Chapter Seventeen: Legacy of Light
With the Gabumon brothers directions guiding them and Piddomon leading the way the twelve adventurers set off in search of the Temple of Light. The morning was a particularly frigid one with all of the humans and even a few of the Digimon bundling up a bit more than usual and walking in a far tighter group to keep warm. Ayden jokingly offered to transform into Agunimon in order to keep the group toasty but everyone, even Xander, agreed that would be a waste of his energy. They knew that they might need him in a fight if things were as grim at the Temple as their Gabumon friends had let on.
Although the formerly cursed Gabumon had been afraid to talk the night before as the group readied for departure he'd pieced together enough of his fragmented memories to speak about what had happened. During an attack he had been captured and dragged off by a horde of Jakimon to a ritual circle deep in the forest. Here a group of Bakemon, ghostly Digimon that were little more than teeth and ectoplasm, had recited some dark rite to summon their Master, a Digimon Gabumon could not identify. After being tormented by the dark worship rituals that had ultimately cursed him he was brought to the Temple of Light and saw that it had been corrupted by the strange Bakemon cult.
"Devimon was there for a time," the Gabumon had shuddered, "They had this power, it made me change, digivolve... and then they set me loose to terrifying my own village, my own friends."
"This Temple of Light, is it similar to the Temple of Flame where I found the Beast Spirit?" Ayden asked to Piddomon but loud enough so that everyone could hear.
"I am not sure Ayden," Piddomon admitted, "But I do know that there were once many such Spirits in the Digital World, legends say that some of the Spirits bonded with humans in days long ago. We may find that the forces of evil are using the power of a Spirit to create more minions."
"It really makes you wonder," John remarked to Dyrasmon as the fairy fluttered nearby.
"Makes you wonder what?" Dyrasmon replied with her voice chattering and little body still shivering.
"How there could be unambiguous evil in the world, just straight up bad guys," John clarified rubbing his hands together and blowing on them to generate some warmth, "Back on Earth even bad people usually have some good to them."
"The Digital World is a bit different," Dyrasmon nodded, "Most folk are just as you describe, some more good than bad, some more bad than good, but most just trying to live their lives... but there are also evil Digimon, their code just goes bad and there's no way to ever destroy that corruption that lives inside them."
"Because Digimon don't die the way we do?" John stated as much as asked.
"Our soul is reincarnated, reconfigured, the only time we ever truly die is when our data isn't allowed to pass on."
John couldn't read any guilt in her tone but he knew that she was reliving her fight in the Umbra Forest. He gently put his hand on Dyrasmon's shoulder and smiled reassuringly. She had been filled with righteous fury and the power of the forest but in her zeal and anger she had struck down her enemy so hard that his essence could not be salvaged. It was a rare thing in the Digital World but from what Dyrasmon had told him deaths that were particularly violent where a Digimon was vastly overpowered often resulted in the exposure of their data and that in ancient times warriors would collect the data of their fallen foes. Such practices were frowned upon in the modern Digital World.
"How do we know that humans aren't also reincarnated?" Haomon asked trying to lighten Dyrasmon and John's mood a bit, "Especially now that they are here in our world."
"I really don't want to experiment and find out," John laughed, "In the Digital World or the human one."
"I need John alive," Vera shivered holding close to her boyfriend, "And warm."
"There's another abandoned village up ahead," Piddomon warned remembering what the Gabumon had told him, "Keep alert."
They stepped hesitantly into the clearing where the village was located staring intently at the vacant hollow shells of the houses. The houses here were wooden and of very recent construction and as the group inspected them they found evidence that they had been inhabited very recently as well. There were clear signs of a struggle with a few of the houses sporting broken windows, shattered doors and several having singe marks, craters or pock marks where some kind of energy beam had hit.
"Footprints around the house, maybe Jakimon," Ayden reported looking around nervously and grasping his Digivice, "and somewhat fresh."
