Disclaimer: After my claim last chapter, I checked to see if Entimon was a real Digimon. It isn't. If I owned Digimon, I wouldn't have had to check.
Izzy and Cody were almost blinded as soon as they entered the next area. However, after the portal to the Light Area closed, they saw the exact reason for this: the area they had just entered was composed entirely of mirrors and polished stone. The entire realm was essentially a kaleidoscope of distorted reflections. Knowing this could prove disastrous in the upcoming battle, Izzy and Cody immediately had their partners Digivolve to their strongest forms- with it being so difficult to tell whether anything they saw was real or just an image, they couldn't afford to take any chances. However, their precaution ended up backfiring- in the glow of Digivolution, the DigiDestined were somewhat blinded, and in that time, MegaKabuterimon was suddenly punched backwards. When the light finally receded, the perpetrator was revealed to be a bull standing on its hind legs with a metallic press over its left arm. Izzy just groaned at the form of his enemy.
"Whose idea was it to put a Minotarumon in the middle of a realm made completely of mirrors? I've heard about a bull in a china shop, but this is ridiculous." As he said this, MegaKabuterimon recovered, and fired a Horn Buster, sending Minotarumon flying back and crashing into a mirror. As Minotarumon got up and charged back at the DigiDestined, hundreds of reflections raced ahead of him, preparing to attack. Focusing on the Minotarumon he was sure was solid, Ankylomon was suddenly blindsided by what he had thought was a reflection, but turned out to be another Minotarumon. Seeing this happen, MegaKabuterimon immediately attacked the closest image to him, only to have his attack shatter a mirror instead of an actual target. Being just as confused as the two Digimon were, Izzy immediately pulled open his computer in the hopes his Digimon Analyzer would be able to help identify the real Digimon from the images. However, what he found was less than helpful.
"Oh, this is just great. The only thing this will tell me is we're facing a group of Champion level Minotarumon and one Ultimate level Minotarumon. I guess the first one we fought would most likely be the guardian of this area, so if we destroy the Ultimate level, we should be able to pass the test without worrying about the Champions. Still, the Champion and Ultimate levels look identical, and with all these reflections, finding the real Ultimate level will be like finding a needle in a haystack. Unless…"
Cody was quick to interrupt his older friend's musings. "Izzy, now isn't the time to be impressed with the enemy. We need to think of a way to beat him fast, before Ankylomon and MegaKabuterimon start hitting each other when they randomly fire off attacks on the hope of hitting something."
"Alright, give me a second. I might be able to track down which one is the Ultimate level by pulling up his profile on the Digimon analyzer, using that to get his unique data, and then track it down here, but it will take me a while to write the program that could do it. We'll just have to hold out until then. MegaKabuterimon, Ankylomon, you'll just have to go on the defensive for a while. Don't attack anything until it touches you, and even then keep the attacks small-scale— we can't afford to hit each other. I just hope I'll figure this out in time…"
With that, Izzy once again sunk himself into his computer, leaving Cody to watch the battle and support the two Digimon. Now that they were focusing only on things that hit them, they were being much more effective at taking out the attackers, as the Champion level Minotarumon were easily dispatched with MegaKabuterimon's Wild Scratcher attack, while Ankylomon was capable of stunning his foes with the first hit of his Tail Hammer, opening up an opportunity to finish them off with a subsequent hit. Still, this didn't change the fact that they were only retaliating to attacks, and even with MegaKabuterimon and Ankylomon having some of the best defenses among all the DigiDestined Digimon, the repeated Bull Fighting Attacks were taking their toll. Even after taking out 20 of the opponents, there seemed to be no decrease in their numbers, leading a frustrated Cody to turn to Izzy and ask if he could work faster. However, the question died on Cody's lips as he saw Izzy's Crest starting to glow a bright purple. Izzy himself seemed oblivious to this, as he continued working away on his program, muttering to himself.
