Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.
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Begin: Obliteration
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"Why are you doing this?" Kouichi demanded, wishing he could push Duskmon out.
Duskmon just grunted and kept where he was, eyes focused on Kouji. With a sigh, the bandana boy shrugged. "Okay. You've got a deal, Duskmon. But first, I have a few questions myself."
A smirk. "Ask away."
"What's the deal with my glowing closet?"
"Stupid."
"WHAT?"
"Who runs the bandana shop?" Duskmon inquired.
Kouji, puzzled, looked to the others. Unfortunately, they were just as confused. "Uhh...Mr. Aizawa."
"Who gave Kouichi the boxes to put the bandanas in?"
"I wasn't there!" Kouji scowled, obviously not getting where the discussion was leading to.
"Do you want my help or not?"
Duskmon, remember, stick to what we planned.
"GAH!" Kouichi yelled. "What's that?"
Duskmon just snorted. "That would be Anti-Duskmon, as you all named him. Now shut up," he commanded. The blade was still held perilously close to Kouji's neck. "Aizawa, Cherubimon's shadow. The boxes, your glowing closet, and rips in the gate between real and digital. Get it?"
Silence ensued.
"OH," half the room exclaimed (as the other half being Kanaye's group and Hideki and Rai already knew), suddenly getting the connection. Only Shinya, Takuya, and Kouji stared at Kouichi's body, waiting for Duskmon to explain.
Kanaye, tired of the waste of time, snapped, "Some of the rips in the gate live in those boxes of yours, meaning its Lucemon's main source of control. He can summon his goons through those rips, and Chaos can use them too. Now hurry up and get your fight overwith. We don't have time."
Kouji fumbled with his D-Tector after getting it out of his pocket. "Um...no space?" He suddenly looked up, frowning at the crowd in his room. "We'll kill everyone here if we go with real swords. Even if we were going with bokuto...I think we'd leave them in a coma."
A smirk again. "I thought of that," Duskmon murmured. "But now that we're all gathered together..." He motioned towards the door.
Startled, Kouji pushed his way past everyone and opened the door, wide-eyed. "Sweet...I'm..."
"Home."
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"Alright. I'll be judging, just because I don't trust two twerps with real swords," Hideki declared. "And you know, this backyard isn't too shabby. Pretty cool if you ask me-"
"GET ON WITH IT!" both twins yelled, although Duskmon's voice came out of Kouichi's body.
It scared Kouji slightly. Is this how it was when Duskmon possessed me? Kind of...freaky. Shivering, he tightened his grip on the blade, then relaxed. No need to get tense, he told himself. "Alright, Duskmon. Are you playing for keeps?"
"No. For a chance to beat Lucemon," he snapped, lunging forward. "As for Kouichi's body...it's just an easier way to bash that idiot's head in!"
No fair. That jerk, Kouichi thought, wishing he could throw up as he felt himself lunge forward. At the same time, he felt himself get pulled back. I feel so sick...
This wouldn't happen if you two worked together.
Anti-Duskmon? Kouichi guessed.
Yes. Anti-Duskmon continued, if you two can fight together instead of Duskmon doing all the work while you sit back and relax-
Oh! Like Hideki's training, Kouichi realized.
Yes. You need to trust your allies, even those you cannot bear to trust.
But I do trust Duskmon.
Then show him he can trust you. All we digimon want is for Lucemon to lose and to be rid of Chaos. So please, work together.
Right...but do we have to fight Kouji?
Yes.
Okay. Kouichi drew a breath. A second later, he felt as if he had plunged into an impenetrable darkness. Sheez...it's cold.
It's supposed to be.
Duskmon. Kouichi gazed up at the digimon in surprise. So...can we work together...? Kouichi knew, even in the back of his head, he sounded a bit too anxious.
Falter a little, and you die. Understand? Duskmon's eyes pierced him.
Kouichi shivered slightly, but nodded. Yeah. I understand.
Then we'll work together...for now.