Xander walked into one of the houses carrying a big stick, he'd been carving it with a knife he'd picked up back in Harborhail and trying to get it shaped somewhat like a baseball bat. There was no one inside this house either but he did see a large chest in the kitchen. Feeling a sudden rush of hunger Xander swung his bat down at the makeshift lock on the chest and bashed it open lifting the wooden lid and feeling the cool air inside waft up to bring his nostrils the fresh smell of food. He looked down to see baked goods, preserved meats, jars filled with fruit and all manner of food.
"They must've cleared out of here recently and in quite a hurry to leave all this behind," Xander exclaimed grabbing for a donut-like pastry only to have his hand smacked by the sticky fin of Bogmon, "Ow, what the hell man!"
"You can't just steal their food Xander," Bogmon croaked, "They could very well still be alive!"
"They're not gonna miss one lousy donut," Xander rationalized.
"One," Bogmon nodded letting Xander take the pastry and then slamming the chest shut and standing on top of it. As Xander took the first bite Bogmon felt his own stomach rumbling, his frog-like tongue shot out of his mouth and latched onto the donut tearing away all but the bite that was in Xander's mouth. Bogmon swallowed hard as Xander's expression of surprise become one of sarcastic resignation.
"Thanks for keeping me honest buddy," Xander laughed patting the Digimon on the head and getting a palm covered in natural secretions for his trouble.
The group reconvened outside the town square and its a curiously shaped stone well. The story seemed to be that most of the townsfolk had fled, there were numerous unidentified prints sprinting off into the forest but nearer to the Jakimon prints there were drag marks indicating that some of the villagers had been dragged away as captives.
With Piddomon keeping watch the group risked stopping for a late breakfast despite the fact that it was already early afternoon. To Xander's dismay they were left with small rations from the Inn they'd stayed at after their fight with Phelesmon and NeoDevimon; still it was better than nothing. Thirsty Xander stood and hoisted the bucket up from the well but rather than clear beautiful water he found a strange dark liquid more like bubbling mud or tar. Xander jerked his head away watching the substance rise out over the edges of the bucket and sizzle and pop against the stone surface of the well.
"Shit!" Xander exclaimed realizing that some of the stuff had oozed onto his shoe, his toes grew hot as the surface of his shoe began burning, he kicked it off in a panic and backed far away from the well.
"Strange," Piddomon remarked watching the substance, "Nobody touch it."
"You alright?" Solara asked helping Xander up.
"Yeah," Xander replied absentmindedly, "What is that stuff?"
"It might be part of the curse Gabumon mentioned," Thompson theorized.
"We need to put a stop to whoever is doing this to the forest," Dyrasmon spat watching the oozing liquid singe the grass before slowly sinking back into the soil below. Patamon released a gust of wind casting the decomposing wooden bucket back down into the well where it ker-plunked into the thick liquid below.
"We'll follow the Jakimon tracks," Ayden suggested, "they lead in the general direction the Gabumon brothers sent us on anyway."
Impmon sat in terror awaiting his fate behind a set of iron bars. The Digimon felt unfairly targeted for his failure, after all NeoDevimon had also failed utterly to stop the Destined and to his knowledge the winged demon had not met any punishment from the Master. In the distance Impmon could hear the sounds of torture deeper down in the dungeon where the true enemies of the Master were taken, where dark rites and sacrifices were performed. There Digimon might have the data torn out of them or even be dissected physically while their data was kept inside of them. Was this the face of Impmon?
"The boss will see you," the Minotaurmon guard growled undoing the lock on his cell.
Minotaurmon led him away in iron bindings down the dark dimly passages built of decaying ebony stone. This temple may have been the oldest thing standing in all of Severa, in all of the Eight Worlds. Here and there he caught site of the old building beneath, before it had been defiled by the servants of the Master. At the end of the hall there was an old statue buried beneath the blue-black vines that had come to dominate the place, it was of a beautiful creature he'd always wondered about wearing a scarab beetle necklace around her neck. Now, after his fight with the Destined, he knew it was a statue of a human girl.
