Digimon Fusion Ascendancy
Act VIII: AlphaNova X
Chapter LXXVI: Defiance
Planet Meat/22:00 Hours
Cyrus took one final look at his three former friends and gazed upon their dead bodies. He simply turned away and chortled evilly.
"Rest in peace, my former colleagues. Looks like I was destined to be the strongest after all. Now, Taito, it's time to settle this once and for all."
22:34 Hours
Taito had emerged from his space pod and walked out to search the entire area. He was unsuccessful to pick up any power readings from any of his colleagues. At first, he simply thought that the device was defunct, but he realized that it was a newer model. It should have pinpointed any warrior's energy signal within a matter of seconds.
"That's strange. I should have been able to pick the level of Ki from Sara and the gang. This is a newer model of our scouters. It shouldn't be broken. Piece of freakin' junk."
Taito flew across and gained a greater birds-eye view of the planetary environment. It was barren and desolate. The skies were purely crimson without a shade of blue. He checked his scouter and picked up no energy signals from his crew.
"Damn it. It's not responding. Maybe they are hiding their Ki. Oh well. I'm pretty sure they'll sense me eventually. Now, where could they be?"
As soon as Taito boosted his speed and flew across the landscape, a scene immediately caught his attention. He looked down and found several unknown sources piled up in rows. He flew down to take a closer look and what he found was utterly beyond his expectations. It was beyond horror. Yes, he had taken a glimpse at the corpses of three members of his crew. Taito landed down and runs across towards the three bodies. One was the incapacitated body of Mimiru, who has a gaping hole in her chest. Her once lively eyes completely faded out and she was no longer full of activity. She no longer sported that frisky smile she would always put on.
(Cue Star Wars Episode 3 OST - I Know There's Good In Him)
"Mimiru?!"
The warrior found the charred corpse of Leon. Taito knelt in front of him and clenched his fist.
"Leon?! Who could have done this?!"
Suddenly, he heard a slight whimpering and turned around to find Sara. She was near death as far as Taito could tell. He crawls over to her and grabs her right hand.
"Sara! Sara! Can you speak to me? Can you hear me?"
"Taiiiito… Taito…"
"Sara! Oh god, what the hell just happened here?"
"Taito… he did it… he really did it…"
"He, who? Where's Cyrus? Did he go off to stop the assailants? I can't even pick up his Ki through my scouter."
"Cyrus, he… he… he's… a… traitor. Be careful… Taito… he'll kill… you…"
"Cyrus?! He did this to you?! He betrayed us?!"
Suddenly, Taito looks back to the visions he saw while in his healing capsule. He visualized a mysterious figure standing over the bodies of Sara, Mimiru, and Leon. There were no signs of Cyrus from the vision, not even a mention of him. Taito looks back and deeply gets a visual image of the assailant's face. It was that of a young man with ice-blue eyes and blonde hair. It was Cyrus without a doubt.
Taito's anger was growing to all new heights and he held Sara tightly around his grasp. He held the girl and hugged her with tears coming down his eyes.
"Sara, please, don't die…"
"Taito, I'll always remember you…"
"Sara."
"I love you."
With that, Taito reached down for a final kiss to his long-time friend. However, all of that went to waste as an energy blast came shooting out of nowhere and plunged through Sara's stomach. Taito's eyes widened in utter horror as he saw Sara's body sailing across the landscape. He turned around to find the source of the energy blast and saw none other than Cyrus. The blonde-haired turncoat sported a malevolent grin.
(End theme)
"Isn't this what you've always wanted, Taito? Didn't you want your final moments with Sara?"
"You."
"What? Do you think that this war would end with a fairy tale happy ending? Did you really expect a 'happily ever after' bullshit? Eh, eh. Not on my watch. I did you a favor. I killed off what you call your most precious friend. Now you should be able to lose all of that sentimentality and fight like a true warrior."
"Sara."
Cyrus noticed Taito standing up on his feet and facing him. Taito's eyes were fueled with pure rage as if he were possessed by a hell demon.
"You."
"Ooh, what a scary look. That's more like it, Taito. That's the look of a true warrior. True warriors are meant to be ruthless and full of rage. I only killed Sara and everyone else to unleash that rage of yours. Don't go blaming me for this. If anything you should blame yourself. You chose to take the easy path. You chose sentimentality over power. You chose Sara over greatness. Wasn't your greatest desire to be the best? Look at you now. You are close to reaching that status of greatness. Unfortunately, you are face to face with greatness. I am your maker, Taito."
"Cyrus. You took the most important person in my life. You took three of our comrades. They aren't coming back. You took away their right to die peacefully."
Taito takes a fighting stance and does not take his eyes off Cyrus. The turncoat quickly takes his stance and faces off with Taito. Bright auras were surrounding them and the ground was trembling under their feet. Cyrus quickly felt a slight vibration from within the air and watched as Taito quickly phased out.
"What the hell?!"
Cyrus turns around and felt a presence from behind. He saw Taito throwing out a fist emblazed with ki. Cyrus puts his hands out and blocks the punch, however, the energy from Taito's hand pushes Cyrus back. Taito lets out a way cry and punched Cyrus' face.