A smile lit Kouichi's face. Hah, just admit it. We're a team!
Why the hell would I do that? Kouichi could just imagine a scowl on Duskmon's face, though all the digimon did was stare at him in utter disbelief. Hurry up. We have a battle to finish.
"Sorry, Kouji," Kouichi muttered, feeling his eyes open. "I have to."
Surprised, Kouji's eyes widened as he felt himself being pushed back. "Hey...no Duskmon?"
"Yeah, Duskmon. But...uh...we made a deal," Kouichi explained, dropping his guard and rubbing the back of his neck with a laugh.
"DON'T DROP YOUR GUARD YOU IDIOT!" Hideki snapped, throwing his shoe at the boy.
Kouichi, felt the impact and rubbed his head, glaring at Hideki as he hopped over to retrieve his shoe. Feeling slightly vengeful, Kouichi picked up the shoe and threw it past Hideki as soon as he was only a foot away. "Alright," he murmured, settling in a stance, "Let's go."
Stupid. Why didn't you listen to me? Duskmon snapped. To the left.
"Got it!" Kouichi muttered, jumping to his left. He landed on the ground lightly on his feet before springing up and lunging at his brother. "Better parry, Kouji!"
Kouji cursed under his breath. He shoved his right foot back, placing most of his weight forward as he brought his sword in front of him, ready to counter. "Way ahead of you!" he shouted as Kouichi's sword clashed with his own. Smirking, Kouji brought his back foot up and swung it forward, knocking Kouichi off his feet. "Is that Lucemon enough for you, Duskmon?"
Rising to his feet, Kouichi grinned, brushing himself off. "Perfect as Hell," Duskmon declared. Attack now. Kouichi composed himself quickly, assuming his stance once more before rushing forward to attack.
With one smooth stroke, Kouji parried the attack, bringing a foot up to kick Kouichi back. "JUMP ALREADY!" the younger boy snapped, seeing his brother's feet on the ground.
"I KNOW!" Kouichi snapped, quickly jumping up and blocking Kouji's kick with one of his own. "Cheapo!"
"Hey, what would Kako say if she were here?"
"We're really weird?" Kouichi suggested, jumping back. Instead of being tired as he imagined, he felt strangely refreshed. "Are...we done?"
"I'd say."
"Great, because we better get a move on it," Kanaye snapped. "Keep in mind, this is still an illusion. We're-"
"And that's where you're wrong," Hideki murmured. "This is...as real as...you getting pinched by Ai in five seconds."
Takuya frowned. "Five...four...three...two-"
"OW!" A glaring Kanaye rubbed his arm, eyes on Ai.
The girl ignored his glare and nodded. "Yup. It's real," she declared, folding her arms in front of her chest.
"You stupid-"
"Don't touch me, or you will regret it," Ai snapped, directing a glare of her own at him.
Defeated, Kanaye turned away from her and looked at Fujitaka, who was staring at him with one eyebrow raised. "What are you looking at?"
"Never mind, Naoko...you win," Fujitaka muttered. "I'll take you there as soon as we win."
"Thank you," Naoko laughed, brushing her hair out of her eyes. "Now let's go win already!"
Izumi nodded. "She has a point. I'm tired of the distractions. Plus I'm completely out of shape." She muttered the last part under her breath.
"Right, let's g-"
"No," Rai murmured, gazing up at the sky. "Lucemon's going to get us when he wants to."
"What?" everyone exclaimed.
Furiously, Junpei punched a nearby tree, immediately regretting it as he snapped through gritted teeth, "We work this hard and we can't hunt him down?"
Tomoki walked over, gazing at his hand, one eyebrow raised. "Is your hand okay?"
"OF COURSE!" Junpei yelled, wanting only to hide his pain. "NOW LUCEMON GET OUT HERE!"
Shaking her head in disbelief, Rai sighed. Her gaze fell to the ground in defeat. "Just...imagine you're free of the illusion. It's because you believe it exists that it does." Rai held back another sigh and shut her eyes. Kako, I hope you're home by now...
