Disclaimer: Does my name sound like Bandai or Gainax to you?
Thoughts
speech between DNA or biomerge partners
'telepathy between DigiKnights'
Legend of the Holy Dragon 2
The Fate of the World
Chapter 5
Sacchi glanced around their transportation bubble. Something had changed. Kei was staring out of the bubble, a strangely blank expression on her face. Rick huddled in a corner, refusing to meet her eyes. The Digimon moved listlessly. Only Takeshi seemed relatively normal, but he, too was quiet, absorbed in his thoughts.
She sighed and stretched out her legs. She just could not figure it out. Rick she could understand; given his personality, he was probably blaming himself for what had happened just a few hours ago with Jadgmon.
Pekomon flicked her tail restlessly beside her. Sacchi could sense her partner's anger and frustration at not having protected her from Jadgmon. Instinctly, she reached out and stroked the cat Digimon's fur. Pekomon purred lightly and relaxed.
It was Kei who worried her. Normally, the other girl was cheerful, optimistic. Now, it seemed that she was drained of all feeling.
None of them knew, but Sacchi had heard something while she drifted in and out of consciousness after being severely hurt by Jadgmon. After Master Dracomon had devolved, after Takeshi's shield had fallen. She had heard a voice that sounded like an empty desert, like death itself. A voice which had defeated Jadgmon.
She knew that it could only have been Kei.
What could have happened to make the other girl become an empty shell like that?
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What happened back there?
Takeshi replayed the scene in his mind.
Green lasers streaked towards the group. He whipped around, taking in the new threat. Quickly, he pulled out a few chips and slotted them.
"Chip Activate! Defense Boost! Titanium Web! Titan's Buckler!"
A huge shield appeared in front of them, laced through with think cords of rainbow coloured metal.
The lasers bounced off his shield. A momentary burst of triumph ran through him: his idea had worked. Not letting his guard down, he fed his strength to the shield and added the strength of Shaulamon, who had come to help.
Volley after volley of lasers rained down on the shield. Takeshi gritted his teeth, feeling a slight strain in maintaining. Still, he pushed on. Jadgmon had to stop to recharge sometime.
Suddenly, everything went wrong. A single laser pierced the shield, slashing through his shoulder. Pain seared through him, and in that instant, he forgot the shield. He instinctively grabbed at the wound with his good hand…
And much much more pain exploded through his body as the shield collapsed. His body felt like it was on fire…
Then everything went black.
The next thing he knew, he was perfectly healed, and Jadgmon was gone.
Kei was sitting apart from the rest of them, a hauntingly empty look in her eyes. She was staring into the horizon, as if awaiting something. Kangamon stood beside her, casting worried looks at her partner.
Soon after, Rick and Sacchi had woken, and they had set off for the West Sector.
Takeshi ran his hand through his hair. An image of Master Dracomon appeared in his mind, magnificent yet terrifying.
Rick achieved Biomerge when he saw what Jadgmon had done to Sacchi. It was catalyzed by his anger…
The wielder of the DigiEgg of Fury…
The DigiEggs. Are they the key?
But the other three are Mystic, Solar and Lunar. Not feelings…
Argh! This is so infuriating…
Rick glared at the wall of the bubble. Vipermon lay asleep next to him.
I almost killed a Digimon. I almost took a life.
I promised Uncle I'd never do that.
I nearly broke my promise.
He clenched his fists tightly.
Sacchi nearly got killed because of me.
I couldn't protect her. What if she had… died? How could I have been so stupid? How could I not have noticed Jadgmon's arrival?
It's all my fault…
I swear this will never happen again. I can't…
I can't lose you…
Sacchi…
His fingernails dug into the skin of his palms and broke it. Tiny streams of blood flowed out.
I won't Biomerge again. Ever.
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Kei looked out of the bubble, like she had been doing for the entire trip.
Glowing strands, like a spider's web, as far as she could see.
Let me out.
The bubble shimmered and a blazingly brilliant portal appeared around it.
Then the light took over her vision.
