Another digimental went offline. That's what the report status said. An offline digimental made the boss unhappy. And things weren't pretty when the boss was unhappy. The location of the disturbance was situated within the jungle area. Just near the Chip Hills. That's whee he would have to strike. If he wanted those children dealt with, he would have to deal with this himself.
He just hoped for his sake, he was able to stop them before they got any further.
XXX
The rest of the party went into full swing as soon as the battle was over. The children and their digimon enjoyed it but all things come to an end. The same applied to the party. It was time for them to move on. The Muchomon were very hospitable though. Offering them food and shelter. The food part they took gladly, the shelter part they declined. As much as they wanted to stay, they had a journey and a purpose. And that purpose was to find a way back home. And they wouldn't find that by staying here. So saying their goodbyes, the human and digimon partners departed heading towards an unknown location.
There was just one problem.
"So where exactly are we going?" Sho asked.
"No clue." Kazuya responded.
"No clue?" Jun grunted. "Well that's just great."
"Hey it's not like you have any idea where to go." Kazuya defended.
That's how it was going the moment they had left the village. In hindsight, they should have asked for a map. Then again, would the Muchomon even have one? The whole village appeared pretty isolated.
"Now what?" Sakura asked. "If we don't know where to go, then what's our plan?"
Chiisi brushed a few strands of hair from his face and sighed. The boy glanced about his surroundings. They were in a field. A single path lined their way. In the distance they could make out some mountains. For some reason this reminded Chiisi of a story he had read once. He couldn't remember the title, but he was certain he had read something like that before. He liked to rad. It occupied his time and let his imagination wander. That was how books were advertised anyways. When he was younger he literally thought books would take him someplace, it was only a few years later he discovered it wasn't so literally.
"Hey kid? You alright?" DemiDevimon flapped above, landing upon Chiisi's head. The boy winced slightly as his digimon's talons dug into his scalp.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking." said Chiisi.
That was another thing Chiisi did, he thought a lot. Most of the time this was exemplified by him being silent. Not that he was rude or anything, he just wasn't that much of a talker. Sometimes when you didn't talk, you noticed things more. He glanced up around him seeing nothing else worth noting, but as he looked up and into the distance, he did notice something. In the distance, and approaching fast, were dark clouds; storm clouds. And they were getting closer. In fact, they were heading right towards them. In no time they would be upon them Chiisi chose to keep this silent. Silence was golden and honestly he thought them smart enough to take notice of it. But then again, maybe they weren't. As cynical as it sounded, Chiisi was unwilling to fully place his trust in those older than him. Sometimes the younger generation held more benefits than the older ones. He had seen that many times. And in that time he had learned adults didn't always have it figured out.
"Hey look." Sho pointed.
Sure enough, the storm clouds were approaching them. The sound of thunder could be heard far off. The clouds continued their path until now they were entirely over them. Chiisi had to give them points for noticing.
The thunder crackled as lightning split the sky, and down came the rainstorm. That got everyone in a full on run. Chiisi included. The rest feebly tried to cover themselves from the rain. And as the rain fell that only increased their pace. It was making it worse as the more they ran the more drenched they became. But at the time it was the only thing their panicked minds could fathom on what to do. Chiisi had no choice but to follow. If he slowed they would wonder why, and that would only deter their progress. No, even if he didn't agree with it, it was better to run.
"Where the heck are we supposed to go?!" Sho cried.
"Beat's me! But I'm sure there's a place we can find shelter!" Kazuya reassured.
Shelter. That would be a godsend. Anyplace, a cave or even a house. The former was more likely as where would there be a house in this world? Least a house built for humans.
But then, just ahead, amidst the obscuration of the rain, something stood out. It was tall, and large, and looked to be.
"There! A house!" Chiisi pointed.
As they ran forward, they could see it indeed was a house. A manor more like it. And it was that very manor they headed towards. Just a little distance, past all the wetness and then, they were there. They didn't even take the time to knock. They just bolted in and shut it behind themselves.