"Alright, everyone! Let's...uh...imagine!" Takuya exclaimed, shooting his fist into the air. I have no idea how this'll turn out, but oh well.
"I feel like I'm stuck in some lame kiddy show," Kouji muttered to Kouichi, seeing everyone staring at Takuya who had shut his eyes and seemed to be trying a bit too hard.
"And I feel like I'll puke if I figure out what he's imagining," Kouichi returned, shutting his eyes and sighing. Time to beat Lucemon.
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Kako sighed and leaned back against the wall. Maybe I should have just gone home. But in any case, I'm lost. I might as well just try to find the others now.
"Piximon, life sucks," she muttered, gazing at the ceiling. "I really miss you. Maybe Kouji didn't mean it...maybe he had his reasoning...but I really do miss you. I wouldn't mind if you came back and told me to do my homework again." A choked sob escaped her and Kako quickly rose to her feet, hand covering her mouth. "Uh...w-well..." She sighed. Piximon's always asleep. Poor guy. Shrugging the thoughts aside, she continued down the path, placing one foot in front of the other, praying she wouldn't fall.
"Kako! Where are you going!"
"Shut up, Ichiro. I don't need anyone's know-it-all voice in my head," Kako grumbled, shaking her head. Suddenly, she froze in the spot, reluctantly turning around. "Oh...oops..."
Ichiro stood behind her, eyes narrowed and arms folded in front of his chest grumpily. "So that's what you think of me? Man, do I feel hated."
"That would be 'Mon,'" Kako corrected him with a laugh. Still smiling, she asked, "Where's Ryuusei?"
"Gah...right behind him..." A disgruntled-looking Ryuusei appeared from behind Ichiro. As he passed his brother, Ryuusei pushed the older Egawa to the side, twitching visibly. "This moron led us in circles!"
"YOU CAN'T LET THE ENEMY KNOW WHERE YOU INTEND TO HEAD!" Ichiro yelled, recovering quickly from the push.
Ryu looked ready to bite someone's head off. Glaring at Ichiro, he hollered, "WHAT'S WITH YOU AND YOUR STUPID NINJA ATTITUDE?"
"Is that really how a ninja is? Sheez...forget that job," Kako muttered, frowning thoughtfully.
Suddenly, Ichiro rushed forward to Kako, grabbing both her hands. "So, did you get the gift I gave to Izumi?" he asked, smiling eagerly.
"Yep."
"Eh...but you aren't wearing the jewelry...come on, Kako! Even Ryuusei pitched in to buy it! It wasn't cheap, you know!"
"I told you it was a bad idea," Ryuusei snapped, glaring at his brother. "Anyway, Kako...we came to take you back."
Kako's eyes widened as she met his eyes. "But...I can't..."
"You can't stay, I know. Come on. The boat's waiting outside."
"N-no...you don't understand! I can't-" Kako looked down to hide the guilt. I can't leave them, but then I'll be putting Ichiro and Ryu in danger. But...
'We're being selfish.'
Slowly, Kako rose her head, though her eyes remained glued to the ground. "I...I want to be a bit selfish." Anxiously, she chanced a glance at Ryuusei's face. He stood there, immobile, an unreadable expression on his face. "Please...I want to find them. I know I'll get in the way, but I want to know they're okay, because they're my friends."
Ryuusei quickly turned around before Kako could catch the look on his face. "Come on, then."
Startled, Kako opened her mouth to protest.
"We won't have that much time. Ichiro and I passed a place that just might solve your problem," Ryuusei continued, looking over his shoulder.
He hardly looked happy, but all Kako could do was burst into tears and run forward, throwing her arms around his neck as he turned around, wide-eyed. "Thank you," she murmured, not letting go.
"I-Ichiro..." Ryuusei looked to his brother for help.
Ichiro just shrugged and sighed, a small smile forming on his lips. "Ah...how sweet young love is..."
