great. Just great. It just have to be them, again! She channeled her powers into her hands. Against the generals, she'd have to be prepared for anything.
"Ah, sweetheart, you're here!" Astamon leered at her, looking ecstatic of her appearance. "I've been wondering when you're gonna show up!"
"Get lost from my world, you two!" Puspamon summoned her power to launch an attack."Hibiscus Hurricane!"
With a snort, Shawujinmon moved in front of Astamon and spun his black staff, countering Puspamon's energy hurricane easily. He then unleashed a blast of cold water upon the sprite, drenching her from top to bottom in just a matter of seconds. Without wasting time he launched himself towards the distracted Wira Digital, his glowing Demon Quelling Staff raised high to knock down Puspamon.
"Not a chance!" Puspamon summoned her own Black Rose Staff and countered the villain's weapon. A clang ensued as their weapons came into contact. However, strength-wise she couldn't match her bigger foe, and was pushed away instantly; Shawujinmon was bigger than her, and thus stronger. With a low growl that was so uncharacteristic of her, she whipped her head up and launched her Sprite Scream, catching her foe off guard. She watched with satisfaction as the Kappa General was blasted away by the intensity of her supersonic scream, launched at point-blanc range. But her victory was short-lived; her back was grazed by flames, causing her to scream.
"It'll be easier if you just agree to be my life partner." Astamon gazed at Puspamon as she turned around.
"Can't you just take a hint?" Puspamon's body glimmered with pink light. She grunted, and a pink apparition of her soared out from her body, surrounded by flower petals. "Jelita Shocker, Powered Up Mode!"
"Hellfire!" Astamon's flames were intense, but Puspamon's sprite streaked through them before slamming against Astamon. The demon in the suit was pushed towards a lamp pole, denting it in a weird angle in the process.
She was going to attack again, but a powerful blast of water struck her from the back. Puspamon whirled around and saw Shawujinmon. She turned her head back front and Astamon leered at her. She could overpower one general, but then the other would stop her. Her friends were distracted with other threats at two other locations. A suspicion dawned upon her; somehow she felt that this time around, she was the main target of the Darkshadow Brethren, as Aldiyamon had been just last weekend. They were focusing their forces on her, and had sent other Digimon to stop her friends from helping her.
It was up to her to protect her neighborhood from these two villains. From the distance she could see flashes of lights dancing in the air. Her friends couldn't help her even if they wanted to.
"Your friends won't come." Astamon snickered, and with a flick of his hand a blade appeared in his hand. He grabbed hold on it and grinned. "They have other pressing matters to attend to."
Shawujinmon pointed his staff towards Puspamon, and instead of talking he just released a high-pressurized jet of water upon Puspamon. Puspamon tried evading the attack but the water followed, drenching her translucent fairy wings. Then a series of blades were sent her way, and she was forced to soar upward, but by doing so she was hit by another stream of water. The laughs of the two generals echoed as they closed in on her, ready to strike at their fullest.
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"Oh no…Gaya…" Dina whispered, witnessing the battle from Gayathri's house.
"Where are the others when you need them?" Belinda could feel her heart palpating heavily against her chest. She was worried for her friend. While she knew Puspamon was strong, could she match the power of the two creatures that were now battling her? She gazed at Lopmon. "Can't you help her?"
"I wish we could," Lopmon sighed, her large ears drooped down. "But without an external power source to recharge us, we're stuck in our Rookie forms."
"Lucemon's made sure of that," Lalamon added, her eyes narrowed. Puspamon's scream could be heard as the attacks from Shawujinmon and Astamon slammed upon her. "But," she gazed at Lopmon, "Gayathri and Floramon have been so kind to us. Powers or not, we should help them." The vegetation Digimon's voice was hard, despite being squeaky as well. Her determination was apparent.
Lopmon was the more hesitant of the two. "But…" She gazed at the two human girls, and her heart suddenly felt their worry. Puspamon was in grave danger. She couldn't imagine how these girls would feel if the generals were able to delete her. Reminded of their own pain of losing Ophanimon, she knew that she couldn't let these generals win. Ophanimon had raised her; the pain she was feeling was too much to be put to words. The murderers had been deleted, but these were their cohorts, and they must be deleted too, to ensure that no one else suffered the same fate Ophanimon had. She'd make sure of it. "Yes. Let's do it, Lalamon."
Lopmon flapped her ears, using them as wings to soar towards the sky. Lalamon followed close by, having the ability to levitate.
"Wait!" Dina cried out. "It's dangerous for you to go out there! Stay here where it's safe."
Lalamon turned around. "Not even this house is safe if the Darkshadows aren't stopped. We can't do much, but we'll do what we can."
Bel merely let out a gasp; Puspamon was flung towards their direction, and crashed upon a car parked just outside their house. Sounds of broken glass prevailed, before the car's alarm went off. Puspamon groaned as she struggled to move, but her body was bruised and battered all over – the generals had relentlessly assaulted her. The girls looked up and saw them descending towards Puspamon. One had his crescent-tipped staff ready, the pointed end glinted dangerously, and the other had unleashed his machinegun.