"Hello! Is anyone home?" Kazuya called.
No response.
"We're sorry to barge in but we just needed shelter from the storm." Sakura explained.
Again, nothing.
They waited for any sign of life, but no sound came. There wasn't even the echoing sound of footsteps. It looked like there was no one home.
"Guess we got the place all to ourselves." Jun said with a smirk.
"I hate to agree with you but I think you're right." said Kazuya.
The entire group spread out, taking in their surroundings. It was new to them, and for now, it served as a perfect shelter from the rain.
"I kind of feel like we are violating the place." Sakura said. "I mean this place isn't ours."
"It doesn't appear to belong to anyone." Chiisi observed.
"What makes you so sure? Someone had to have built this." said Sakura, still feeling uncertain about staying here.
"That's not entirely true Sakura." Fairydramon said. "A lot of the buildings in the Digital World are mere shadows of your world."
"What do you mean?" Sakura asked.
"Well let's say a building was being built in your world, but was left unfinished for whatever reason. The building would then be completed in the Digital World." she explained to the best of her ability.
"Is that true for every building?" Chiisi inquired.
Fairydramon paused for a moment, and then she continued. "Well perhaps not exactly every building."
There was still the matter of digimon villages out there, but her earlier explanation held some bearing. So it wasn't completely worthless.
"Well whether someone built this place or not we got free reign of it. So let's explore." said Kazuya.
Suddenly, Sho let out a sneeze. "Geeze. I'm freezing in these clothes."
"Yeah I agree, we should find a place to dry these." said Kazuya. And to be honest, a bath sounded really nice.
And so the group began to search, hoping for peace and tranquility.
XXX
He chuckled to himself. The humans had found the place. Everything was set in motion. All they had to do was drop their guard and the rest would fall into place. He just had to wait and see. Wringing his red hands together, he began to formulate a place.
XXX
The group searched through the house, hoping to find what they needed. The house certainly held a great deal inside. It had a kitchen, a living room, a library, truly a place worth visiting. But the place of notice was the bath. Yes, it indeed had a bath, a large one at that. It was a basic wooden one, steaming hot and separated by a wall. One side for boys, the other for girls. Kazuya sank into the water, arms crossed over his head.
"Now this is relaxing." Kazuya said with a sigh.
"Yes quite." concurred Chiisi.
"I finally feel clean." Sho said with a smile.
The only one who didn't feel calm was Penguinmon. " I don't know, I kind of feel out of place around here."
"You're a boy aint ya?" DemiDevimon said floating in the water with a towel atop his head.
"Well yeah, but Jun isn't here. It doesn't feel right." Penguinmon nervously said.
"Hey anything without Jun is an improvement if you ask me." Kazuya snidely remarked.
Penguinmon let out a sigh. Though Jun wasn't the easiest person to be with, he still didn't feel complete without her.
He wasn't the only one who didn't feel complete. For all the digimon were not whole without their partners.
"Yeah that's right!" came a sudden yip. Everyone turned around and noticed a familiar shape lounging just behind Sho."
"Labramon?!" Sho exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"
Labramon smiled and pushed her head to face Sho. "Labramon is here to see you silly billy!"
"Yeah but you're a girl. Shouldn't you be on the girl's side?" Kazuya asked.
Labramon pondered for a moment before she finally answered. "Nope! Labramon wants to stay here!" she happily declared.
Sho sighed and gave the dog a curious glance. "Well if you're going to be over here, why arent' you in the water?" he asked.
Labramon stuck her nose up. "Eeeyuck! Labramon hates the water!"
"So you're just going to stare at Sho all day?" DemiDevimon asked.
Labramon nodded.
DemiDevimon shrugged with a snicker. "Young love. It's always so amusing to watch."
"Young love?!" Sho cried. Then noticed Labramon winking at him. This only served to make him sink further into the water.