"…Alright, so I've managed to eliminate the Champion-specific data, meaning the only thing showing up on this map is the Ultimate and its reflections. If I had more time, I could analyze the reflective surface to find out how exactly it's replicating the data of the things it reflects, but I guess I'll have to settle for watching how they all move and analyzing the pattern…" Cody didn't really catch the rest of what he said, as he was distracted when MegaKabuterimon began glowing a bright purple. With the numerous reflective surfaces, Cody couldn't quite make out his new form, but at that moment, Izzy shouted out "He's 25 degrees to your right, MegaKabuterimon! Get him!" However, a much deeper voice then MegaKabuterimon answered, calling out "Mega Electro Shocker!" before unleashing a massive, glowing yellow ball of electricity that not only hit the targeted Minotarumon, but also every copy in that direction before finally crashing into a mirror. When the afterglow of the attack finally cleared, Izzy looked to his partner to congratulate him, but was surprised to find the red insect replaced with a much larger, golden one. His shell had opened to reveal his wings, and his horn had changed to only a single point, but he now had two additional horns growing from the side of his head. His arms had also changed, appearing more muscular and ending in vicious-looking claws. Izzy stared aghast at his partner. "Prodigious! You Digivolved to Mega!"
His partner merely nodded. "If I know you were so lost in your computer that you wouldn't notice me Digivolving, I would have shouted out the change. Seriously, it isn't that hard. I can just go 'MegaKabuterimon, Digivolve to… HerculesKabuterimon!' But anyway, thank you for allowing me to reach my Mega form. I can't wait until we save Agumon and Gabumon and they see they aren't the only ones that can do it anymore."
Izzy couldn't help but laugh at his partners antics. Even as HerculesKabuterimon, he was still the same person he had been as Tentomon. However, before Izzy could continue further, he was suddenly interrupted by another new voice.
"How quaint. The little insect actually thinks he's beaten this area. It takes more than defeating the pawns to win the game. Dark Reflection!"
As the voice shouted this, a yellow glow suddenly shone beneath HerculesKabuterimon, and before he could react, he was blasted from below by the same Mega Electro Shocker attack he had fired earlier. HerculesKabuterimon cried out in pain before he started glowing, shrinking back to Motimon. As Izzy ran to catch his falling partner, he tried to force himself to believe that this was all happening. For the first time in all the tests, they seemed to be facing more than one Digimon in an Area. On top of that, this unseen assailant had managed to hit their strongest Digimon with his own attack, taking him out of the fight in one hit. How could they possibly hope to defeat a foe that powerful with only a Champion?
Aquilamon slowly came around to find himself tangled up in some trees. He understandably began panicking at the sight of his leafy prison, but upon finding the trees were very much immobile he allowed himself to relax. Whatever Argomon's new form was, it clearly packed a massive punch. The only bright side to the current situation was the fact that he hadn't reverted from his Champion form yet, but with the damage he had taken from the last attack he was already reaching the point where only sheer will and determination to protect Yolei were keeping him going. If he wanted to have any chance of winning this fight, he would have to find Zudomon and figure out some way to beat their Mega-level opponent before time ran out. Since time was of the essence, Aquilamon knew he would have to forgo the stealthy approach, and immediately took to the air in search of his missing friend. After clearing the treetops, the giant eagle let out a gasp at what he saw. Previously, they had been fighting in some form of meadow, dominated with a giant lake, with vines limited only to Argomon's surrounding area. However, the scenery was now covered entirely in vines, with only a few trees like the ones Aquilamon had been tangled in to offer any variety. Aquilamon decided to spare any consideration for the scenery when he noticed a cluster of vines slowly moving towards where Aquilamon assumed the lake had once stood. Since Zudomon was nowhere to be found and was the only large object around that Argomon would care to absorb, Aquilamon quickly flew towards the bulge in the vines, only to be stopped by the sudden appearance of a smaller version of Argomon blocking his path.
"So, even in your current battered state, you refuse to acknowledge the new order? By siding with the flesh creatures, you have shown continued defiance to the true master of all dimensions. It is futile to try to escape me. I am Argomon- my growth is unlimited, and I AM EVERYWHERE!"