"ICHIRO!"
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"Ahhh...Izumi!"
"SOMEONE HELP?" Izumi glared at the goggle boy, fists clenched by her side.
Shinya walked over and cleared his throat. After a curt nod in Izumi's direction, he turned to his brother and brought his foot back. "This won't hurt much..." As an afterthought, he added, "I think..." Mercilessly, Shinya kicked his foot forward, his target being Takuya's shin. He hit his mark easily.
Everyone ignored the screaming Takuya as he hopped around on one foot, and instead concentrated on the empty room in front of them.
"Where'd Lucemon go...? Rather...Ogata," Kouji muttered.
Kanaye let out an exasperated sigh. "This is ridiculous. He's still playing around. He'll be here soon, though."
Kouichi stepped forward between the two, taking another step forward and stopping there. "Good, because I don't have any patience left."
Both stared at him in surprise. "That...uh...was Duskmon, wasn't it?" asked Ritsuo, who had happened to overhear their conversation.
"No, it was me," Kouichi snapped. "Listen, this is the plan: Duskmon and I should be enough for Ogata. Plus, with me, he can still digivolve." I think. "In the meantime, you guys have to go stop Chaos. Kanaye, Ai...you two know what he's planning, right?"
Ai nodded, covering Kanaye's mouth from behind before he could speak. "I've got it covered," she told him.
"Good. Then...we're settled."
"No we aren't!" Kouji snapped. "I'm helping, too! Especially if you two are going to use your sword on him. Because that's all I'm good for at the moment, FYI!"
Kouichi sent a glare in his brother's direction. "You have brains! Without you, we're at a loss! Takuya'll do something stupid again!"
"Hey, don't cut him just yet," Kouji said hastily. "We've come up with some pretty neat plans, right Junpei?" Grinning, the bandana boy looked over his shoulder.
Junpei crossed his arms. A sour look donned his face as he muttered, "Yeah, painting Kouichi's room was so neat...and breaking that window was neater!"
Kouichi snapped his fingers. "Oh yeah. Kouji, at the end of this...you better have the money for that window," he declared.
"DAMMIT JUNPEI!"
"SORRY!"
"Sheez..." Kouichi smiled, watching Kouji run after the older boy. We're doomed if they do this with Chaos.
"Yo...twerp..."
Frowning, Kouichi turned to Hideki. "Yeah...?"
Hideki stared the boy straight in the face until he broke into a crooked smile. "You know, you aren't half bad, but that doesn't mean I like you. Just know...if you die, I'm gonna have to follow you and kill you again."
"Got it. Uh...and make sure no one does anything stupid right now."
"Eh...?"
"He's...here."
"Never thought I'd say this, but...MOVE OUT MEN!" Takuya yelled, seeing Ogata jump to the ground from some unknown entrance.
"HAVE YOU EVEN GIVEN A THOUGHT TO THE WOMEN?" Izumi snapped, pointing to a newly revealed doorway. "Alright, let's go!"
Kouichi felt a shiver run down his spine, seeing Ogata smirk. He was expecting this, the boy thought. He's got something up his sleeve. His grip on the sword in his hands tightened. "Hah, I always knew it..." he finally croaked, reddening slightly as he heard his voice crack. Digimon, I'm tired.
"Yo," Kouji whispered, his own sword at hand. "Why does Ogata look annoyed?"
"Beca-KOUJI! You idiot, what are you doing here?" Kouichi thundered, dropping his sword to grab his brother's collar and shake him thoroughly. "Idiot, idiot, idiot!" Oh wait! Startled, Kouichi let go of his brother and turned to Lucemon. He didn't plan this. Look who's got something up their sleeve now! His smile was short-lived, as he realized he had dropped his sword and the fact that he was facing his teacher. Quickly, Kouichi bent down and picked up his sword, then straightened himself. "Okay. We're ready-"
"Like I care...?"