Taito flew up and powered up yet another aura. Cyrus looks up and finds a torpedo-like blast coming down at him. The traitor easily dodges it and catches his breath. He looks up to find no traces of Taito until he felt a fist cave into his left cheek. The force sent Cyrus sailing through the ground. Taito reappeared on top of a rock with his arms crossed.
"Give it up, Cyrus! I will avenge their deaths by ending your life. Say goodbye!"
"End… my life? I don't think… so… You will never kill greatness," Cyrus muttered. "The thought of you being number one makes me retch… I hate the fact that you are even breathing… Machinedramon should have eliminated you when he had the chance…"
"Machinedramon? No, don't tell me…"
"Heh. You're a fast one, Taito. You should have realized that I've aligned myself with Machinedramon…"
"You didn't…"
"I made the deal with the devil himself, my friend. Burizalor is the only true power in the digital universe. You would have made a perfect addition to his forces if you had dropped all of that sentimentality. Then again, he would have killed you anyway. Your power is growing after every battle. He asked me to kill our friends. They would eventually catch up to you, Taito. Burizalor does not want the legend to be born."
"Legend? What are you talking about?"
"The legend of the fused warrior. There was a legendary warrior many millennia ago called an Ascendant. According to stories, this great warrior nearly destroyed half of the northern digital galaxy. The warrior was never heard from again since that time. That was the last time the legend was ever summoned into existence. Burizalor will make sure that the legend is not reborn. He fears that one of you will rise and become this Ascendant."
"Which is why he wanted us dead, but why not you? Why hasn't he killed you off?"
"He sees potential and trusts in my capabilities. I will never turn my back on Burizalor! Besides, he has promised a new body for me. This human body is expendable. Without my Legendary Armor, I can't fully muster my full power. So he will delete this body and reformat me into a Digimon form. Yes, it will be glorious to live a new life. You refer to me Cyrus, Taito. I'm sorry but the Cyrus you knew died the moment he made allegiance to Lord Burizalor."
With that, Cyrus laughed maniacally, but he didn't elicit even a reaction from Taito. The heroic warrior stood his ground and was prepared for any trick the traitor has up his sleeve. Cyrus grinned and snapped his fingers. Coming out from the ground were several MetalEtemon and BlueMeramon.
"Do you need help from these weaklings to beat me? You have no courage. You've killed whatever honor you had left."
"That's some talk coming from a sentimental dreamer! These soldiers are here merely to test out your abilities. If you can trash them, then you have a good chance of wiping me out. Let's see you prove your worth, Taito! Attack, men!"
(Cue Dragon Ball Z - Solid State Scouter)
As he said that, the fleet of MetalEtemon, BlueMeramon, and other Buriza Force troops rushed down towards the battlefield. Taito quickly flares an aura and flew out towards the fleets. The warrior fiercely lobbed numerous Ki blasts, incinerating numerous BlueMeramon and the Buriza Force troops. Taito unsheathed energy claws from his gloves. All the MetalEtemon fleet could do now was retreat. Taito gave them no chance of escape and reappeared in front of them. Taito ripped through their armor and easily slew the MetalEtemon.
"Is that the best you have, Cyrus? I'm seriously disappointed in you. Now get down here and fight me."
"I'm not through yet! Megadramon! Gigadramon! I summon you!"
Two enormous serpent-built dragons with robotic enhancements flew across the heavens. They cried out with echoes thundering across the landscape. Taito merely nodded his head.
"You are no longer a warrior in my eyes. You've stooped to become Burizalor's lowly stooge. How the mighty have fallen…"
"Kill him now! Go Megadramon! Go Gigadramon! Attack and destroy, Taito!"
By Cyrus' commands, the draconic duo flew down towards the battlefield and fired away numerous missile blasts from their arm cannons. Taito easily evades each missile blast and powers up a fist. The duo stopped in their tracks and witnessed a backlash effect. Within a few seconds, Taito reappeared behind the draconic duo and obliterated them with massive Ki blasts.
Cyrus' mouth dropped and he was completely in shock at everything that had now just transpired. The fleet had been utterly wasted and Cyrus was left alone. Taito levitates down and turned to give Cyrus a hateful glare.
"Um, let's talk about this, Taito. No, seriously… I'm impressed with your tenacity. I really didn't expect your power to grow that much."
"Shove it, Cyrus. Cut this crap, because I'm not buying it. You're not getting away from this without a fucking beatdown. You killed our team and betrayed the name of the Digital Knights. You spit in the face of everything Gennai represents. You take the side of a heartless monster for your selfish pride. I won't allow scum like you to ever breathe."
"That's right. Hate me. That's what is going to make you stronger, Taito. Feed off of that anger and direct your hate toward me. I hope you realize that you've just prepared yourself for the arrival of another guest of honor."
"What? Who do you speak of?!"
"That would be me, dear Taito," a deep, cybernetic voice spoke.