Impmon solemnly walked up the heavy stone stairs hating the fact that in this small form he had to jump at each step to even ascend them. Finally he reached the top kneeling as much out of exhaustion as humility. He had never seen the Master in the flesh, only ever heard the booming voice from far away, but as he heard footsteps approaching he raised his eyes and they went wide with a mix of confusion and relief.
"Mistymon!?" Impmon exclaimed keeping barely enough composure to stay kneeling as the twelve foot tall humanoid wizard Digimon approached, "I thought I was to be judged by the Master."
"He has no time for the likes of you," Mistymon boomed slamming his staff down on the stone to make his point that much more insistently.
Impmon watched Mistymon wave his staff the crystal on the head of the staff glowed an ominous indigo shade before a swirling energy was cast off into the shadows. Down from the ceiling came NeoDevimon, chained and beaten and oozing black blood onto the crimson carpet and ancient stone below.
"Failure is not tolerated," Mistymon began with a wicked smirk, "We have much work to do to ready the world for our Master."
"Please just kill me," NeoDevimon moaned, his breathing labored and voice little more than hoarse whisper, "Take my Data, for the glory of the Master!"
"Precisely!" Mistymon exclaimed with exuberant joy appearing on his face as he jabbed his glowing staff against Devimon's chest. Impmon watched the crystal turn red like a hot coal as NeoDevimon began to scream and shake before finally his body went limp. Impmon thought to turn away in disgust but didn't, he watched the data stream of his former colleague dance around Mistymon's staff like a double-helix, Mistymon leveled the staff at Impmon and released the energy, "Now Impmon, you will not fail!"
The late afternoon sun had stolen most of the chill from the air but that didn't stop the group from shivering when they came upon the series of sinister stone circles complete with central altar. The altar stone was a black polished rock with grooves and etchings most of them depicting monsters of some kind though none of the Digimon recognized any of the figures there as other Digimon. While the sides were covered with this monstrous iconography the top of the stones were covered in strange glyph-like symbols, grooves that were filled with what the group could only assume was dried blood. Tufts of fir and and a Gabumon fingernail told the rest of the story, this was definitely the work of the cult Gabumon had described.
They searched the site for clues hoping to find a trail of Jakimon prints leading away and toward the temple but no such luck, it seemed that for the Jakimon this was the last place they always stopped. A shudder went through the group at that consideration each of them in turn deducing that it wasn't just friendly Digimon tortured here, the enemy were barbaric enough to sacrifice their own troops to whatever dark forces were at work in the Digital World.
"Dead end I guess," Xander shrugged.
"The Temple can't be far," Haomon purred as Vera began petting him.
"Sorry," she apologized, "back home I used to pet my cat when I got nervous."
Piddomon launched himself into the air and burst through the treetops of the forest. It was a risk to scout out the land ahead this way for putting himself that high in the sky would leave him vulnerable to being spotted by those in the Temple. He could see the ancient stone structure reaching up beyond the canopy of the forest. Suddenly one of the children below screamed and Piddomon shot back down through the branches to find the group surrounded.
"Bakemon," Haomon spat with thunder arcs wrapped around his fists.
"These ghosts must have been watching us the whole time," Adlimon proposed as he leaped to stand beside Haomon on the front lines.
"That explains why the hair was standing up on the back of all our necks," Solara agreed, "We all sensed them watching us."
"A clever theory human," a disembodied voice groaned in a ghostly tone, "but now it is too late, surrender and be sacrificed to the Master or we will take you by force and utterly destroy you."
"Bah hahaha," Haomon cackled, "How about this for a deal spooky, you lead us to the Temple or we'll fight our way there through every last one of your goofy ghost goons here."
"Nice alliteration," Xander said gulping as the Bakemon closed in around all of them with beady black eyes glowering and horrid fangs dripping with drool.
"Make them back down Piddomon, do not lead these children to bite off more than they can chew," the invisible leader demanded.
"I've had enough talking thanks," Haomon growled, "Haomon Digivolve to Felehaomon!"