Kouichi's eyes widened, seeing Ogata in front of him in an instant. Not good...! He cursed, seeing a sword materialize in Ogata's hand. For a second, it looked like a mass of dark purple goo before it seemed to solidify and harden itself...even...sharpen. Kouichi gulped, quickly pushing his brother out of the way and jumping himself. We're as good as doomed.
"Dammit, Kouichi! Fight him! Where's Duskmon in you?" Kouji yelled, scrambling to his feet. "What would Kako say?"
"Uh...oh...Kako," Kouichi mumbled, staring at Ogata. "Wait...now I'm confused. You knew who we were all this time...even Kako! So why was he so nice to her?" Kouichi shouted, bringing up his sword to block a head-on attack from Ogata.
Does it matter? Questions will be for later, Kouichi! We must defeat him! Duskmon's voice rang in his head over and over again, and yet Kouichi couldn't move from his spot. Cursing, Duskmon took control of Kouichi's arms, pushing forward as he rose to his feet. Move, Kouichi, unless you want to be sushi.
"I...er...like sushi?" Kouichi winced as Ogata brought the sword up and to the side.
Bring the sword up! Jump back, Duskmon commanded.
Kouichi obliged, discovering he was against Kouji's back. How fitting.
"Nothing," Kouji murmured, yanking Kouichi back and turning around. "I think I get it." A sigh escaped him before he rushed forward, sword trailing behind him, ready to strike. "Time for Lobo-kendo beta!" Kouji stopped in front of Ogata, a smirk visible on his face. Then...
"He disappeared...?" Kouichi rose to his feet, picking up his sword. I'm so confused...what does he get? "Duskmon..."
"We can't let him have all the fun," Duskmon agreed. "Let's go, Kouichi. Are you up for it?"
"Yeah..." Kouichi muttered, pointing his sword at Ogata. "I think I get it now." Wordlessly, he rushed forward, ready to thrust the sword forward.
Ogata blocked the attack easily, grinning. "Stupid," was all he said as he rose his sword to attack Kouichi.
The boy just returned the grin. "Look who's talking..." The older twin watched as Ogata was struck from behind by Kouji. "Good going," Kouichi declared, kicking Ogata over so he was on his back. "So what's the deal with Kako and stuff?" he demanded.
"You...haven't won yet," Ogata snapped, grabbing a hold of Kouichi's leg.
"H-HEY!" the boy shouted, aiming to kick the man's head with his foot. "Duskmon!"
Say the words...
"Y-you mean..."
Yes, now just say them, would you? He could imagine a scowl with that sentence.
Chuckling, Kouichi nodded. This is awesome. "S-spirit...evolution."
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Ichiro looked at his brother skeptically. "You...sure this is a good idea?"
"She won't just acquiesce if we tell her to come with us. She'll be more amenable this way."
"Ah...the amenity of the situation," Ichiro muttered sarcastically.
"Just shut up. Look," Ryu murmured, jerking his head towards the girl. "She's happy. Less trouble."
"You kids today just baffle me..."
"Mission accomplished."
"Mission accomplished!" Kako echoed, turning around and beaming at the two of them. "Thank you!"
"H-HEY! ARE THOSE TWO-"
Kako tilted her head to the side and walked towards the see-through glass, gazing down. "They're...leaving...? W-wait! Kouichi-and Kouji-HUH?" Startled, Kako turned back towards the brothers. "They..."
The older Egawa winced, seeing Kouichi pinned down. "Uh...Kako, this isn't a good...um...let's go see how the others are doing!" he suggested, letting out a nervous laugh.
Ryuusei tugged on Kako's sleeve, but the girl was adamant, remaining where she was, entire body pressed against the glass in hopes of a better view. "No...he isn't..." Kako gritted her teeth. That idiot. He's getting us all killed. "Duskmon, you better not switch sides on us anymore..."
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Why'd everything go black?