The warrior turned around and is quickly met with a rapid, claw strike from the cybernetic titan. Taito went sailing across the landscape and crashed through a hill. Stepping out from the shadows was the massive, robotic dragon with cannons on both shoulders. Cyrus chuckled and flew off towards the devastated site where Taito had fallen.
"Well, Taito. Like they say: Never take your eye off of the ball game. Your power may have grown but it still pales in comparison with Machinedramon."
"I'm surprised he's still alive after that sneak attack. That would kill any normal warrior."
"Believe me, he's far from normal, Machinedramon. It's going to take more than just that to permanently put him out of commission."
"Lord Burizalor ordered us to kill him and that's exactly what we are going to do."
"Yeah, yeah. But allow me to have a little fun with him. I want to see him suffer before he dies."
Taito slowly rises from the rubble and grasps his right shoulder. He most likely injured the shoulder, but he managed to overcome the threshold of pain. Cyrus stepped out of hiding and chuckled at his adversary.
"Not looking so well, are we? Don't worry. We're going to ease that pain. I know that you're anxious to see Sara again. We'll be honored to send you to the afterlife with her. Do you like that idea, Taito?"
The courageous warrior simply smirked and shot him the middle finger. Irked by the offensive gesture, Cyrus fired a Ki blast. Taito took the blast head-on and stumbled backward.
"Don't you ever display that act of barbarianism?! I thought I knew you better than that."
With that, Cyrus tossed another Ki blast. This time Taito dodges the blast and taunts the blonde. Cyrus continued shooting out numerous Ki blasts. The injured warrior avoided each one.
"It's sad. You can't even kill off an injured man," Taito scoffed. "You really have lost your honor. I can see your credibility going down the drain as we speak."
"How dare you… You mock me?!"
Taito stood his ground and prepared his own Ki blast to fire at Cyrus. Suddenly, Taito was picking up another group of high power levels. He turned around and saw a sword flying straight for him. Taito managed to barely dodge it at the last second. However, a hammer came up from behind and bashed against Taito's spine. The warrior is sent crashing down through the dirt.
"Hey! What took you guys so long?!" Cyrus cries out.
"Is that any way to talk to a commander, boy?!" another voice barked. "You never talk back to Commander Ginyumon!"
No, it couldn't be them! Taito exclaimed in thought. Not the Nightmare Special Squad!
(Theme fades)
The warrior lifted his head and found a group of five individuals standing next to Cyrus. They came into view through the shadows. Ginyumon was the first to reveal himself. His four colleagues appeared with him. All of them are fashioned in white and black uniforms with distinctive shoulder pads of varying colors.
"Roll call! I'm Commander Ginyumon!"
A short, stocky four-eyed frog creature, garbed in green chest armor and shoulder pads, hollered. "Gurdmon!"
An orange-skinned humanoid mutant, wearing red armor, shouted, throwing his white mane over his face. "Chaser!"
A tall, azure-skinned reptilian, garbed in blue chest armor and shoulder pads, hissed. "Devilin!"
A giant, muscular humanoid mutant with cream skin, wearing orange chest armor and shoulder pads, hollered. "Brutemon!"
"And together we are the Nightmare Special Squad!"
"I can't believe you would call these bastards!" Taito exclaimed. "You really can't defeat me on your own, Cyrus."
"Call them my insurance policy. They're here to keep me from you so I can have whatever scraps of you are left," Cyrus chuckled. "Hey, don't get mad at me for playing smart here."
"Then why don't you kill me? I'm virtually defenseless now."
"No, because I promised these guys a fresh kill before the day ends. So I beckoned them to finish the job. Commander Ginyumon, if you will…"
"Of course, Cyrus! Lord Burizalor will make you his new commander," Ginyumon said, shifting toward Taito. "And as for you, you'll be begging us to stop when we're done with ya!"
Suddenly, the Nightmare Special Squad watched Taito rise to his feet despite all his injuries. Taito raised his fists and waved his hand over to them.
"Let's get this over with, jerks."
"Suit yourself, Taito. You brought this on yourself," replied Cyrus. "Say hello to that slut of yours in hell for me."
With that, Cyrus walked away and left Taito. Then, he paused and crossed his thumb across his throat.
"Kill him."
(Solid State Scouter resumes)
The Nightmare Special Squad and Machinedramon quickly unleashed an all-out assault on Taito. Out of desperation, Taito flew around and produced afterimages, throwing off all but Ginyumon and Machinedramon. Ginyumon quickly seized Taito, pulling him out of an afterimage. Utilizing his telekinesis, Gurdmon hurled rocks that battered Taito. Chaser and Devilin took turns clobbering Taito with a slew of kicks and punches. As Brutemon prepared to fire his Eraser Gun, Taito narrowly dodged the brush with death. Charging his cannons, Machinedramon readied his Giga Cannon. Ginyu threw a purple energy ball, which struck Taito head-on. Relishing Taito's suffering, Cyrus gleefully cackled.
"You got him, Commander Ginyumon!" Chaser hollered.
"Yeah, finish the little runt off!" Brutemon shouted.