Felehaomon leaped in with electricity spiraling from his spiky fur and began biting at the Bakemon. The first one was jolted good and hard and collapsed to the ground doubled-over in pain but as he moved in to bite the second it vanished before he could get his jaws around it and reappeared behind him punching out with its sharp clawed hands. The attack did little damage but Felehaomon found himself leaping back and forth to get at the Bakemon and being unable to injure them as they phased in and out of physical space.
Piddomon moved in to join the fight as did Ayden who now stood before them as Agunimon. Piddomon batted aside several of the Bakemon horde with his staff bashing one against a tree trunk only to have it pass through unharmed. It was a frustrating fight to be sure for although the Bakemon attacks were weak and most ineffective the Bakemon themselves were hard to hit and it seemed that for each that they did successfully hit another took its place. Piddomon got out in front, however, leading the group toward the Temple as they beat back the Bakemon as best they could.
Patamon and Bogmon double-teamed one Bakemon with Bogmon's tongue wrapping the ghostly creature and keeping it from vanishing while Patamon repeatedly Boom Bubbled the Bakemon's head until it fell unconscious. Even the humans had become involved, Xander taking quite a few swings with his makeshift bat but scoring very few hits while Solara fought side by side with Thompson and Adlimon.
Agunimon felt somewhat crippled by the fact that the forest around them might catch fire if he truly open up, still he'd managed to take at least six or seven Bakemon out of the fight and as he turned toward Piddomon he realized that the Temple wasn't that much farther and that the land beneath them had become a clearly defined trail despite the overgrowth from disuse. Half a dozen Bakemon appeared before him at once trying to press in their Zombie Claw attacks but he spun up a small twister of fire that vanquished all but one – one that vanished into thin air to escape – in a single blow.
The small hits the Bakemon were landing sl0wly began to take their toll as the besieged group approached the Temple until finally just outside the Temple doors the leader of the Bakemon showed himself. To the humans he appeared to be just another Bakemon only wearing a pointed witch's hat that had been pulled over his eyes to blind him.
"Soulmon," Dyrasmon identified, "He's been augmented from an ordinary Bakemon, someone must've given him power."
"Who do you work for Soulmon?" Felehaomon growled.
"Who do YOU work for?" Soulmon laughed, "You set yourselves up as heroes protecting the oppressed when none are more oppressed than those Digimon who are, by no fault of their own, inclined to evil. It is in our nature you see-"
"Enough speeches," Felehaomon roared, "Electro Hunter!"
The ghostly lion sprang forth from Felehaomon as a thunderclap resounded in everyone's ears but the energy form didn't hit Soulmon. Soulmon vanished and a ghostly hand grabbed Felehaomon from below the ground lifting the lion into the air and throwing him into the tree tops thirty feet from the Temple. The lion Digimon fell through the branches but managed to get his feet under him. The other Digimon were already on the move.
"Patamon Digivolve to Angemon!"
"Dyrasmon Digivolve to Echodyrasmon!"
"Bogmon Digivolve to Salbogmon!"
"Adlimon Digivolve to Glacadlimon!"
Soulmon sicked the remaining Bakemon on them as he concentrated on FeleHaomon. The thunderously angry feline shot electricity every which way as Soulmon vanished once more. The dancing arcs of yellow and blue thunder lit the forest up. Felehaomon couldn't keep up his barrage of thunder much longer but he suspected that Soulmon could remain utterly invisible pretty much forever. The arcs of thunder danced around singing the grass, cutting into the bark of nearby trees and leaving the whole area smelling of ozone before finally Felehaomon lost the energy and concentration to do the attack. Soulmon was on him in an instant lifting him up again and slamming him into the ground. This time, however, Felehaomon was caught by Angemon and put down safely on the forest floor before, with Piddomon on the other side, Angemon launched his Hand of Fate attack. Soulmon tried to fade out but it was too late, he was caught by the devastating attacks of the two angels and sank to the forest floor below.
The rest of the Bakemon were easily rounded up or defeated by the rest of the group until they stood before the Temple of Light unopposed.