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The Digimon and DigiKnights exited the portal and stepped onto the white marble floor. A thick layer of mist and cloud flowed over the floor and off the stepped edges of the hall. With surprise, Sacchi noticed that the entire hall was floating on a cloud.
Huge, cotton-candy like pillars of cloud spiraled up high, decorated by silky strands in rainbow colours. A constant breeze blew through the hall, veering this way and that, making the strands dance.
In the midst of the delicate beauty of the hall, stood a huge white tiger, magnificent and awe inspiring with its own masculine beauty.
It had blue stripes all over its body with armour on its legs. A circle of yellow DigiCores surrounded its body.
Sacchi scanned the massive Digimon. "Baihumon. Data type Mega. Attacks: Iron Claw, Vajra."
Baihumon spoke in a deep growling voice. "Welcome, DigiKnights of the Central Sector. Qinglongmon has alerted me of your quest in restoring the Digital World to its former glory."
As it spoke, a beautiful crystal appeared in midair. It shone with a faint amber light and clouds seemingly flowed within the crystal. Engraved in it was the symbol of the wind.
"However, before I can entrust you with the West Backup Crystal that I have guarded for centuries, I must test your worth. Are you ready, DigiKnights?"
The DigiKnights and Digimon nodded in unison, save for Kei, who had been staring into the horizon the entire time.
"Please get ready for battle." Baihumon said, flexing its great claws.
With practiced ease, Rick, Sacchi and Takeshi each slotted a chip.
"Chip Activate! Mega Digivolve!"
White, green and blue light flashed and faded to reveal CyberDracomon, MagnaNekomon and WarScorpiodramon, all ready for battle.
It was then that they noticed that Kangamon had not digivolved.
Takeshi could not suppress the worry that snaked through him. "Kei, why didn't you digivolve Kangamon? The battle will begin soon…"
Kei looked at him, and her eyes sent shivers down his spine. They were empty, lifeless. She gave a slight nod of acknowledgement, and turned to Kangamon.
"Kangamon…" Her voice was cold, hollow. Kangamon nodded.
A somehow solemn purple glow enveloped her body, and extended to surround Kangamon. A brilliant flash blinded the others, and when they regained their vision, a violet angel floated before them.
The DigiKnights and Digimon stared, shocked. One thought flashed through all of their minds. So that was how Jadgmon was defeated…
Raising a slightly trembling hand, Takeshi scanned the biomerged Kei and Kangamon.
"Dianthamon. Vaccine type Biomerge. Attacks: Sword of Blossoms, Sunlight Dance, Pain of Loss"
Without preamble, Dianthamon attacked.
"Pain of Loss."
Thousands of petals materialized in the air around her. In the blink of an eye, the petals turned brown and withered. Dianthamon blinked, and the petals shot at Baihumon, so fast that all that was visible of them were streaks of brown.
Baihumon roared as the petals cut deep into its body. Batting aside those that had not hit it yet, it countered.
"Iron Claw!"
Its huge claws gained a brown sheen that glinted in the light filtering through the cloudy layer at the top of the hall.
With extreme speed, the tiger Digimon attacked, rushing at them and slashing. CyberDracomon and WarScorpiodramon got the worst of it, but MagnaNekomon managed to escape with only a slight wound. Dianthamon simply rose higher into the air and fired another wave of petals.
"Holy Light!" MagnaNekomon called out.
A ring of pure white light rippled outwards from her and over the others, healing most of their wounds. Feeling a new surge of strength, CyberDracomon attacked.
"Crimson Flame!"
A huge blast of fire burst out of his hands and shot at Baihumon. The fire blast exploded on contact and for an instant smoke shrouded the entire hall.
"Chip Activate! Night Vision!" Takeshi's voice rang out through the noise of the explosion. A shimmering red band appeared across WarScorpiodramon's eyes and he plunged through the smoke, attacking with deadly accuracy.
"Stinging Slash! Poison Spray!"
The scorpion Digimon's tail flashed forwards and cut a long gash in Baihumon's flank. Immediately, he fired a stream of deep blue liquid poison into the wound.
Baihumon felt the poison begin its work, but ignored it. It would take more than poison to bring this Sovereign down. Growling, it roared out its attack.