"Goodbye, sweetheart," the more demonic of the two said. "I wish you'd agree, but since you don't return my feelings, I'm just making a fool of myself. I'll have to rid you once and for all!"
"And nobody should interfere," the white-garbed villain said, looking at the incoming Lalamon and Lopmon with a sneer. He headed towards the two Rookies, weapon ready to strike as his comrade cocked his machinegun, the sounds of bullet being loaded was heard.
"No!! Puspamon!"
"Lalamon! Lopmon!"
Dina and Belinda's cries suddenly unleashed waves of dark red and orange aura from their very beings. The lights washed upon Lalamon and Lopmon, and they froze in stasis in midair, while also pushing the villain away. Empowered screams were heard from the Rookies, and when the lights subsided they were no longer there. In their place, miraculously, were the lithe figures of Rosemon and D'Arcmon. The women marveled at their sudden digivolutions, before both of them launched their assaults towards the generals.
"Roses Rapier!" Rosemon's vines elongated into a pointed rapier, coated with spiraling pink energy, and slapped away Shawujinmon. The demon was sent crashing against a tree.
"Beauty Stunner!" From her scepter D'Arcmon fired a pink thunderbolt towards Astamon's machinegun, but it was deflected by the metallic weapon, much to her dismay.
"More wenches!" Shawujinmon's snarl was drowned by a massive stream of water he unleashed from his staff. He attempted to hit Rosemon with the water stream, but the nimble fairy evaded the waters by flying around the stream with quickness that couldn't be matched by his attack. Snarling again, he slammed the staff into the ground and caused pillars of water to burst out from the cracks. That effectively slammed Rosemon, sending her crashing towards the ground. "You're a Mega, but you have powers similar to an Ultimate! You can't beat me! Crescent Moon Slash!"
A diagonal slash was made, forming a crescent energy projectile which plummeted towards Rosemon, who had just crashed onto the road. She glowed with pink light and counterattacked with her Forbidden Temptation, canceling out Shawujinmon's attack. But she wasn't ready for a second attack; another crescent projectile sliced through the energy wave she was emitting, and struck her squarely on the abdomen. She let out a scream, and the wave she was projecting died down.
"Huh. Just like a woman," Shawujinmon grunted.
"You'll regret saying that," Rosemon growled, trying to get up, but was too weak to do so.
Meanwhile, D'Arcmon summoned her swordsmanship skill to give Astamon a decent fight. Wielding two swords at once, she slashed them alternately against Astamon, wielding the force of her Battement d'Amor technique. In terms of power, she wasn't Astamon's match, being only a Champion, but her profound swordsmanship more than made up for her lack of power. She slashed and thrust her swords with rapid vehemence, not giving Astamon any chance to retaliate. Yet, Astamon was revealed to be equally skillful, parrying the swords with his metallic machinegun which served as his shield. Every strike launched by the golden-winged angel was countered by his gun, but he could do nothing else.
"Excellent skills," Astamon commented with a leer, and sneaked a look by delivering an upward kick which lifted the navy blue tunic she had in between her legs. He whistled.
"PERVERT!" D'Arcmon slashed her long sword at Astamon's feet, causing the general to reel in pain.
With a loud cry, D'Arcmon called for more power, abandoned her long swords as she took out a broad sword which was slung on her back. The sword was heavier, but far greater than her long swords. The broad sword allowed for her only to thrust it forward, but the force that came with it – the La Pucelle – was as forceful as an Ultimate's attack. With it, Astamon's machinegun was threatened to split – a glaring hole was now visible at the center of the machinegun.
"You're quite powerful for a Champion," grunted Astamon as D'Arcmon pushed her heavy sword further. "But now I'll show you my real power. Maverick!"
D'Arcmon gasped upon noticing a very bizarre phenomenon happening to Astamon. The general let out a growl as all over his body, bulges took form. The fabric of his pressed suit began to rip, revealing tips of blades that emerged from all over his body – his chest, abdomen, shoulders, arms, lower thighs; all had blades jutting out from them. The rips on his clothes became wider as the blades grew longer, and Astamon writhed in what looked like a combination of pain and ecstasy. In her bewilderment, D'Arcmon had inadvertently decreased the force of her thrust, and gasped when Astamon laughed. His clothes exploded, save for parts that covered his modesty, and D'Arcmon was blasted with hundreds of blades that flew out from Astamon's body. The pain was unimaginable – it was like being thrust into a pit with spikes – that was how the angel felt when the blades flew through her body in various sites.
A low gasp of pain, and D'Arcmon exploded into data particles. With a laugh, Astamon extended his hand forward and absorbed the orange data particles. He ran his tongue over his lips. "Yum…"
"NOOO!!!"