Solara stepped up to the massive stone doors with the amulet in her hands and watched as the wolf carving lit up. The seam in the center of the door was glowing with a bright blue light as the stone door split open and let the group inside. Several Bakemon who had apparently taken refuge within were sent scattering as Felehaomon took out his anger at having been tossed around by tossing them around.
"What were you doing here Soulmon?" Angemon asked pushing forward the injured Digimon who was now bound by a band of celestial energy Piddomon had helped create, "Who gave you the power to become Soulmon in the first place?"
"Not who," the Digimon growled, "What."
Soulmon gestured toward a pedestal at the far end of the temple. The group approached a stone column carved with the same wolf symbol as the amulet but it was what was atop the pedestal that really caught their attention.
"A digivice!" Solara exclaimed.
"It looks like mine," Ayden mentioned.
Suddenly an energy beam emerged from the Digivice striking Solara's amulet. A sound like a snarling wolf resounded in the Temple as the amulet transformed before their eyes into a small statuette. The beam connecting the idol and the Digivice seemed to be drawing the two together until the idol finally met the screen and faded into it. Some kind of Digital chime seemed to play as if the Idol and Digivice were now locked together as it floated above Solara before falling gently back into her hands.
"I finally have my own Digivice!" Solara said with an almost solemn tone.
"Which I will be taking back," a demonic voice echoed through the Temple, "You are no Warrior of Light."
"Is this some kind of a test?" Ayden asked recalling his own experience with the Beast Spirit of Flame, "to see if she is worthy of the Spirit?"
"I don't think so," Piddomon replied watching the source of the voice crawl out from the crypt of the Temple, "Skullsatamon. This world has not seen a demon of his strength in a hundred years at least."
"Even your fearless angelic leader shakes in his boots," Skullsatamon laughed, a strange action for a crimson skeleton that had no visible organs to speak of.
"He has another amulet," Thompson called out pointing to a second wolf amulet around the Digimon's neck.
"How can a creature of such evil wear a symbol of the Spirit of Light?" Piddomon asked.
Suddenly Piddomon lunged at the demon flying through the air and launching a golden beam of swirling twisting energy from his staff as he did.
"Apollo Tornado!" Piddomon shouted launching the attack but flying in anyway. The attack hit harmlessly against Skullsatamon's crimson bones as Piddomon flew in and grappled with the demon. Skullsatamon cackled maniacally swinging out his staff to meet Piddomon's watching as Piddomon's staff bent and bowed before finally snapping in two entirely. With a kick of his foot Skullsatamon sent Piddomon flying before unleashing a powerful blast from his staff that crumpled the angel into the fetal position crying out in anguish, "I cannot fail, the forces of Darkness must not prevail!"
"Now, give me the relic," Skullsatamon requested landing before the children and their Digimon, "or would you like to join Piddomon in excruciating pain."
"No one is going to surrender," Solara said defiantly, "We've come too far. We've seen the damage your cult does and we will not stand for it!"
"Then you will fall!" Skullsatamon growled leveling his staff at Solara, "Nail Bone!"
The energy blast cascaded forward. Agunimon, who was standing farther ahead and to Solara's left, jumped in front of the blast while Thompson, standing behind Solara to the right grabbed her by the arm and pulled her and himself down to the floor. The attack hit Ayden square in the chest but that didn't stop it, it passed right through punching a whole through Agunimon and flying right over Solara and Thompson's heads before impacting the stone of the Temple door and leaving a smoldering dent.
"Ayden!" Solara cried rising to her feet as the man of her dreams fell to his knees. She could see he was still breathing, see that the hole was clean and without blood and yet he collapsed now flat on his face lifelessly still. Solara's Digivice was illuminating the Temple now, "Spirit Evolution! Lobomon!"