It was humorous to say the least amongst his fellow humans and the present digimon. One digimon that is. Looking around, Kazuya noticed something: Gazimon was gone.
XXX
Jun let out a sigh as she sank into the water. "Now this is living." she exclaimed. Crossing her arms back, she reclined further. "What do you say Kodiro?"
Sakura let the water warm her body. She waved her arms around washing more water against her body, letting it drip down her hair. It felt good. The best bath she had ever had. Still, this wasn't an entirely perfect bath. She noticed Labramon wasn't present. Funny considering she was a girl too. That and Penguinmon was missing.
"Yeah but I don't think you needed to kick Penguinmon out like that." Sakura said.
"Hey he's a guy, we're girls. Simple as that." Jun defended.
"The girl has a point." Fairydramon concurred as she too sank into the water. "Oh goodness this is refreshing." It felt so great against her scales. She swished her tail underneath the water, a few bubbles rising to the surface. A lot of bubbles actually. A real lot. They came up to the surface, churning as some great geyser lay underneath.
Suddenly, something emerged.
From the water and steam arose a figure. A gray furred figure that padded in the water. Fairydramon stood wide eyes upon noticing who it was.
"Gazimon!" she cried.
The rabbit digimon caught his breath and sniffed. "Wow! Holding your breath is hard." he said. Finally gathering his breath, he noticed all eyes were upon him; angry eyes.
"Oh hehehe, hey girls." he chuckled nervously.
Water wasn't the only thing giving off steam. A great deal spewed from Fairydramon's nostrils. Her reptilian eyes glared angrily at the rabbit. And not just her. Three pairs of eyes focused intently upon the rabbit which only made him shrink.
XXX
A great commotion arose on the other side of the wall. It was loud and blaring as someone was causing a ruckus.
"What's going on over there?" Sho asked.
Labramon, Chiisi, Penguinmon, and DemiDevimon all listened silently as they overheard what was happening.
Noting the absence of his digimon, Kazuya had a pretty good guess. "I think I know." he sighed.
Just then, a small shape flew over the wall and landed smack dab in the water. When the figure arose, they saw it was a bruised and beaten Gazimon. Mostly in the face, with blood streaming down his nose. Though that probably wasn't entirely from the beating he received.
"Had fun?" Kazuya asked, narrowing his eyes.
Gazimon sniffled, and rubbed his arm underneath his nose. "No, but it was totally worth it." he said managing a grin.
Kazuya sighed. His digimon was sure a card.
XXX
"Good, they're relaxed." he said to himself.
A simple bath could do wonders if you wanted someone to let their guard down. So far the entire plan was coming into play. By now they would want to rest and that's when he would strike.
And when that plan came underway, it would be the end for them.
XXX
Once their respective baths were done, the group dressed themselves and went on their way. Now if this was any other moment, they would have checked to see if this house held any beds. For a bed right after a bath felt really good against the skin. But seeing that it wasn't night, they still had some energy within them. So they did the next best thing to do while waiting out the rain: explore the house.
The first to part away were Sho and Labramon. It was mostly Labramon's decision on where to go, with Sho simply just tagging along. The place they were heading was easy enough to decipher, due to Labramon proclaiming one thing.
"Labramon is hungry! Labramon wants to eat!"
And that alone meant their next stop was the kitchen. After some searching, they found the place all right. The refrigerator was a dead giveaway. And it was spacious enough. Surely this was for an upperclass family or something. If such a thing existed in the Digital World.
"Okay, here we are." Sho said to Labramon. Walking up to the fridge, Sho opened it up and found himself face to face with an overflow of food. "Wow! This is packed."
"Packed? What does "packed" mean?" Labramon asked.
"It means "full"." Sho answered.
Labramon's face lit up upon hearing that. "So "full" means it has a lot of food?"
Sho nodded. "Yeah. That's right."
"Just then, Labramon jumped into the air letting out a loud yip. "Yahoo! Labramon is going to eats lots." She took a gander inside, but as soon as she look, her face fell. "This is all the food?" she asked.