"Vajra!"
A huge, translucent bell topped with what seemed like a flower bud made up of five spokes appeared in the air. A loud, echoing clang filled the air, followed by another, and another.
The Digimon and DigiKnights alike staggered. Each felt their will to fight begin to sap. Dianthamon, being a Vaccine type Digimon, was affected the worst. She shuddered in the air before collapsing onto the ground like a fallen angel.
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Within Dianthamon, Kei shuddered as the sound resonated through her body.
Go away. She felt the now familiar push of force against her body, and Baihumon stumbled backwards, a look of surprise on its face.
But the sound remained.
Dianthamon's defenses crumbled, and all she saw was black.
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Takeshi saw Dianthamon devolve into Kei and Kangamon, both unconscious. Worry swept through him and he stumbled across to them, his hands clapped over his ears.
A wave of dizziness caused him to pause, swaying slightly before falling to his knees. With an unstable hand, he managed to slot a chip.
"Chip Activate… Separation Region…"
A ring of black light shot around the group, growing upwards to form a translucent dome.
The sound stopped, unable to punch through the dome.
The Digimon and DigiKnights collapsed out of sheer relief.
"Oh. My. God." Sacchi exclaimed, clutching at her head. "I never want to be on the receiving end of that attack again. Ever!"
"How do we defeat Baihumon? Damn, now I know why it's known as the Sovereign of War." WarScorpiodramon muttered.
Just then, the dome rippled slightly and a tiny strain of Baihumon's Vajra attack seeped in.
"Guys, we don't have much time!" Sacchi cried.
An idea began to form in Takeshi's mind. "Baihumon's attribute is Data, right?"
The others nodded. Suddenly, Rick's eyes widened.
"No."
Takeshi turned to look at him. 'Rick, we're running out of time. You have to do it!'
Rick clenched his fists. 'I can't… I… might lose control again… I can't let that happen again!'
Sacchi looked between the two. "Uh… are you guys doing that telepathy thing?"
Both boys blinked. "Oh, sorry, Sacchi," Takeshi said sheepishly. "Ok, here's the plan. Sacchi and Pekomon, look after Kei and Kangamon. Rick and I will go out there and stop that attack."
As they headed out, Rick looked over his shoulder. "We're counting on you, Sacchi," he said with a smile.
Sacchi grinned and gave him a thumbs-up. Neither of them noticed the slight blush on her face.
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"Iron Claw!"
Marble chips flew as Baihumon's claws sank into the ground where CyberDracomon and WarScorpiodramon were a second ago. In the background, the bell continued to sound, albeit with a slight lull in the tune.
"That's it! Chip Activate! Max Speed Boost!" Takeshi yelled. "WarScorpiodramon! Now!"
WarScorpiodramon smirked as he felt his speed skyrocket. Dashing towards Baihumon, he unleashed his strongest attack.
"Carnage of War!"
All that was visible of the scorpion Digimon was a blurred streak as he landed attack after attack on Baihumon.
"CyberDracomon!" Rick called out.
In front of CyberDracomon an energy circle with an 'X' in the middle. At Rick's command, he fired.
"Super Dragon Strike!"
He fired a Crimson Flame, which hit the circle and blasted it straight towards Baihumon. WarScorpiodramon leaped out of the way just in time as CyberDracomon's attack slammed into the tiger Sovereign.
Baihumon roared in pain, and in that instant its concentration faltered, and the bell disappeared.
The ringing of the bell stopped.
Baihumon saw its mistake and immediately changed its target. Leaping towards the dome, it slashed and the weakening shield tore.
Takeshi spun as Baihumon leaped pass him, gasping as he realized the Sovereign's intent. Leaping, he grabbed onto Baihumon's tail and used the momentum to swing himself in front of Baihumon.
"Takeshi!" Both Sacchi and Rick cried in alarm.
The tiger Digimon growled. "Move aside. This is a fight between Digimon."
Takeshi stood his ground. "Maybe, but my friend is lying unconscious in there and I won't let you hurt her."