As the smoke cleared everyone was amazed to see Solara standing before them as a Digimon. She was a tall humanoid warrior wearing powerful metallic armor and with a mask that resembled a wolf covering the top half of her face, the bottom half of her face told them she was still Solara down underneath. She pulled twin swords from their holsters on either side and looked up to SkullSatamon with a feral growl. In those moments Solara realized the awesome power flowing through her, the strength of the Warriors of Light that had come before. She wasn't merely a human anymore, she was a Digimon, and she was carrying on a legacy that went back centuries.
SkullSatamon lifted his staff and launched his attacked and Solara lifted her swords to block it. Arcs of black electricity deflected into the stone of the Temple but Solara was forced down on one knee to block the attack. Even with her new power she felt she wasn't a match for this foe, at least not alone but of course she was anything but that.
"Attack!" Anselm shouted shaking everyone from their shocked state and throwing a small stone at SkullSatamon.
Now the evil Digimon showed his speed, jerking and dancing and even flying as he dodged their attacks. Glacadlimon's ice, Felehaomon's thunder, Salbogmon's tar, all missed. Angemon moved in to stand beside Lobomon as did Echodyrasmon. The others joined too all moving in at once. Angemon flew in to get behind SkullSatamon while Felehaomon and Glacadlimon went to either side. Echodyrasmon and Salbogmon blocked him from below launching a tempest of leaves and tar to keep him occupied while Lobomon lifted her gauntlet.
"Howling Laser!"
The light shot forth from her wrist-weapon and Skullsatamon lifted his staff blocking it with ease before swinging the staff all around. In rapid succession he fired off attacks. Angemon swooped out of the way just in time while Felehaomon and Glacadlimon both took heavy hits. Echodyrasmon dodged out of the way but Salbogmon was too slow taking the attack square on the nose and devolving into Bogmon for his trouble. A second howling laser came in from Lobomon however this one striking at Skullsatamon just as he had launched a second attack at Angemon. Even as Angemon recoiled in pain the blast hit the amulet on Skullsatamon's neck and it fell to the floor below.
Solara rushed in and grabbed the amulet and light enveloped her even as a Nail Bone attack was bearing down on her. She felt the second Spirit enter her body, felt the power coursing through her, and felt the two Spirits inexplicably combining.
"Fusion Spirit Evolution! Beowomon!"
She was taller now, probably more than fifteen feet tall and wearing even more advanced armor. The Nail Bone attack, which seemed to have been suspended by her Digivolution, hit now sending her sliding back and stinging like hell. She breathed deep steadying herself and letting the pain run its course before turning her glowing wolf eyes on the demon. With swords drawn she leaped into the air clashing her Beo Sabers against his staff. She managed to lock the staff between the saber blades and pull him down to the ground with her where the others were waiting to have their revenge. Even with their injuries Glacadlimon and Felehaomon attacked with one biting onto his bony legs while the other bit into his neck.
"Nail Bone!"
The attack hit Solara's blades and sent her back a bit but the pain was lessened this time and she fought through it to launch an attack of her own, an ethereal wolf made of purest light.
"Frozen Hunter!"
"Electro Bite!"
"Ice Fang!"
The three attacks hit at the same moment and Skullsatamon flew back hitting the wall of the Temple causing the stone to shake and crack at the impact. Even after this hit however SkullSatamon merely cackled evilly as he lifted himself up on his little leathery black wings and began firing off more attacks, this time however they were aimed primarily at the humans. The Digimon instinctively moved to block their friends, except for Glacadlimon who had realized that Thompson didn't have any attack directed his way. Glacadlimon leaped in at Skullsatamon going on the offensive but was knocked aside by the demon's staff leaving the demon to fly in and grab Thompson by the throat.
"Now I see why the Master is so concerned about the humans returning," SkullSatamon laughed, "Say goodbye to your friends!"
Beowomon launched an attack but it was already too late, Skullsatamon smashed through a pane glass window in the ceiling of the Temple and disappeared with Thompson as his prisoner. Angry and still in pain from that last barage of attacks Beowomon collapsed to her knees and let out a desperate cry. She turned to see Ayden, now devolved and in human form, stirring slightly and found herself slowly calming down.