He could make out a pinprick of light in the distance. Hello? Anyone home? Duskmon? Kouichi shivered, recalling a familiar feeling. Yet again and again, he told himself, Duskmon wouldn't do that. He wouldn't. He isn't brainless or heartless. Still, his nagging self that he swore to never hide away echoed doubt.
Doubt he wished he could hide away.
Face it, the voice told him, you're as weak as when you started out. Possibly even weaker!
I'm not-
Yes, you are.
OH, SHUT UP!
What did you just say to me...?
SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP.
Damn it...you little-
If I'm little, you're littler!
Both of you shut up, Kouichi commanded. Nice to know I still have two idiot selves inside of me. I'm not weak. I'm just...not concentrating! That must be it, he decided, shutting his eyes. Focus.
He bit his lip, pushing away all his worries, holding down all his hopes, thinking only of beating Lucemon. Kouichi supposed he lost himself. He wasn't so sure. All he knew was that in the back of his mind, he could hear the reassuring words of a familiar voice.
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I'm sorry, Kouichi, Duskmon thought, opening his eyes and drawing out his blades. I didn't want to do this again, but it is time. Time to put an end to things for good. "Shall we settle this, Lucemon...?" he asked gruffly, pointing his sword in the direction of the disheveled man. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see the unmistakably confused Kouji gaping. "Kouji, I suggest you find the others."
"What are you doing, Duskmon? Where's Kouichi?" the boy demanded, suddenly becoming angry. "You're going to kill him?"
The digimon just chuckled, smirking as he looked back at Ogata. "If 'him' refers to Lucemon, then yes. Kouichi will be fine. As long as he continues to stay out, he won't be harmed."
"You're possessing him again. Of course he's going to be harmed!"
"He knows what I'm doing, Kouji."
"Why can't I know?"
"You are of light. What would you know of the darkness? Loneliness is nothing close to darkness, Kouji. Loneliness can be fought. Darkness...you must live in. Kouichi has experienced everything I have, and more. He understands." I think. "Now shut up and leave, pesky boy."
"I'LL SHOW YOU PESKY!"
Duskmon swung the blade around behind him, eyes still glued on Ogata. "Think of who the real enemy is, Kouji..."
Why does he do this...? With a sigh, Kouji drew out his own sword. "Alright...but you need backup. How can I trust that you won't just side with Lucemon?"
"You know, if Lucemon wasn't going to destroy us all, this would be the part where I'd side with him," Duskmon grumbled, swinging his sword back. "Fine. But you better be the last line of the backup."
"Deal."
"Are you two done...?" Ogata laughed, his laughter only growing and rising in terms of volume. "Oh, by all means, Duskmon, try to defeat me! You can never beat me!"
Duskmon just smirked as he suggested, "Digivolve and we'll see."
"Fine then...!" Ogata took a step back and raised his hands, shouting something that neither Kouji or Duskmon could comprehend.
It was the same darkness, no different. Duskmon could attest for that. Darkness rose, covering Ogata from the front, while from behind, light covered him. And that was how he defeated you last time, wasn't it, Kouichi? This time, he's built his own coffin. Wordlessly, Duskmon took a step forward, raising his sword. "Time to end this."
Forgive me. Duskmon ran forward, regardless of Kouji's yell for him to stay put. It didn't matter anymore; the boy was powerless to stop him. "Goodbye, Lucemon," Duskmon muttered, running past the darkness and thrusting his sword forward, impaling Ogata. After all, the weakest point in the human world is the simple stage of digivolution. Surely you knew that a digivolution like yours would take ages. And now, that leaves them to deal with Chaos.
Duskmon stood still, gazing at the half dome of light in front of him. Is it time, my shadow? A sigh escaped him. "Then...until they need us again for sure..." Duskmon drew his sword out and rose it once more as the limp body of Ogata fell to the ground. "Slide Evolution...Velgemon." Velgemon took flight, gazing down. It is time. "Dark obliteration...!"