Landing near the wounded Taito, Commander Ginyumon walked toward Taito.
"Bravo, kid. You managed to last this long, but the fun stops here," Ginyumon smirked, charging an energy ball in his hand. "Any last words?"
Shaking his head, Taito spat on Ginyumon's foot and slapped the ground. In an instant, an energy ball shot out of the ground behind Ginyumon, catching the mercenaries by surprise. When Ginyumon finally dropped his guard, Taito forged a Ki blade in his right arm and drove it through Ginyumon's back. Wounding Ginyumon and drawing first blood, Taito managed to take out the Special Squad's leader.
"COMMANDER!" The other Squad members yelled out in shock.
However, Ginyumon locked his arms around Taito and held him for Machinedramon.
"I've got him, Machinedramon! Take him out along with me!" Ginyumon shouted.
"Shit!" Taito gritted as the robotic monster's cannons fired dual beams that blew them away. The blast seemingly vaporized them both. However, Taito's body flew backward and landed on top of his friends' corpses.
"No, Commander Ginyumon's gone!" Gurdmon cried out.
"He gave his life to ensure that boy dies with him. What a way to go," Devilin sadly muttered.
"Commander Ginyumon, we won't forget what ya did for us!" Brutemon wailed.
Chaser clenched his teeth and kicked dirt over Taito's body. "Yeah, and you stay dead! At least, the commander ain't rolling in his grave!"
"How are we going to tell Piedmon?" Devilin wondered.
"Looks like he's our new commander since he's the next in line if anything happened to the commander," Chaser stated.
Cyrus scoffed and muttered. "Man, what a bunch of crybabies."
"Let us report what happened. We can tell him about Commander Ginyumon's sacrifice and the extermination of the Digidestined," proposed Machinedramon.
(End theme)
Cyrus was satisfied with the dirty work and gave his approval to the Nightmare Special Squad. Machinedramon scanned the entire area and picked up no more Ki traces. He nodded to his partners in crime.
"They have been eliminated, Cyrus. We can report this back to Lord Burizalor. Our job has been completed," Machinedramon stated.
"Taito is finally dead and I am now free. I'm free to make choices and free to serve as a more competent leader. All hail, Lord Burizalor!"
"HAIL LORD BURIZALOR!"
As they hailed the tyrant's name, the crew, sans the slain Ginyumon and lower grunts, flew off-world to meet with Burizalor. Cyrus had accomplished what he had set out to do: eliminate Taito for good.
Unfortunately, their attacks did not finish off the warrior. Taito slowly opened his eyes and found himself battered under debris. Even he couldn't believe that he survived such an ordeal. He rose out from the rubble and crawled over to his best friends' corpses. His eyes were saddened with grief.
(Cue Wolf's Rain - Tell Me What the Rain Knows)
"Sara… Mimiru… Leon… I survived after all… I guess fate has decided to give me… another chance for me to avenge… your deaths… I will defeat Cyrus… and stop Burizalor…"
Taito then started digging up deep trenches. As soon as he finished digging up the first trench, he picked up Mimiru's corpse and placed her in the deep mound. He carried Leon and lays him on the second mound. Finally, Taito picked up Sara with a single tear coming down his right cheek. He kissed her cold lips and placed her body on the third mound.
"You guys. I will avenge you. If I can't avenge you, then someone will."
Taito looks down and finds a pair of flowers that had just sprouted from the ground. He knelt over and picked out the flowers. He dropped two flowers on each grave and gave them one final salute. Then, he mounded their graves with dirt.
"Don't worry, my friends. I will not let Cyrus' crimes go unpunished. I swear to avenge your deaths with any means necessary."
After mounting their graves with a pile of dirt, Taito kneeled in honor of his long-time friends and comrades. He gave them a final prayer and sits up from the ground. Taito turned on his scouter and picked up numerous power levels coming from off-world. One of those powers belonged to Cyrus. He limped his way toward his space pod.
(End theme)
"Burizalor. You want us dead. Well, I'm not about to keel over. You've somehow influenced Cyrus and I won't rest until I see you two dead. I swear on my partners' graves on that promise…" When he opened his pod, Taito assessed the dire situation and the little time he likely has left. "If Burizalor does plan on destroying our base planet, then I have to warn Gennai. I have to inform him of everything that will occur! I can't believe everything I'm envisioning is coming true! I have to at least prevent Burizalor from destroying our Digital World!"
Burizalor'sSpaceship/23:10 Hours
(Cue Star Wars Episode 3 - Enter Lord Vader)
After retreating from Planet Meat, Cyrus and his partners in crime arrived to inform Burizalor. Cyrus knelt before the evil tyrant and extended his hand.
"Lord Burizalor, we have eliminated Taito and his entire squadron."
"Oh, is that so?" the sinister tyrant chortled. "Well done, Cyrus. You've proven your loyalty. I'm quite surprised you even betrayed your former allies."
"They're dead to me now. Moreover, I've uploaded viruses that will hack and render their defense systems useless."