"Is everyone still alive?" she asked as she too returned to human form.
"Piddomon was hit the worst," Haomon reported nursing his own bruises, "it looks like during those barrages Skullsatamon was getting off plenty of cheap shots at him and keeping him down."
"There was so much chaos," Patamon whimpered, "Even all of us together couldn't beat him."
"Even with my new power," Solara cursed herself, "I should have done more"
"This is no one's fault, we all did our best. But we need to decided what do we do now?" Xander asked putting his hand on Solara's shoulder, "And we need a leader."
"Piddomon was our leader," Patamon reminded, "or was it Ayden?"
"We didn't have one because we didn't need one," Ayden said trying to stand up but failing. His human form retained a bad burn mark where his Digimon form had been blown clean through, "But now we do, now this is a war, now they have one of our own. We'll follow you Solara."
"What? Me? Up until today I didn't even have a Digivice, up until today I wasn't even part of the team."
"You were always part of the team," Vera assured her.
"You're the heart of the team," John agreed.
"Where do we go and whose heads do we crack boss?" Haomon asked with a grin.
"We need to regroup and be ready for the next fight," Solara theorized, "And we need answers, I'm done watching my friends get hurt for a fight we know next to nothing about. Is Piddomon okay to travel?"
"I am milady," Piddomon said walking over to them with a limp and kneeling before Solara.
"It's time we go to the Celestial Palace and figure out what the hell we're doing here and how we can get home. We get our answers, get Thompson and do whatever we have to to get back home, whether that means saving this world or abandoning it."
"Very well," Piddomon agreed swallowing hard, "We will set out first thing in the morning."
"Get some rest everyone, tomorrow we head back to that abandoned village and get all the provisions we need," Solara announced.
Solara laid her head on her pack and tried to shrug off the physical and emotional pain the battle had left her with. She'd watched her friends picked apart, easily dispatched, while even with all the power of the Warriors of Light coursed through her she failed to defeat their enemy. Their foes were growing stronger and stronger and speaking of even more powerful forces working in the shadows. She looked to Soulmon who was still bound at the far end of the Temple guarded by Patamon and Haomon who had both already fallen asleep on their watch. How many villagers had met their end at this ghosts claws, how many innocent Digimon had fallen and how many more might something as powerful as Skullsatamon take with him in the end.
She thought of Thompson. The young man was a bit of a introvert and maybe a bit strange in the way he had crushed on her and tried to make his move but he was far from a bad kid. Solara saw them all as her friends, friends that had rushed headlong into an adventure following a strange feeling they could not explain. They had been drawn here and whatever or whoever it was that had brought them here was to blame for what happened to Thompson, to all of them. They deserved an explanation and a way out if they chose not to stay and fight. The stakes were more life and death than they had ever been for all of them, even the Digimon and it wasn't worth it to die in a fight that none of them fully understood.
Fueling her anger and her new found determination was the Spirits within her and what they represented. As she slipped in and out of sleep she could see flashes of the warriors who had possessed the Spirits of Light before her, other human beings like her that had been part of teams much like the one she was part of. There was a bond between all of them now, a web of memory going back hundreds or even thousands of years. Finally she felt she had a chance to prove herself, to prove that she belonged as one of the Destined and saving Thompson would be her chance to prove that she was every bit a part of that legacy as those who came before.
Author's Note: This Digimon story is one I started all the way back in like 2009-2010 and only now in 2015 am I trying to actually finish it. This chapter is the longest yet with over 5,000 words and I seriously considered splitting it into two chapters but felt that it's one coherent story and all takes place on the same day. By my reckoning the Digi-Destined team have been in the Digital World for 27 days. I also wrestled with whether to make up new Digimon for Solara's forms but decided that she would become Lobomon and Kendogarurumon as usual but her Fusion form would be named Beowomon instead of Beowulfmon. I hope to do about one Chapter a week and hope to ultimately have between 30-35 chapters total with each one functioning sort of like an episode of the TV series.
If anyone has actually made it this far in the story thank you for reading!