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"STOP!" Takuya shouted, turning around. "What are we doing? This doesn't make sense! Why would Lucemon and Chaos be separate?" the goggle boy demanded. "And even if they are...this doesn't feel right." He let out a sigh and confessed, "I want to go back. I don't care if we don't defeat Chaos. I'm going with my instinct."
Junpei and Tomoki exchanged glances. "So you felt it too..." Junpei muttered.
"Eh?"
"Did you know...Izumi already left with Shinya a while ago because she was worried. Hideki snuck off with them, too," Tomoki informed the goggle boy. "They wanted us to stay behind to cover for them. I think Kanaye ran off a while ago and Ai followed him."
"WHAT?" Takuya shouted. After a pause, he muttered, "No wonder it was so quiet..."
Fujitaka snorted. "Everyone else figured it out a while ago, goggle brain."
A twitching Takuya turned around and threw his most murderous glare in Fujitaka's direction. "YOU CAN'T CALL ME THAT," the boy growled, hands outstretched to strangle his classmate.
"ENOUGH!" Rai snapped, tired of the bickering. "Look, if you want to go back, then go back, by all means! B-" Her eyes widened as she fell back. "E-earthquake...?" she stuttered, seeing the walls shake. "We have to get somewhere safer. Go back! Hurry!"
"They're going. I think the only ones that need to hurry are us, Ms. Kawai," Naoko murmured, helping her teacher up. "You think that...?"
"It's possible," Rai confessed with a sigh. I really, really hope not.
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"What are you doing? Stop!" Kouji screamed at the top of his lungs, gazing in horror as Velgemon fell into his own attack. "STOP!" the bandana boy tried again, only to collapse onto his knees as he took a step forward. "Please...don't do this...to Kouichi..." Not again...
"Twerp two! Up!"
"No," Kouji croaked, turning his face to the side as he fell forward to lie on his stomach. "Not without Kouichi..."
Hideki let out an impatient growl, pulling Kouji up by the back of his jacket. "This is what I hate about twins. They've got that whole, 'I'm not living without my twin!' thing going. TOUGH. Get up, twerp. He'll live. He's the number one twerp, and I know he doesn't want to give that position up to anyone," he muttered, helping Kouji to his feet. "Izumi, can you watch Kouji? Shinya...twerp..." Hideki frowned. What number was he?
"Twerp thirty?" Shinya suggested loudly.
"Yeah. For now, you're twerp three. Get over here," Hideki yelled over the roar of the attack. When will it be over?
I said thirty, not three. Shinya kept shut, though, taking small steps and shielding his eyes against the sharp winds. It almost amazed him to see Hideki just standing there and squinting into the distance, but then again, there was a difference in size to consider. "What?" Shinya hollered, feeling himself being blown back each passing second.
"Turn around!" Hideki suddenly yelled, whirling Shinya around and bending over himself.
Shinya stared at the ground in surprise, not caring if dust got into his eyes. Using his peripheral vision, he could easily make out the red cupola of light. "What...?"
Dammit...Twerp one, you better be okay, or you'll be twerp zero, I swear! "Kouichi...I'll kill you in the afterlife if you don't make it!" Hideki yelled. Not only that, but so will thousands of other people...and digimon. Come on, kid. You have to make it.
"It's clearing," Izumi murmured, removing her hand from its place in front of her eyes.
"Where is he?"
Shinya and Hideki looked up, both startled by the sight of a furious Kanaye rushing past them. "Wait!" Hideki yelled, pushing Shinya away and jumping from one foot to another. "You can't! I have to kill him! Kako will kill me if I don't!"
"TOUGH! I'm getting to him first!" Kanaye snapped, jumping into the crater the attack had left and racing to Kouichi. "You bas-"
"Language..." Kouichi coughed, rising to his feet. "Language..." he gasped again. "Where's Duskmon? And...m-my sword!" The boy's eyes widened. "Where is it?"
Welcome back, Kouichi.