Sho took another look inside and noted how packed the fridge was. "Are you serious?"
"Well. I spose it could be good for a snack." Labramon said, still pouting.
Sho stared blankly at the dog. "You're kidding right? This is a snack to you?"
Labramon tilted her head with a whine, confused at Sho's confusion. Sho sighed and shook his head. If Sho needed confirmation that his digimon was a glutton, this was it. He shuddered to think what she would consider a full meal. But it couldn't be helped. He just had to accept it.
"Well I guess you want to start with this sausage right?" he asked.
"Oh yes! Yes!" Labramon yipped.
Dogs did love meat after all.
Sho reached for the sausage link while Labramon waited for it hungrily. Tail in a full on wag, eyes bulging, tongue hanging out, mouth watering. Overall she looked like a starving baby bird awaiting a mouthful of food. But sadly, this was a mouthful that would go unwanted. For a new image presented itself.
Labramon was the first to notice. "Hey? What happened to the food?" Where there were once food, was now a wavy shroud. Labramon whimpered, nosing the shroud. "Yummy yum food?" she questioned.
"Labramon don't get too close!" Sho said pulling her away.
However, just as Sho did so, the shroud changed. It began to shudder and ripple. The rippling effect intensified making the boy and digimon step backwards. They didn't get far for the rippling intensified one final time, before a strange tendril emerged and wrapped around them.
"What the?!" Sho cried.
Labramon growled up a storm, tossing and turning, attempting to break her and Sho free.
The tendrils raised them high into the air, playing with them. And then in a swift motion, They were dragged inside the fridge, which closed shut. Soon the room was silence, as if the pair hadn't entered at all.
XXX
"Now these are comfortable." Kazuya said as he flung himself upon the bed.
"You said it." Gazimon said doing the same.
Jun went up to it and felt it. "Little springy." she commented. The girl cast an unimpressed glance throughout the room. Five beds. All for each of them she supposed. "Do they expect us to sleep in the same room?"
Kazuya rose up. "It's not such a big deal."
Jun crossed her arms, "It is to me."
Now Kazuya was starting to get annoyed. "Just what is your problem? Are you ever happy?" he asked.
"Hey I can be plenty happy. I just don't want to share a room with you that's all." Jun excused.
"But Jun everyone here is friends!" Penguinmon piped.
Jun merely shot him a glance which silenced him. "Enough of that crap please."
"And that's another thing." Kazuya got off the bed at last. "Why do you have to treat him that way?"
"Oh please, I've treated people worse." Jun scoffed.
"Yeah you're a real expert in that." Kazuya shot.
"Blah blah, I've heard it all before." Jun mocked with her hand in a talking motion.
Penguinmon shifted nervously in his spot as he sensed a fight coming on. But he wisely kept his mouth shut. Gazimon remained flopped on the bed, relaxing, letting it take it all in. He didn't care about the fight, all he cared about was the comfort. The bed was soft, so soft he could feel himself sinking into the fabric. He watched the ceiling getting higher while he was falling. And then it dawned upon him how wrong that was.
"Hey what?!" Gazimon cried.
Everyone looked to him and saw a disturbing sight: Gazimon was sinking into the bed.
"Gazimon!" Kazuya cried with alarm.
Right away he went to grab hold of Gazimon. He managed to pull up the digimon's chest and tugged with all of his might.
"Hey careful! You're going to pull me apart!" Gazimon cried.
But that didn't stop Kazuya from pulling. Gazimon was sinking further into the bed and he didn't look like he was slowing down.
"Hey! Could you give me a hand here?!" Kazuya exclaimed.
Jun thought for a few seconds before she decided "what the hell?" and went to help.
The two of them pulled and tugged, while little Penguinmon panicked at their feet. As hard as Jun and Kazuya pulled, the less it seemed that Gazimon was moving.
"Guys...It's not working!" Gazimon said as the bed sucked him inside.