The last three words of his sentence were granted additional volume by the sudden appearance of three more copies of Argomon all growing up around Aquilamon. Determined to go out fighting, Aquilamon charged the copy in front of him with his Grand Horn attack, and was surprised when he actually managed to cut through the vines and easily fly through the other side. While Argomon could apparently grow various clones of himself, they clearly lacked the durability that his Ultimate form had possessed. Aquilamon was immensely thankful for this fact, as immediately following his escape from the four Argomon copies hundreds more grew all around him. Aquilamon was forced to repeatedly use his agility in addition to his attacks in order to try to get to Zudomon. Aquilamon knew the original Argomon would be much more difficult to take down than any of these copies, so he would need some help to win this fight. After flying around our through what felt like 50 copies, Aquilamon finally caught up to the bulge in the vines he dearly hoped was his friend Zudomon, only for another copy of Argomon to grow right over where his friend had been. Determined to destroy this last copy, Aquilamon flew in with his Grand Horn attack, only to crash off of his foe's armor before being smashed into the ground with a laughing "Brute Force!"
Aquilamon barely managed to hold onto his Champion form from the blow, no longer certain if the three copies of Argomon he saw were due to the plant monster's ability to grow duplicates or some side effect of the last impact. However, the images slowly blended together to reveal a gloating Argomon.
"I admire your persistence, even though you had no chance of succeeding. As a reward for forcing me to fight you myself instead of using my copies, I shall save you the fate of your hairy friend, and merely delete you instead of breaking you down for sustenance. After all, the growth has no need for perseverance. Judecca—"
However, as Aquilamon averted his eyes and braced himself for the upcoming explosion, he suddenly heard a piteous moan. Looking back at his foe, he noticed a rapidly expanding wave of ice stretching from the very center of Argomon and reaching the entirety of the creature's body. Knowing that this could be his last chance to defeat his foe and that Zudomon was doing all he could to help beat him from the inside, Aquilamon put everything he had into one final Grand Horn attack. Argomon's frozen body shattered on impact, but Aquilamon also felt the result of the blow. Aquilamon reverted to Poromon and fell to the ground, only to land on something considerably warmer than Argomon's vines had been. Managing to open his eyes, he saw that he was safely held in Yolei's arms, and managed to let out a soft "Yolei, can we never visit a salad bar again?" before passing out. Satisfied that her partner was at the very least alive and that he would be okay after a long rest, Yolei turned to where Joe was holding an exhausted Bukamon, only to find him just as mystified at Bukamon's explanation of what happened as "finally understanding how the sushi feels when it's wrapped in seaweed." Acknowledging that their partners' recovery was much more important than figuring out what had happened after they had been incapacitated by Argomon, Yolei and Joe returned to the Light Area. While both of their partners would be unable to fight for a long time, the DigiDestined were determined to push through the final test and finally come face to face with the Olympos XII.
As Izzy clutched Motimon and tried to prevent his partner from coming to further harm, he attempted to carefully analyze the situation. They had successfully eliminated all of the Minotarumon, but were now left facing an unknown enemy who was capable of somehow redirecting their own attacks. Of course, defeating him first required finding him, which Izzy had no idea how to do. However, this problem was immediately solved when the voice once again began to address the DigiDestined.
"I see thou hast been rendered speechless by my imminent victory. Perhaps it would be more entertaining to show thee the face of thy doom so that thou may know the true extent of despair?" As the voice said this, a figure suddenly emerged from the polished surface of the ground next to Ankylomon. This figure was shaped like a human wearing green armor, but where his face should have been was occupied by a mirror that only showed a set of lips. This mirror was matched by another mirror set in his abdomen and a mirror shield on each arm. Ankylomon swiftly launched his Tail Hammer attack at the stranger, only for him to instantaneously sink back into the ground at pop up 20 yards away. "Thou cannot hope to damage me here. I am Mercurymon. I hold the power of AncientWisetmon as the Human Spirit of Steel, and as such can use any reflective surface as a portal. As this area is composed strictly of reflective surfaces, I am all-powerful!"
Ankylomon growled at the latest opponent who thought they were unbeatable. Luckily, he had a bit of experience with defeating these foes, having fought against Ken as the Digimon Emperor, BlackWarGreymon, and then MaloMyotismon. While Mercurymon could instantly teleport himself to a different location in order to avoid attacks, he might still be able to be taken by surprise. Seeing this as the perfect opportunity to act, Ankylomon began charging towards Mercurymon, swinging his tail from side to side and calling out, "Rhythmical Knock!" Thinking Ankylomon was trying to charge him directly, Mercurymon merely stood his ground and chuckled. However, he quickly stopped laughing as a pillar of earth suddenly erupted beneath his feet, sending him hurling through the air towards Ankylomon.