"Excellent, now we can launch even stronger units. Their barriers have blocked out every one of my forces except the special task units. Gennai's armies will finally crumble before me."
"We regret to inform you that Commander Ginyumon died in the mission," Chaser announced.
"His sacrifice will not be in vain," Devilin said. "Piedmon has already informed us he'll take command of our squad now."
Burizalor nodded. "As you say. As long Taito and his team are dead."
Cyrus asserted. "I'd like to ask you a favor, Lord Burizalor."
"What is it?"
"Well, I'm sure I've informed you about this, but I'd like to have a new body. Without my Legendary Armor, this human form limits my fullest potential. I want to see if I can do with a Digimon body."
"You also forget that we can exploit even greater power outside of the Digital World if given the opportunity," spoke Machinedramon.
"That's right," Phelesmon said.
"So, it's a new body you desire, Cyrus?" Burizalor inquired. "Very well. You did play your part well. Machinedramon, take our newest acquisition, Cyrus, to the laboratory. I'm sure our greatest scientific minds enjoy working on you."
Cyrus willfully bowed. "Thank you, Master Burizalor. Your reign shall live forever and I will see to it that it happens."
With that, Machinedramon walked out of the chamber room with Cyrus. With a sinister grin, Burizalor turned his attention over the North Realm's Digital World.
Piedmon addressed. "Lord Burizalor, I assure you I'll lead the Nightmare Special Squad diligently. Ginyumon would've wanted that." He got no response from the tyrant and quickly shifted gears. "It will only be a matter of time before their barrier will shut down. Don't you think it's wise you send the Nightmare Special Squad and me to destroy the remainder of Gennai's forces? Without Taito and his team there to defend the base, we'll crush the Digital Knights."
Burizalor veered over to Piedmon. "That'd be good. Moreover, I'd like you to infiltrate their main headquarters and capture the Crests."
"You know about the Crests?"
"Cyrus was fortunate to report this to me beforehand. I want those Crests captured before Gennai even has a chance to find their successors."
"Of course, my lord."
"Make no mistakes, Piedmon. If those children manage to get a hold of those Crests, their Digimon partners ' potential will grow. That cannot be allowed to manifest."
"Understood, Lord Burizalor," Piedmon spoke. "We will not fail you."
"Once you and your men depart from the planet, I will prepare to deliver the final blow to the planet. No more Gennai. No more Digital Knights. No more Digital World."
Suddenly, a BlueMeramon bolted into the chamber room and collapsed in front of Burizalor's hoverchair. The evil one turned to face the Digimon soldier.
"Lord Burizalor, I've come to inform you that the planet's defense barrier is slowly being deactivated. We will now send in hundreds of units to raid an attack on every one of Gennai's bases."
"Excellent. Piedmon, it's time. You and the Nightmare Special Squad infiltrate their main headquarters and steal away those Crests. Don't you fail me!"
"Yes, sir!" The Nightmare Special Squad exclaimed in unison.
The mercenaries quickly fled out of the throne room. They headed off to their space pods and deployed toward the defenseless planet.
Burizalor faced his glass chamber and watched assortments of space pods plunging through the planet's atmosphere. From a far distance that Burizalor's eyes could see, they looked like falling meteorites. The evil one smirked and leaned back on his chair. Phelesmon approached his tranquil master.
"I hope you're enjoying the fireworks show, Phelesmon."
"I am, sir."
The tyrant cackled. "This is a rare treat and it finally marks the end of the Digital Knight Council's golden age. Oh, how my late grandfather, Daikalor, would be delighted to see this if he were still here."
"Darling, how long will we have to wait until you blow up that eyesore of a planet? I've waited far too long," LadyMyotismon queried as she approached Burizalor's hoverchair and caressed the tyrant's shoulders.
"Very shortly, dear LadyMyotismon. Soon, the Digital Knights will be a distant memory."
Elsewhere within the spacecraft, Cyrus and Machinedramon were heading down toward the laboratory. They approached the entrance door until Cyrus noticed a space pod flying through space. Cyrus quickly picked up an energy reading from his scouter and gasped in utter shock.
"What's the matter, Cyrus? Have you had second thoughts?"
"No! I can't believe it! He's still alive!"
"Do you mean to tell me that a human boy survived our attacks? We saw him die back on Planet Meat!"
"Apparently, he survived. I'll have to delay my body transfer for another day. I'll make certain he stays dead."
With that, Cyrus hurried through the hallways leaving Machinedramon. He turned to another corner and found a Troopmon about to board a spacecraft. Cyrus viciously pushed the Troopmon aside and hijacked his space pod.
"Hey! That is my assigned carrier!" Troopmon stopped immediately when Cyrus shoved a hand full of energy in his face.
"Watch your mouth, fool. I am Burizalor's new lead commander. If you ever speak to me in that tone again, I'll make certain you meet death soon."
Troopmon nodded fearfully and backed away. Cyrus activated the carrier's launch systems and set the coordinates for a landing in the Digital World. After typing in the necessary commands, the space pod quickly flew out into space and headed for the planet.
"He sure is desperate about this assignment. Something really must have boiled his blood."