Kazuya and Jun shouted as they too were pulled in as they hung onto Gazimon. Now that just left Penguinmon alone.
"Oh my! Oh dear!" Penguinmon waddled back and forth. The poor digimon was so distraught that he didn't noticed what was coming up from behind.
Suddenly he felt something wrap itself around him. He found himself flopping to the floor belly first as the tendrils started to drag him further towards the wall. He dragged and tried to grab hold of something, but he found that impossible. His flippers could not grasp anything and he found himself growing closer and closer. Soon he felt an impact against the wall and shortly, he sank in.
XXX
A library. Now this was a place Chiisi could truly call home. Dozens upon dozens of books lined the walls and cases. A small smile crossed Chiisi's face.
"I wonder who these all belong to?" Sakura asked.
Chiisi looked to her. "I thought we decided this place was abandoned?"
"Well yeah, but all these books have to belong to someone." Sakura reasoned.
Then again, they could have been abandoned too. Yet still, this seemed all a bit suspicious.
Fairydramon reached for a book and opened it up. The moment she did so, a plume of dust sprayed forth hitting her in the nose. The sudden disruption of her nasal passages spurred a sensation within her.
"Achoo!" she sneezed, spurting out some smoke. "Oh dear me excuse me." Fairydramon excused herself. "These books certainly haven't seen much use have they?"
Sakura took her own book and fingered it. A layer of dust hung upon her finger. "Yeah I guess so, but something about this doesn't seem right."
"What do you mean?" Fairydramon asked.
Sakura put the book back. "I don't know. It's just that this whole place is making me feel unsettled. "What about you Chiisi?"
Chiisi looked to his sister. "I feel fine." he said. The boy seemed to breathe it all in. Everything about this library he just seemed to resonate with it. Though he had to admit, something did see off about this place. He just couldn't quite place it.
"Well personally I'm not much of a book mon." DemiDevimon said flapping in the air. "Just words printed on paper if you ask me."
"Books are more than that." Chiisi defended.
"Let me repeat. Words on paper." DemiDevimon said flapping right in front of Chiisi.
"Well personally I think books are wonderful. Your brother must have a very open mind my girl." Fairydramon stated.
The mood was light, and they each seemed to have a digimon that fit them. Despite the book comment, Chiisi felt that DemiDevimon seemed to fit him. Likewise Fairydramon with Sakura. The same could be said for all the remaining human and digimon partners. That had to be something gained from staying in this world.
"Brr." Sakura said as she held herself close. "Does anyone feel that chill?" she asked.
Chiisi looked around, finding nothing worth noting. "I don't feel anything." he didn't even feel a shiver. In fact, Chiisi felt really good.
"I swear there is something going on here! Something not right!" Sakura proclaimed.
Fairydramon let out a tiny growl and looked ready to pounce. "I sense it too Sakura." The dragon digimon flared her wings wide, "It's truly dreadful." it made her already cold blood run colder.
Just then, something emerged from the ground. It was long and black, and had the consistency of a shadow. Least from first appearances. The tendril swiftly grabbed hold of Sakura holding her high into the air.
"Help!" she screamed.
"Sakura!" Fairydramon cried. "Fairy Flame!" she spat out her flame which passed right through the tendril. "My word!" Fairydramon exclaimed. Before she could act further, another tendril shot out of the ground and grabbed her. "Let me go I say! Let me go!"
Chiisi and DemiDevimon stood by, unsure of what to do. Chiisi wanted to do something, but what could he do? He would have asked DemiDevimon to attack, but Fairydramon's earlier attack proved such a thing would be useless. The tendrils flailed and writhed before they disappeared into the ground.
"Sakura!" Chiisi called to his sister, but it was too late.
"They just vanished into the floor!" DemiDevimon said with alarm.