"Well," Ankylomon taunted as he ran to meet Mercurymon in the air, "looks like Mr. All-Powerful can't figure out that Rhythmical Knock is actually a ranged attack. Let's see how you dodge without any reflective surface to hide in. Tail Hammer!"
Cody cheered at his partner's quick thinking, but Mercurymon was not about to be defeated so easily. Angling his body in midair, he managed to position one of his shields between himself and Ankylomon's tail. To the surprise Ankylomon and the DigiDestined, the attack didn't break or bounce off of the shield, but it merely phased right into it. Before Ankylomon could react, Mercurymon placed his other shield directly in front of the dinosaur's face and sneered out "Dark Reflection." Suddenly, Ankylomon found himself bashed in the face with his own tail, and the impact sent him smashing him into the polished surface of the ground. Seeing this, Izzy could finally deduce how their opponent attacked, since in his haste to defeat Minotarumon, he had rendered his Digimon Analyzer temporarily unable to identify new Digimon.
"I've got it! That's how he could take out HerculesKabuterimon. His special ability is using his two shields as some sort of portal system. He absorbs attacks in one and sends them out the other. Between that ability and his ability to teleport, his defense is almost flawless. We need to find a way to beat him and fast- I know Ankylomon can take a lot of hits, but even he can't hold out forever."
Suddenly, Mercurymon appeared directly behind Izzy and Cody, making them jump when he started speaking to them. "Thou art mostly correct, child. My shields are known as the Shields of Irony. They allow me to absorb any attack and then reflect it out of either shield to defeat my foes with their own swords. However, knowing that shall not help thee survive this encounter!" As he said this, he swung his shielded arm directly at Izzy's head, only for Cody to intervene by grabbing it and throwing Mercurymon bodily into the nearest stone pillar. As Mercurymon groaned and got to his feet, Izzy could only gape at this latest turn of events.
"Did he really just try to take me out by hitting me with his shield instead of using an attack? And did you really just hurt a Digimon who can take out a Mega in one hit just by throwing him? Where did you learn how to do that?"
Cody just shrugged his shoulders. "Well, you know how I've been teaching kendo lessons at the community center? They offered all of the volunteers some free courses in martial arts. Though that throw really was more designed to get Mercurymon off balance and give us a bit of space, not damage him. There's no way he's actually hurt—"
"Unless," Izzy interrupted, "he's so reliant on dodging or reflecting attacks that he hasn't needed to improve his durability at all!" Mercurymon disappeared into the pillar behind him, but Izzy wouldn't be dissuaded. "Since he hasn't needed to improve his durability, he probably would be easily defeated if he ever got hit with a decent attack. We need to find a way to track down where he's going to show up next, and then see if we can land one attack to win this."
Cody's eyes suddenly lit up. "Well, I have a way that might get us exactly that opportunity, but we only have one shot. If this doesn't work, we might have to fight Mercurymon ourselves- though judging by the fact that his power seems to be drawn strictly from his opponents, that isn't as much of a death wish as it usually would be. Ankylomon, you need to go back to Armadillomon. We'll need Digmon for this."
Ankylomon glowed as he reverted, and one "Digi-Armor Energize" later, Digmon appeared on the scene. However, as Mercurymon had disappeared, Digmon was unsure of exactly how he was supposed to destroy a non-existent target. "Not that I don't trust you Cody, but I don't see how this helps. Even if we have a plan to hit him, it doesn't change the fact that I'll never be able to find him."
Cody just smiled. "Well, we'll just have to limit the places he can appear then, won't we. I know this could backfire, but I'd say defeating Mercurymon and getting to the Olympos XII is worth a few lifetimes of bad luck, wouldn't you? Though before you start destroying mirrors, I need you to make sure when Mercurymon does appear, you get one arm in each of his shields. Got it?"