"He wants to finish what he set out to accomplish, soldier," a sinister voice spoke out.
"Commander Machinedramon, are you aware of this?"
"Yes, and Cyrus choose to take this assignment. Cyrus hates that boy more than I ever expected. There will be blood that will be shed."
"Blood?"
"I predict that one of the two warriors will fall and the other will never be the same again."
"I don't quite understand."
"Cyrus had better not let his rage get the best of him."
"His rage you say?"
"Cyrus, we shall see if you are indeed worthy to serve our forces. Burizalor will indeed be paying close attention."
(End theme)
Digital World-N/23:30Hours
The space pod, which carried Taito, landed in front of the main headquarters base. The warrior made his way through the front gate and started to inform every guard knows about the situation.
"You have to inform everyone of the situation! Burizalor is going to be launching an attack!"
"But are you certain Cyrus has turned traitor and joined Burizalor's rankings?" A low-class private asked frantically.
"How many times do I have to repeat myself? That bastard killed my entire crew! You guys have to get prepared! There's no time to lose!"
"Taito! We've been just informed that the planet's defense barriers have been shut down! A large horde of Burizalor's forces is penetrating through the atmosphere!" Another soldier calls out.
"What! But our systems should be strong enough to maintain the force fields!" Taito exclaimed.
"Someone uploaded a virus into our networks. We'll need time to neutralize this virus and regain control of the systems."
"What about anti-virus programs?"
"It seems someone had broken into our files and stolen all of our anti-virus programs."
"And that was another one of Cyrus' tasks. He helped you create that force field in the first place," Taito said. "That rat bastard! He had this planned all along!"
"What should we do, Taito? Burizalor's forces will attack at any moment!"
"I want you to get every one of your units and gather at Sector A-46. I'm sure they will begin their assault on those sectors! Hurry! We don't have time to waste!"
"Right away!"
Suddenly, Taito was picking up high-power readings from his scouter. Five space pods fell from the skies above. The warrior was well aware of the five major powers and could only mutter one response to this event.
"Shit."
"What is it, Taito?"
"Big trouble! It's the Nightmare Special Squad! Move out!"
"They must have come to capture the Crests," a man's voice spoke out despite the crowd panicking.
Taito quickly turned and saw Gennai with his sword. The young warrior could only afford to smile despite his mixed emotions.
"Don't you think you're a little old to get yourself involved in this?" Taito teased.
"Hey, I'm not that old. I heard everything about the incident on Planet Meat. I'm sorry about your crew. I'm sure they had fought with all of their hearts."
"Cyrus… I won't let him get away for his crimes…"
"Well, you have one more chance to avenge our friends. Our scouters were able to pick up Cyrus' Ki reading from the eastern section. I'm sure you will want to settle your differences there."
"You bet I do. Now, what about these Crests?"
"I'm sorry that I haven't informed you about the Crests, but they were to be confidential."
"In other words, they were meant to be a secret?"
"Yes, until the time was right. Now is that time. I have to do everything I can to escape the planet with the Crests and Digieggs."
"You're going to flee the planet?!"
"I have no other choice. The future hangs into balance and these items are our last hope."
"Don't you realize that our men are going to die! Burizalor plans on destroying this planet! You're going to risk the lives of a thousand of our loyal men just for the safety of a couple of unnecessary items! You're insane, Gennai."
"I don't care if you question my actions, but I know what I must do. Our men will be avenged, Taito. Please understand that. I swear on my own grave that a warrior will overthrow Burizalor and restore peace to the digital universe."
"Gennai."
"Unfortunately, you will not be that very specific warrior. But I'm proud of your efforts, Taito. I commend your loyalty. Now go. Cyrus must pay dearly for his crimes. Avenge your fallen comrades."
Taito replied with a determined and fierce glare. "You bet I will."
With vengeance on his mind, the warrior quickly flew off into the distance in pursuit of Cyrus.
Your deaths will not be in vain, my friends! I'll stake my own life to send Cyrus to hell where he belongs!
(Cue Transformers The Movie - Autobot/Decepticon Battle)
Gennai and his forces stormed outside the headquarters and confronted the Nightmare Special Squad. Piedmon walked out with his crew. The clown jester smirked and waved his hand in front of them. With a wave, he sent the group of Digital Knights flying backward. Gennai managed to hold his ground and ran back inside the headquarters.
"There he is, boys. I'm sure Gennai knows the location of the Crests," Piedmon spoke. "You handle the small fries. Gennai is mine. Now, let us fight in Ginyumon's honor."
"Don't worry! We'll leave nothing left of them!" replied Devilin.
"They don't stand a chance!" Chaser stated.
"This one's for Commander Ginyumon!" Brutemon howled.
Piedmon did not hesitate to waste any more time and walked through the front doors of the base. Several guards attempted to stop him, but he merely flicked them away by using an energy resistance force. The other guards were attacked by the other Special Squad members. The jester Digimon was unable to pick any Ki readings from Gennai. However, there was a sight that managed to catch his attention. The laboratory was just ahead of him with a security barrier over it.