Chiisi looked around frantically. He and his digimon were completely alone here. Just then, two more tendrils sprouted forth from the ground. As soon as they emerged, they grabbed hold of the nearest two things: Chiisi and DemiDevimon. The pair didn't have time to run as the tendrils took them. DemiDevimon attempted to flap with all of his might, but it did nothing. Likewise Chiisi struggled and found it to no avail.
Before either could sat a word, they were dragged down deep into the ground. For a brief moment, Chiisi closed his eyes as he awaited whatever doom would come. When he found his eyes opening again, all he could see was an inky blackness. There was nothing but an endless void. Save for what lay beside him.
"Hey kid you alright?" DemiDevimon asked whilst struggling.
Chiisi attempted to wriggle his arms but as before it was no use. "For the most part." Chiisi sardonically retorted.
The both of them struggled but it did nothing. Chiisi was starting to grow annoyed. He wanted out, he wanted freedom, but most of all he wanted to escape. He thought about it, desired it, and right away, he cried.
"Let me out now!" Chiisi's voice rang throughout the void. And then, the tendrils came to a stop. They paused for a moment, and then right then and there, they began to sink. At first, Chiisi thought they were going to drag him further under, but to his surprise, his feet landed on solid ground. DemiDevimon's own tendril did the same thing, allowing the bat to fly himself free.
"What the heck did you do?" DemiDevimon asked.
Chiisi looked to his hands and shook his head. "I...I don't know. I just told them to stop and they did."
Was that all there was to it? Just asking them to stop? It didn't seem plausible. All there was but darkness, and a soft sigh was the first new sound he heard.
"Gotta enjoy this place. Perfect for me." DemiDevimon said comfortably.
It made sense, he was a dark digimon and darkness and digimon of his ilk went hand in hand. Or talon in talon.
"Now what?" Chiisi asked.
DemiDevimon flapped to the boy's shoulder and came to a relaxing position. "Can't we just soak it all in and relax a little?"
Chiisi admitted to himself, he did find this darkness comforting. He always found the darkness comforting. Even while he lay in bed, he wasn't afraid of the dark. No night light, no bedtime story, just sitting there in the dark and silence. But still. "No. We have to find the others." Chiisi insisted.
Hearing that, DemiDevimon flapped himself off his partner's shoulder. "Always right to the ever loyal point eh? Well as much as I hate to admit it, I find their inner drama enjoyable."
He was probably referring to the drama triangle between Sho, Kazuya, and Jun. Indeed it was a drama center. The bully tormenting the weakling, and the hero coming in to the rescue. At least that is how Kazuya presented himself.
"You're some kind of character aren't you?" said Chiisi.
DemiDevimon flashed a smirk towards them. "One of a kind kid."
Chiisi mimed the smirk and returned his attention to the darkness ahead. It was vast and seemingly endless. There it was, right there before him. Though despite that, something inside him told him the others were here. Just lost within this entire inky blackness.
"So where do we start looking?" Chiisi asked, still hoping for an idea.
DemiDevimon was considering ideas as well, and one came to mind. "Well if the tendrils listened to you? Why not the rest of the darkness?"
Chiisi looked to him quizzically. "What do you mean?"
"Kid. Those tendrils were pure darkness. And you just commanded them to stop. Maybe if you concentrate really hard, you could manipulate the darkness around you!"
Chiisi's quizzical look intensified.
"I mean well...you could try it. Just you know." DemiDevimon faltered a bit in his flapping.
Chiisi had to admit, it was a plausible plan. What else did he have to loose? And so, closing his eyes, he started to concentrate. He shut them tightly, cleared his mind. He was no stranger to concentrating. He did so often in school, when he was reading, or even when he was alone. First he cleared his mind, until he could see nothing but black, the same as the void before him. He cold see a clear connection and he decided to act on it. Then he began to think thoughts and with those thoughts came a desire.
"Bring me to them. Bring me to them." he chanted.
The chanting continued on even as he felt DemiDevimon clamp upon his shoulder.
"Bring me to them. Bring me to them."