Digmon seemed to fully grasp Cody's plan, and immediately used his Rock Cracking attack to create giant fissures that destroyed the mirrored surfaces all around him. As Ankylomon's Rhythmical Knock attack had shown, the earth beneath the surface was not reflective, so by creating fissures, Digmon was slowly reducing the area Mercurymon could use. Seeing himself beginning to lose his advantage, Mercurymon quickly reappeared in front of Digmon, with each of his shields turning the drilling arms back on their owner and damaging the insect Digimon. However, Digmon suddenly smiled despite the pain, and called out "Titan Drill" before slamming his nose drill directly into Mercurymon's chest. Mercurymon could only cry out in shock before the spinning drill pierced through him, returning Motimon, Izzy, Cody, and an incredibly drained Upamon to the Light Area. Cody picked up his partner and apologized for putting him in such danger, but Upamon merely chuckled. "Don't worry about it. It's like your grandpa says, some problems can only be solved by using your head. I'll be fine after a bit of a break. If Joe and Yolei beat their test, our entire team can take the last test together. They won't stand a chance!" Laughing at Upamon's enthusiasm, Cody and Izzy began mentally preparing for the last test, which promised to be the most difficult test yet.
Mimi couldn't help but let a frustrated sigh escape her lips. After Kari's quick success mastering control of LadyDevimon on the second time Gatomon Dark Digivolved, she had hoped she would be able to master the technique and avenge Woodmon's quick defeat in the last fight. While Sora had taken longer to get Karatenmon under control, she had eventually managed to eliminate the sadistic tendencies she and her partner had both exhibited on their first time. However, as soon as Mimi took her turn, she kept failing to achieve anything. Try as Mimi might, Woodmon would only Digivolve to Lillymon whenever her Crest activated, which was not really the Digivolution she was hoping to see. Mimi had been repeatedly trying for the better part of an hour, only stopping whenever Palmon needed a bit of a break. They had been going at it for so long that the other Digimon had given up on maintaining their Ultimate forms, instead taking shifts where one was prepared to fight if anything went wrong while the other two rested just in case Lilithmon decided to show up and cause trouble. Currently, Sora was standing by with Garudamon while TK and Kari were off in their own world, most likely planning on how to best avoid the current situation when TK took his turn.
Sora noticed her friend's frustration and tried her best to console Mimi. "Don't worry about this so much, Mimi. You'll figure it out eventually. You have to remember, Kari and I had already used our Crests for Dark Digivolution once before, so it was easy for us. The first time we did it, we had the two advantages of being in enough danger to trigger a Digivolution while also being under the effects of Black Requiem, so Dark Digivolving was the only option. You don't have either of those situations in play, so it should be much harder. I'm sure TK will have the same problem, so don't worry too much about it."
While Sora had hoped this would cheer Mimi up, it seemed to produce the exact opposite result, with Mimi suddenly bursting into tears. "You can say that Sora, but it doesn't change the fact that I'm still next to useless! Look at the history of our fights: after Togemon beat Monzaemon, when have I ever done anything really helpful? TK always comes up with a last-second Digivolution to save the day, but not me. The only useful thing I ever managed to do is gather up some allies to help fight Piedmon. And that was only after burying my head in the sand, taking Joe away from the group, and getting Leomon killed by MetalEtemon. It didn't even really help, since MagnaAngemon, WarGreymon, and MetalGarurumon could have cleaned up that mess by themselves. Even last fight, I still only got in the way because I was useless enough to force my partner to Digivolve into a tree stump who happened to be extremely vulnerable to fire- she did the best she could, but why did I have to give her that handicap? I'm sick of just being dead weight on this team, but I can't even do anything to change that! Sora, are you even listening?"
However, Sora had stopped listening partway through Mimi's rant, as she had noticed Mimi's Crest and Digivice turning black followed by Woodmon glowing a deep purple color and growing to a much larger size. Mimi still remained oblivious to this fact, until she heard a new voice addressing her that reminded her strongly of her grandmother's voice.
"Mimi dear, it's obvious you believe what you just said since I just Digivolved to Cherrymon and that could only happen through the Crest of Sincerity, but believe me when I say that nobody else thinks of you as a burden to the team. Eventually, you'll see your worth too, but until then, can you at least accept the worth everyone else can see?"