By this time, the others had arrived. However, they did not dare to get too close as Baihumon had its claws poised over Takeshi's head.
Baihumon looked vaguely puzzled. "You would sacrifice your life for her?"
A smile appeared on Takeshi's face. "That's what friends are for."
A blue glow appeared around Takeshi and a similar glow enveloped WarScorpiodramon, who devolved to Shaulamon. The pair floated up and a blinding flash lit the area.
The light faded to reveal a warrior Digimon. He had the brown-gold exoskeleton of WarScorpiodramon but with two metal covered scorpion claws, with blades on them. A pair of golden beetle wings extended from his back and a long flexible tail whipped from side to side.
Rick and Sacchi stared. Then, simultaneously, they scanned the new biomerged Digimon.
"Reidarmon. Data type Biomerge. Attacks: Warrior's Blade, Toxic Whip, Lance of Longinus."
Underneath his helmet, unseen by the others, Reidarmon smiled. I was right. The DigiEggs are the key. Takeshi thought.
"Now it is a fight between Digimon, Baihumon." Reidarmon's voice was deep, with a liquid quality.
With that, the golden scorpion warrior attacked.
"Warrior's Blade!"
The blades on his claws elongated as he covered the short distance between him and Baihumon. As he brought the blades down on Baihumon's head, the tiger sovereign countered.
"Iron Claw!"
The two attacks clashed in a flurry of sparks. However, before the sparks had time to fall to the ground, Reidarmon attacked a second time.
"Toxic Whip!"
His tail, now longer than it had been as WarScropiodramon, flashed forwards under his body and right into Baihumon's face. Baihumon roared in anger and pain and momentarily released its hold on Reidarmon's blades, enabling them to slash downwards.
The golden blades sliced cleanly in to skin and flesh, creating a large gash in the side of Baihumon's face.
As Baihumon let out an earth shaking roar of pain, Reidarmon did a back flip that placed a large distance between him and Baihumon, who had blood running down its face.
He held out his right claw while sending a telepathic message to Rick and Sacchi. Get Kei and Kangamon out of a 5 meter radius of Baihumon and be ready to hit Baihumon when I give the signal.
Rick and Sacchi nodded and complied.
A huge red lance twisted in a double helix shape appeared and Reidarmon grabbed it with his outstretched claw. When the other DigiKnights and their partners were out of the danger zone, he attacked.
"Lance of Longinus!"
He raised the lance above his head and threw it, pointed end first, at Baihumon. Once the lance left his grasp, it streaked like a bullet towards the West Sovereign. With a powerful stroke of his wings, Reidarmon flew up, out of harm's way.
As the lance connected with Baihumon, a huge explosion occurred. Shockwaves rocked the ground and rippled through the air, nearly making Reidarmon fall into the inferno below. The sheer sound of the explosion covered Baihumon's roars.
As abruptly as the explosion started, it stopped, and smoke filled the air. Reidarmon peered through the billowing smoke, trying to pinpoint Baihumon's location.
A slight movement caught his eye. Rick, Sacchi, attack there! He sent a mental picture while diving into the smoke himself.
"Warrior's Blade!"
"Super Dragon Strike!"
"Crystal Beam!"
The three attacks simultaneously hit the already wounded Baihumon and with one last half-hearted growl, it passed out.
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The DigiKnights, save Kei, waved goodbye to Baihumon, fragments of the West Backup Crystal shining beside the others on their D-gadgets. A portal flashed open, and they all stepped in.
The portal closed, and they sped back towards the Central Sector, the first part of their mission completed.
TBC…
Author's notes: WOOHOO!!! Finally! This took such a freaking long time! I realized that there are some attacks and items in the story that I never got around to disclaiming, so here goes:
Lance of Longinus (TFOTW5) – Neon Genesis Evangelion
Aku Soku Zan (TFOTW2) – Rurouni Kenshin
Shadow Edge (LOTHD/TFOTW2) – Gatekeepers
End of Earth (LOTHD14) – Groove Adventure RAVE
Up Next: The DigiKnights travel to the Shrine of the Holy Dragon and Jadgmon returns! Introducing VeeAngelmon!