An air began to swirl around him. Funny considering this place had no wind. And even as the air swirled, Chiisi could feel himself moving. Not just him, everything was moving around him. Everything was coming up fast and then, it came to an abrupt stop.
"What the?! Who the hell are you?!"
And Chiisi suddenly snapped his eyes open. Quickly looking about, he could see he was still in the same black void. DemiDevimon was still perched upon his shoulder. He was still in one piece. Everything seemed normal, except they weren't alone. Standing above in a clear four sided window was everyone! Kazuya, Sakura, Sho, Jun, and their respective digimon. And there they were suspended high in the air. Chiisi was full of joy upon seeing them, but that joy fell when he noticed who was below them.
Standing just several feet away was a red demon. Red from head to toe, or at least feet. Strange violet symbols situated throughout the body. A pair of violet colored wings spread back with a long devil tail hanging loose. The creature had a long pointed nose which seemed to fuse with the mouth and in its hand it held a pitchfork. Yep, classic devil image.
"A Boogeymon?" DemiDevimon said.
"Boogeymon?" Chiisi repeated.
"Yeah just some minor demon type digimon. Real wannabees." DemiDevimon said in an unimpressed tone.
"Wannabe?! I happen to be SkullMeramon-sama's top lieutenant!" Boogeymon proclaimed. "But that's besides the point, how come you weren't captured?"
Chiisi looked up and noticed his companions banging on the glass attempting to break free. "That's none of your business!" Chiisi declared. "All that matters to me is freeing everyone!"
Boogeymon took on a scoffing stance. "Not on my watch! You little brats have been interfering with our plans for too long. I plan to deliver you to SkullMeramon-sama personally! So why don't you be a good little boy and join them?"
"Blah blah enough talk. Time to shut you up!" DemiDevimon said flapping above.
"DemiDevimon wait!" Chiisi called.
But the bat digimon was already on his way towards his opponent. "Demi Dart!" Flapping his wings, he shot out several syringes toward Boogeymon. But as soon as they neared, a simple swipe of Boogeymon's pitchfork shattered them.
"My turn! Ruby Eye!" Boogeymon's eyes glowed a bright red and beams of red light shot forth. The beams struck DemiDevimon who fell to the ground.
"DemiDevimon! Are you okay?!" Chiisi said running to his side.
DemiDevimon managed to open his eyes bit by bit. "Heh...okay...he was tougher...than I thought."
Chiisi held his digimon tightly, shielding him from harm.
"See? You're no match for me. So make it easy on yourself and give up." Boogeymon began to advance towards him.
Chiisi was at a loss to what to do. He wanted to help, but DemiDevimon was a mere Rookie. This digimon was most certainly a Champion. What could he do against a digimon of that level? Chiisi formed a drive within him, called upon it. He felt his instincts driving him forward and mixing in with the drive.
Just then, at that very moment, DemiDevimon could feel something too. As Chiisi's drive continued to grow, he could feel the darkness beginning to swirl.
"He's doing it, he's actually doing it." DemiDevimon thought to himself. A slow grin crossed his face.
And at that very moment, Chiisi's digivice began to glow. The same glow covered DemiDevimon who floated from Chiisi's arms and hovering in the air.
"What...what's going on?" Boogeymon said, a hint of fear in his voice as he sensed the darkness swirling.
Chiisi could feel it too, and that very darkness swirled about DemiDevimon, mixing in with the glow.
"DemiDevimon! Digivolve to!" And then the flash and darkness parted away revealing a new form. "Devimon!"
Standing before Chiisi and Boogeymon was a tall humanoid figure. It was clad in a black skin outfit, stitched slightly in the arms. The arms themselves were long running down the body with elongated claws. The right arm was clad in a brown wrapping while smaller strands were upon the left arms. Several belts hung upon the wait, left leg and left and right arms. A skull symbol was upon the right knee and left shoulder and another orange bat symbol lay upon the chest and left foot. Large tattered wings hung upon the back almost as if they were torn from battle. A great horned head lay above with a pair of red eyes staring out of the mask. The only part that wasn't solely black was the mouth which was a male blueish white.