Hearing this, Mimi spun around and saw her partner's newest form. Just like Woodmon, she appeared to be a tree, but had grown much larger and now had six arms, one of which held a cane that appeared to help her balance on her many root-like legs. Instead of just being a stump, she now had a full head of leaves, which included some beautiful cherry blossoms to give her a distinctly feminine appearance. Despite being a Dark Digivolution, her glowing yellow eyes gave off an aura of kindness instead of menace. As Mimi remained awestruck at her long-awaited success, TK and Kari both came up to congratulate her and Palmon on reaching the Ultimate level. After Mimi and Sora both got over their surprise, they managed to explain what had happened.
"It's really weird," Mimi said. "After Sora went pretty much insane and Kari was torn up inside, I was expecting Dark Digivolving to be a really bad experience, but I don't really feel any different. I mean, there is a slight change, but it feels more like being annoyed at a bad hair day than anything major."
TK couldn't help but smile at this. "You know Mimi, if writing the story of our adventures has taught me anything, it's shown me how much we've all grown up. Back when we first got to the Digital World, you would have viewed a bad hair day as a major catastrophe. And I have to admit, Cherrymon looks a lot better than I thought she would. With the way Matt described the Cherrymon that worked for Puppetmon, I was kind of expecting a garish moustache and a creepy accent. The flowers really are a nice touch."
Cherrymon's flowers grew a bit darker pink before she responded. "Gee, thanks TK. But if I really wanted to use this form to look good, I could always do something like this. Illusion Mist!" A thick mist suddenly formed in the area for a few seconds, and when it cleared, TK, Mimi, and Sora were shocked to see Palmon, Togemon, Lillymon, and Woodmon standing by four copies of Mimi in different outfits. Cherrymon then reappeared as the Woodmon and Palmon visions disappeared, and it was obvious Cherrymon was smiling. "With that attack, I can make people see whatever I want. It needs a bit of work before I can use it fully, though. I'm not quite sure how to get it so only enemies get confused while my allies can see everything normally. Until I figure that out, I should probably stick to using it as a delay tactic and fight with my other attacks. Speaking of which, would you mind if I tried those out too? You won't need anybody other than Garudamon for this- I don't really want to hurt any of you and you may as well save your energy."
As everyone else cleared a bit of space, Garudamon assumed a ready stance, even though she wasn't sure if Cherrymon would even be able to move quickly enough to provide a threat- as a tree, she looked extremely slow even ignoring the fact that she was leaning on a cane. However, Garudamon was caught by surprise as hundreds of vines suddenly shot out of Cherrymon's branches and tied her up tight before throwing her into the air. After letting out a rather undignified squawk, Garudamon managed to spread her wings and right herself in the air.
"I'm really glad you decided to underestimate me instead of a real opponent," Cherrymon said. "Still, you'd best be more careful with my next attack. And whatever you do, don't eat anything- you probably wouldn't survive if you did. Cherry Blast!"
With this attack, all of the flowers on Cherrymon's branches glowed red before firing a barrage of cherries as projectiles towards Garudamon. The bird Digimon countered with her Fire Hurricane attack, but instead of disappearing in the flaming whirlwind, the cherries either exploded or were deflected into the ground, where they left fairly large craters for their small size. Content that her job was done, Cherrymon calmly reverted back to Tanemon before hopping into Mimi's arms. As her Crest and Digivice returned to normal, Mimi congratulated her partner on maintaining control after her very first time going to Ultimate via Dark Digivolution. Tanemon, however, turned the compliment around and said she only managed to do so because Mimi hadn't lost herself in the process. Hearing her partner say this, Mimi immediately promised herself and her friends that she would try to see her contributions to the team in a better light, in the hope that she would never be a burden again.