"Well, it seems I've just found the treasure box I was looking for. That fool must be keeping those Crests inside."
Meanwhile, Taito continued his search for Cyrus. He grabbed his scouter and crushed it under his hands.
"I won't need this piece of crap. I'll seek out that bastard's energy my own way!"
Suddenly, images started to cloud Taito's mind. He saw images of his colleagues being slaughtered by the Nightmare Special Squad. He saw countless others being slain by Burizalor's forces. He saw lasting images of the Digital Knights being massacred and dismembered torturously.
"They don't even stand a chance! I wish I could go back but... No, I have to avenge my friends! I find and kill him with my own hands! Do you hear me, Cyrus?! I'll find you!"
Just then, he witnessed more disturbing images that clouded his mind. There was an image of himself standing near a lava pit. Followed by that image was perhaps the most disturbing and gruesome image a human being could ever vision. He visualized a burnt corpse lying next to the lava pools with perhaps the most twisted and horrifying appearance. It was the burnt corpse of Cyrus. His body was completely burned; his left leg was completely torn off, as was his right arm. There were barely any hairs on his head due to the heat. Half of his face was gone, revealing grotesque skull features.
(End theme)
"Is this what's going to happen if I settle my differences with Cyrus? I'd never imagine…"
"Taito. Can you hear me?"
The warrior turned to find a boy wearing a blue shirt, brown cargo pants, and a pair of goggles. The boy's hair was chocolate brown and spiked up with a pair of goggles wrapped around it. Taito looked at him and thought he was looking at a younger image of himself. He was mistaken. This unknown messenger spoke to him again.
"Taito. It's not too late to change your decision. You don't want to end up like Cyrus or Burizalor himself. You cannot lower yourself to their levels. You are better than that. Please, do the right thing, Taito. If not, then it will come back to haunt you for the rest of your life."
"Who are you?! What do want?!"
"A messenger from the future. You saw me in your visions."
"Yes! I saw you with an Agumon! How can I not kill Cyrus? He killed my friends and I will never forgive that worm."
Taito quickly looks back to what the Sisters of Fate warned him.
"Now you have been given the gift of foresight. Now you'll be able to witness future events that have yet to happen. Before your very eyes, you will see everything that revolves around your fates!"
"They weren't lying."
"You will know in due time. Now, you will bear witness to your destruction just as we were forced to witness our kind get wiped out by your irresponsible actions. You humans will pay dearly for your sins. Death awaits you all! Hahaha!"
"Damn them! They did this to me! How can foreseeing the future events of these painful images be a gift?!"
"Now you see the future, my boy?! All you can do now is wallow in self-pity. Your deaths will ensure that we have been avenged. You better make these last few days of your pitiful life count, because destiny has chosen death for you, arrogant humans!"
Yelling out of frustration, Taito descended and punched a rock face, turning it into rubble.
"Damn you! I will make sure that this world stays intact! I will ensure that we will survive! I will not die that easily!"
"Aw, are we talking to ourselves again, Taito?" An arrogant voice spoke out.
Taito turned completely around with his eyes fueling with rage. The source of the voice had come from the traitor himself, Cyrus. The arrogant blonde flew down and faced off with his former ally.
"You're a cockroach, Taito. We step all over you, but you still manage to get up."
"If I die, then you are coming with me!"
"It's a shame you won't live up to your word, Taito. This time I will make sure you do die. Machinedramon and the Special Squad were idiots to think you would have died. I know you too well. Once I'm finished with you, then I'll become Burizalor's lead commander. He told me so himself."
"Shut up! I will never forgive you, Cyrus!"
"So be it. You've sealed your fate, Taito!"
(Cue Star Wars Episode 3 - Anakin vs. Obi-Wan)
However, Cyrus was not expecting what Taito was about to deliver. Taito quickly phased out of sight again and left Cyrus bewildered. The turncoat scanned the area for Taito, but he felt a powerful blow smash into his face. Taito quickly appeared delivering an elbow shot to Cyrus' head. Taito continued this assault and viciously rammed his fists into Cyrus' chest. Unable to put up his guard, Cyrus got punched in the face. Cyrus was then sent flying backward by a spinning back kick. As Cyrus rebounded, he bounced back and unleashed a flurry of punches at Taito. Taito parried most of his attacks, but Cyrus threw dirt in his eyes.
"Augh! " Taito yelled, trying to get the dirt off his face.
"Say goodbye!" Cyrus laughed maniacally, channeling energy into his right hand and creating a Ki blade. He flew at Taito ready to skewer him but Taito sensed his enemy's movement and narrowly sidestepped Cyrus, surprising him. Then, he quickly turned and elbowed Cyrus' back. Then, he kicked Cyrus and with enough force sent him flying into a rockface.
Angrily blasting through the debris, Cyrus fumed. "I can't even touch him!"
"I'll make sure you do suffer, Cyrus! I will not let you walk out of here alive!"
"Are you insane?! You wouldn't kill your own comrade, would you?!"