This was Devimon.
Devimon looked at himself while Chiisi stared in awe.
"I like this." Devimon said in a voice far more gruffer than his previous one. Looking back to Chiisi, the smile only deepened. "Hang back kid. I got this."
Boogeymon stared at the newcomer without even hiding his nervousness. "Big deal. So you digivolved? You're still no match for me."
Devimon snorted a laugh. "Oh really? Well you forget, I'm the original devil, and I can overcome a trash devil like you."
"Enough of this! Death Crash!" Upon the utterance, Boogeymon charged forward, pitchform to the front.
Chiisi expected Devimon to move, or do something. But he just stood there. He didn't dare say anything, mostly because he didn't want to distract Devimon. And then he noticed Devimon was doing something He simply outstretched his arms, palms out and stood there. Boogeymon was getting closer and Devimon was still showing no sign of evading. But then, he made his move.
Devimon's palms began to glow with black energy. And then, that energy released.
"Touch of Evil!" The energy collided with Boogeymon sending him off of his course. The red evil spun in the air as he flew backwards. But with a flap of his wings he managed to hold his position. Taking that moment, Devimon closed in. Claws still charged with dark energy, he struck Boogeymon several times. Each hit, Boogeymon was sent further along. But each time he straightened himself, though not looking to good for wear.
"Okay so you're good." Boogeymon had to admit. The two devils stared each other down and both flapped their wings flying upwards into the air. Both were glaring daggers at one another, ready to take one another down. "Ruby Eye!" Boogeymon cried.
Devimon just flapped there stoically, until a smirk crossed his face. "Laser Wing!" Twin beams of dark energy shot forth from the wingspan and struck Boogeymon. But he didn't end there. "Touch of Evil!" With a mighty slash, he struck at Boogeymon again making him cry in pain.
Landing back on the ground, Boogeymon found himself kneeling. "You...you're too tough." He looked to Devimon then to his prize above. And then he made his decision. "Keep them! I'm outta here!" And then in a flash, he was gone.
"Devimon you forced him back!" Chiisi called happily.
Devimon crossed his arms and looked above. "I'm not done yet." Flying upwards, he only went a short distance as he hovered in front of the cage. "Just as I thought, this is made from dark energy, so another dark source can only break it." he smirked. "Good thing I'm full of dark." charging up another Touch of Evil, he slashed until it finally broke. The glass pieces dissipated into data but that left the prisoner with nothing to stand on. Everyone fell and piled together into a clump.
"Gee thanks." Jun managed as she worked her way out of the pile.
"Okay kid, now it's up to you." Devimon said ignoring Jun.
"Huh?" Chiisi responded.
"Just will us out." Devimon instructed.
It didn't take Chiisi long to know what he meant. Closing his eyes, he willed and mustered all of his might. And then he felt something give. There was a great rush as outside the scenery began to rapidly change. And the moment Chiisi opened his eyes, he felt something different: the sun against his face.
"Chiisi you did it!" Sakura cried as she ran and embraced her brother in a hug.
"Yeah wait to go!" Kazuya cheered.
Everyone looked about and noticed they were no longer in the house. In fact, the house was completely gone.
"Where did the house go?" Sho asked.
"I can assume the house was some kind of illusion." Fairydramon proposed.
What else did they have to go on?
And so it was another win for them and they rejoiced in the sun. Chiisi took it all in stride for he knew he didn't do it alone. No half of the credit went to a dark hero. And that very hero stood and dedigivolved back into his Rookie stage.
And before he took flapped back to his partner, he thought to himself. "Guess the kid has taken the first step. Hope you're happy...master."
A/N: This was one of the longest chapters I have written. But now all of the digimon have reached the Champion level. And we got a first hint of the first arc's villain. Sorry this took so long to produce, but sometimes drive has a way of leaving you.