Lilithmon couldn't repress an angry snarl. Despite having survived for an exceptionally long time within the confines of the Dark Area, she was having a much more difficult time finding happiness now that Beelzemon had crossed over from the Dark Area into the Dark Ocean. This put the total number of liberated Demon Lords at five, but since Lucemon's plan required them all to keep together with a relatively low profile, the Demon Lords were forced into another state of semi-imprisonment instead of freely crossing into the Digital World. When it had only been her and Daemon, Lilithmon had enjoyed the increased freedom, but with Beelzemon, Barbamon, and Leviamon all joining them, she had a harder time acting on her own: Leviamon was jealous that she was still allowed to go to the Digital World, Barbamon didn't want her to succeed since he wanted all the credit for success to go to himself, and Beelzemon merely wanted a chance to destroy the partner Digimon and absorb their data. Add the resentment of the other Demon Lords to Daemon's hints that he was aware of her secret actions, and she almost missed life where everyone had sort of accepted their lot of being imprisoned in the Dark Area. Just about the only positive in the situation was the fact that Matt and Tai hadn't been resisting her nearly as strongly as they had been before, which was allowing her greater control over them and their Digimon. Even this bright spot was bittersweet, as Lilithmon found she preferred the defiant versions of the Chosen Children to these easily manipulated puppets. Against her better judgment, she had even started referring to the two by name in her head, which could prove disastrous if the other Demon Lords found out. Luckily, she would be getting another chance to escape their company, as she was ready to launch another excursion into the Digital World. She opened a portal, only for Daemon to suddenly appear beside her in a pillar of flame and immediately close the portal.
"I'm sorry, Lilithmon, but I'm afraid we'll have to cancel your travel plans," Daemon sneered. "The two humans must go, but we need you to stay here. Belphemon should have arrived by now, but he seems to think his role in this mission is to sleep in the Dark Area. Since he won't cross over by himself, we need all five of us to open a portal and pull him out. I assure you, I despise doing this tedious work, but Lucemon has ordered it, since he requires six Demon Lords on this side to create enough of a disturbance for him to cross over. And if you'll remember, Lucemon does not take too kindly to failure."
Lilithmon sighed in defeat before suddenly narrowing her eyes. "What do you mean, the humans must go? If I stay, and I know enough about Lucemon to know it is foolish not to, you'll be setting them free. Without me controlling them, they'd either be mindless zombies with two rookies fighting against the DigiDestined who can all go to Champion or Ultimate, or they'd regain control of themselves and rejoin the other Chosen Children. Either scenario results in us losing a valuable chance to get at Hope and Light. Also, without me using Black Requiem, Hope and Light wouldn't have to use Dark Digivolution, and MagnaAngemon and Angewomon could easily purge the darkness within their brothers. Are you really going to throw away such useful pawns and remove the only option of speeding along Lucemon's plan?"
Daemon chuckled darkly. "I fear you overestimate your importance again, Lilithmon. After all, Lucemon has sent forth someone who can replicate all of your influence. He can handle fighting these beloved DigiDestined of yours. And before you deny that statement, why don't you take a look behind you?" Lilithmon prepared a retort, but it died on her lips as she saw who was standing, or more accurately floating, behind her. He appeared to be a robed man floating over a book, and with the two orbs in his hands, Lilithmon immediately understood who it was. The newcomer silently turned towards Tai and Matt before unleashing a dark beam of energy from his book that Lilithmon recognized with a cold sense of familiarity as her own Darkness Love attack. He then dragged the two DigiDestined into his book before closing the cover and disappearing from the Dark Ocean. Lilithmon turned back to Daemon, disgusted.
"I can't believe Lucemon trusts that bibliophile with this task! I've never believed that silent creep could be trusted. All he cares about is studying everything in existence, not achieving anyone else's mission."
Daemon snarled at this. "Are you questioning Lucemon? Besides, when it comes to being trustworthy and putting the mission first, I really don't think you have any right to question anybody else. Now, do you have any more insubordination to plan, or will you follow along quietly to bring in Belphemon?" Realizing she had no other option, Lilithmon followed Daemon to the island that served as the main base for the Seven Demon Lords in the Dark Ocean, and found herself hoping that the DigiDestined would be able to handle the newest incoming threat.
Author's Note: Well, who all thought Izzy wouldn't unlock any knew forms since he was off on a seemingly unimportant sidequest? It really wouldn't be fair to him if he missed out on unlocking a new level just because I couldn't come up with an evolution I liked, so he gets to be the first person to reach Mega on his own since TK and Kari did in the third movie (which, though not officially canon, did happen in my series timeline). Of course, it didn't last very long, but he'll be able to go to Mega at will from now on. Anyway, there's only one test left before the meeting with Minervamon, and when that happens, I promise a lot of answers. Probably more answers than anybody wants. It's good that they are so close, because the Demon Lords have almost all gathered, and this newly revealed figure is potentially more of a threat than any of them at the moment. So, until next time, feel free to review/message me with any feedback!