When Cyrus threw a punch, he finally got a shot in Taito's face. However, Taito's face contorted angrily and was unfazed by Cyrus' blow that should've floored the warrior. Withdrawing his fist, Cyrus was taken aback and horrified by Taito not going down.
"H-How?! That should've…!"
Taito ground his teeth and walked forward, causing Cyrus to back off. "I'm not going to lose to an insufferable and cowardly piece of shit like you!"
"Stop! Get back! Let's talk about this, Taito!" Cyrus pleaded, backing away. "I only killed our friends because they lacked the potential we have!"
Scowling, Taito ran up and punched Cyrus' gut, breaking several of Cyrus' ribs. As Cyrus doubled over in agonizing pain, Taito pointed at him.
"Save it! You're going to justify you murdering my friends!"
"Please hear me out!"
Having heard enough, Taito kicked Cyrus down. He then snatched Cyrus by his left leg and tossed him around. After slamming Cyrus on the ground, Taito lifted himself and grabbed Cyrus' right arm. With one snap, the traitor's right arm snapped and bent completely backward. His cries didn't faze Taito, as the warrior had a completely cold glare. Cyrus' right arm was rendered useless and a bone was exposed.
"Damn, you! I can't believe you! You're willing to stoop this low as to dismember me! Do you not have a conscience?!"
"You should have said that when you killed our... no, my friends!" he hissed. "You deserve this!"
Cyrus gasped in utter horror as Taito snapped his left arm completely. It was bent at a 33-degree angle and bleeding profusely. Cyrus cried with tremendous pain and struggled to crawl. Taito walked over to a nearby pit and looked down to find a pool of magma. He turned to face Cyrus with eyes full of burning hatred.
"No… you wouldn't dare… YOU WOULDN'T?!"
Without a single word, he grabbed Cyrus and dragged himself across the dirt. The dismembered enemy attempted to blast him with small Ki blasts. Nothing worked as Taito completely ignored the painful shots. He was completely driven by a new motivation and that was to kill a former ally without restraint.
"You wouldn't! That's hot magma! Surely you're not… YOU WON'T!"
Once again, Taito did not utter a single word and continued dragging Cyrus down toward the magma pit. Cyrus struggled to break free, but Taito held a firm grip on him. Taito looked down toward the magma pit and faced Cyrus. His eyes were completely fueled with the burning desire to avenge his slain friends.
"Sara. Leon. Mimiru. This one's for you."
"No! You can't! Please, I promise that I'll change… I promise…"
"You change?"
"Yes, I only joined Burizalor to infiltrate his spaceship. I can get you any confidential information. Please, spare my life… They forced me to kill our crew. If I didn't comply with their orders, they would have killed me..."
"Is this true?"
"Yes, you do believe me, right? We are comrades after all…"
Taito stared deeply into Cyrus' blue eyes and slowly dropped Cyrus. The blonde turned to face Taito and smiled. However, the mood soon changed as Cyrus spat on Taito's right cheek. The warrior had dealt with enough of Cyrus' antics and picked him up.
"Don't do this, Taito! I was only playing! You know how I love to joke…"
Taito closed his eyes and nodded. "Oh really… Well, guess what?"
"Yes?"
The scarred warrior roared. "I DON'T BUY YOUR BULLSHIT!"
With a loud battle cry, Taito hurled Cyrus across and watched as his body fall near the magma pit. Screams began to echo throughout the landscape as Cyrus was beginning to suffer his painful end.
The scene was perhaps too gruesome even for a seasoned warrior such as Taito to bear. Cyrus wasn't completely thrown into the magma pit but was close to it. As fire from the magma consumed him, his skin melted away due to the extreme heat temperatures. His severed right arm and left leg had fallen into the magma pit to be completely disintegrated. Every trace of hair on his head was reduced into bristles. Nearly half of his left face burned off, revealing some skeletal features.
Taito had seen enough and faced the base, which had been ravaged by the Nightmare Special Squad. He looked back to the pit and sighed.
"My friends have been avenged. It's over, Cyrus. Now you can burn in hell."
(End theme)
As soon as he turned away, Taito flew off toward the headquarters. He didn't even attempt to question his motives. Cyrus would now suffer the consequences.
"I hope it's not too late!" Taito shouted, beelining toward the Digital Knight headquarters.
A/N: Cyrus gets fucked. Couldn't have happened to a worse guy. That fight was brief but that's all it needed to be. Now, just like Anakin Skywalker, Cyrus' becomes a burned cripple.
Taito gets his badass Bardock fight moments, including Solid State Scouter. However, the odds against Taito are even greater with the addition of the 'Ginyu Force' trying to take him down. This chapter introduces the original 'Captain Ginyu' expy and his cohorts. He's killed here so Piedmon succeeds him afterward and that carries over into the main Digimon Fusion Kai story.
In short, Taito barely escapes alive, gets a Zenkai boost, and proceeds to whip Cyrus' ass. That's a hell of a comeback. Gotta love Dragon Ball logic.
Now, we're heading for this origin story's conclusion and we'll be back to the present day.