"Lowemon...?" Startled, he looked behind him, seeing the digimon nodding at him. "It isn't over, is it?" the boy asked with a sigh, taking his D-Tector out of his pocket and gazing at it. "Lucemon escaped, didn't he?" Duskmon's attack went to waste...
"In a way he did, in a way he didn't," Kanaye answered curtly. Seeing the confused look on Kouichi's face, he sighed and explained, "He'll be back, and soon. But instead of fighting Lucemon...try...CHAOS! You idiot! Why'd you rush in there yourself? I shouldn't have known Duskmon would convince you to do this! Put the prophecy aside! Put everything aside! We don't have to follow some set fate, idiots!"
"Last time...Susanomon helped us," Kouji murmured, wincing as he nearly tripped, limping over to the other two boys. "No...not just Susanomon...everyone."
"It'll take a miracle to find Susanomon again," Kanaye spat.
Kouichi gazed at the ground. "I want my sword..."
"We're at the brink of destruction and all you can think of is a sword?"
"No. My sword...I felt safe holding it. Not just because I could beat people up, but because I could remember everything I learned. My D-Tector...Lowemon...you guys...that's just what I want to protect. I can't...remember anything but a promise. A measly promise that I have to keep. I can't die yet." Kouichi let out a sigh and rose to his feet. "Ogata's body...is gone. The attack...it's probably ashes now, huh?"
"No."
"What?" Kouichi looked up indignantly. "That...but..."
"Look at the center of the crater, idiot!" Kanaye snapped, trying to keep his emotions in check. "Chaos absorbed him." The boy let out a shaky breath and turned around, taking two steps forward before he fell onto his knees. "Chaos..."
Kouichi remained quiet, unsure of what to say. The younger twin, on the other hand, looked up at his brother. "Kouichi...we...no...I need to go home," he whispered, taking a step back. "I'm sorry...but...it's my turn...to skip out on a final battle." Kouji hesitated before digging his D-Tector out.
His brother opened his mouth to protest, but Kouji shook his head quickly. "L-listen, okay? This time...it's light into darkness. I know you can take care of Lobomon," Kouji continued, transfering Lobomon into Kouichi's D-Tector, "and I know you can wake him up. But this isn't my battle to fight or to win. There's someone waiting for you, and they expect you to win. You, not me. And I'm not talking about Kako, or Duskmon, or Mom. The stars aren't shining on me right now, because I neglected my job. And...I don't really need the sword, either," Kouji added, picking up the sword by his feet and tossing it to
Kouichi. "Take care...?"
"But-" Kouichi started, stepping forward to stop his brother. "You can't-" He stopped, seeing Kanaye's hand outstretched in front of him. "Don't..."
Sorry. I'm so sorry I didn't figure this out sooner, Kouichi. Maybe then, right now, we'd both be at home arguing over something stupid. Make it out alive, and I promise I won't make another stupid mistake ever again, Kouji swore, turning around and running off. "Takuya, watch his back," he muttered as he passed the goggle boy.
"Gotcha," Takuya promised quietly, yanking out his D-Tector. "Good luck, Kouji."
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A/N-
Oh my god...that was horrible. After not writing this chapter in ages (it feels like it) and having been writing a story with actual flow, this is just...choppy. If it's a hard write for me, it must be an even harder read for you guys. Real sorry! .:bangs head on table:. No wonder I'm such a crappy writer.
Thank you for the reviews and hits and such and whatnot, and...(Major note): I plan to take a break from NTB3 for a while to see what went wrong (A LOT did, that's for sure) and edit it to make it ten times better. In the mean time...
For those who don't know (but I'm sure you do), Cursed Gifts is up. A much better story than NTB3 (which shouldn't be ick as it is), but I can't guarantee that many of you will like the plot line.
I'm incredibly sorry, really, but after posting this chapter, I've realizedmy mind has taken a turn for the worst. I need to get back on track, and instead of rushing, I think it'll take some time. Yes, I know. I hate myself, too.
Review or PM or Flame.