Rosemon got back up on her feet; her anguished cry was downright fearsome, her tiredness forgotten entirely. She was just recovering from the death of Ophanimon, and now she had witnessed the death of D'Arcmon. The pain in her heart was unbearable. Her whole body shivered in grief, tears cascaded down her cheeks. With a roar of fury, she lashed out her vines towards the Majin General.
"Thorn Whip!"
The whip wrapped around Astamon, but Shawujinmon cut it with the bladed edge of his staff. Angrily Rosemon lashed out again, this time wrapping the vines around the staff. Unfortunately, Shawujinmon had used this as a way to seize her whip, by forcefully pulling the vines that was wrapped around her body. She was flung towards the ground, laceration marks evident on her upper arms and body resulted from the thorny vines as they were removed from her body.
"So you like whipping others up. How about I give you a taste of your own medicine?" Shawujinmon lambasted the thorny vines upon Rosemon, whipping her without mercy. The flower woman's screams were like music to his ears.
"Stop it!"
Laser-spewing tulips destroyed the vines, and Shawujinmon saw that Puspamon had gotten back up. The sprite was injured, but she had persevered, ready to face them off again. She stood before Rosemon defensively. D'Arcmon was deleted before her mercilessly; she wasn't about to let Rosemon suffer the same fate.
"Sweetheart, you've seen what I can do…" Astamon began, grinning at her wickedly. "How about you reconsider-"
"Shove it!" Puspamon snarled. Her body shook in fury. "You vicious demon! You killed D'Arcmon just like that! How could you?"
"Sweetheart, I'm the bad guy. It's what I do."
"Stop calling me sweetheart! And enough with your offers! Not interested, never will be! Jelita Shocker!"
Astamon shook his head and used his knives to tear the flowers launched towards him. "You broke my heart, sweetheart. Now," he said casually, pointing his gun towards – to Puspamon's horror – her house. His target was her best friends and her driver who was also there. Astamon saw her reaction and laughed out loud, "I can kill them all just as easily as I deleted D'Arcmon. Humans are a lot more fragile than Champion-level Digimon."
The sound of bullets being loaded was chillingly obvious against the sudden stillness of the surrounding. Then without waiting for her answer, Astamon shot several concentrated energy bullets towards the gate. The gate was blown up into data particles when the bullets slammed upon it, exposing Dina, Bel and Anding. They were now in grave danger, without the gate to protect them.
"STOP!" Puspamon shouted desperately, launching herself towards Astamon. She attempted to initiate her Sprite Scream, but a strong blast of water from Shawujinmon forced her back.
Rosemon flew up and attempted to release her Forbidden Temptation – the only attack she was left with, after her vines were seized – but failed as well when Shawujinmon slammed a jet of water upon her. She was blasted towards the girls and Anding, and dedigivolved back into Lalamon.
"Fine, I get it. You're not interested, so I won't offer you any chances anymore," said Astamon, sounding as if he was disappointed. "You broke my heart, sweetheart. A heartbroken Astamon isn't one you'd like to see…it makes me want to go for a killing spree, as I've done three hundred years ago, before Grademon cornered and sealed me! Now, I'll start with the three humans! Who's first?" With a crazed cackle he pointed his gun towards Dina. "Eeny…"
Dina screamed, and Lalamon quickly moved to protect her. Astamon snorted, and moved his gun to point towards Bel.
"Meeny…"
"STOP! Jelita Shocker…Powered Up…AGGHH!!"
Shawujinmon had launched another blast of high-pressurized water against Puspamon, nullifying her attempt to attack Astamon. Puspamon quickly shook off the water, and summoned more power, but was once again showered by waters. Shawujinmon was chuckling, and Astamon had even stopped from taunting the humans to look at his comrade toying around with the fairy Wira Digital. Then, with a deadly laugh, the Majin General whipped around, cocked his gun, and blasted an energy bullet towards Anding. "MOE!"
Screaming in horror, Puspamon immediately utilized her super speed and raced towards Anding, appearing before the terrified man just in time to intercept Astamon's attack. The energy bullet slammed upon her back – but she was an Ultimate Digimon, and a strong one at that – the bullet did nothing more than singing her wings and perhaps exerting a terrible force on her back. She was injured; blood trickled out of her mouth as her head slumped into Anding's body. But she was alive, and she'd saved Anding from Astamon's attack.
"Thank…goodness…"
"Oh, damn…I've forgotten to say Miny!"
Puspamon heard another sound of cocking gun, and the next blast of energy bullet was so unexpectedly quick that she had no time to react. She saw the bullet heading towards Dina and Bel. Quickly she went towards the two girls, wanting to save them, but Shawujinmon's heavy staff slammed upon her with such sheer force that Puspamon could hear a cracking sound from her right shoulder. She screamed in agony as the heavy staff pushed her away, causing her to collide with her family car. The car was dented and Puspamon crashed through the car's rear window, trapped within it. She screamed, struggling to break free but to no avail. She lifted her head and screamed in horror, seeing how Bel moved over to protect Dina, and…
"NOOO!!"