We're back!
And this time we have a bit more happening.
I know the title says one thing, but trust me, there's more than just that.
So let's get this rolling!
Bond of Brothers! Yatagaramon!
"Well...this is certainly an...unexpected development…" Ozpin sighed as once again he and his faction were having a conference meeting. However, this time there was another addition to the group. One Qrow Branwen.
After the recent news report that had hit Vale, well...there was a LOT to discuss.
"You're telling me," Qrow couldn't help but chuckle almost cynically. "Didn't know someone would be crazy enough to try and interview a bunch of monsters...and actually get it."
"For once, I find myself agreeing with you Qrow." Ironwood said with a sigh. "However...assuming these three can be trusted, the information they gave is anything but comforting."
Ozpin nodded at that. "It certainly is worrying. A criminal from another world intending to invade and subjugate Remnant…" he mused, thinking how best to respond to this…
"And a rather peculiar name for their kind. Digital Monsters…" Lionheart commented.
"Seems like their implying their not exactly organic, well, maybe to themselves they are, but if their name is literal…" Qrow trailed off.
"Then they would be living and breathing constructs of data." Ozpin concluded.
"That's… concerning." Lionheart admitted.
"But that shouldn't be possible," Glynda frowned. "Data can't suddenly materialize in the real world."
"Nor should it be able to suddenly take on the form of monsters that are fully sentient," Ironwood added.
"Do you think they are lying?" Ozpin quirked an eyebrow.
"Not so much lying as either not telling the whole truth, or they themselves aren't aware of it," Ironwood mused. The interview video showed the three as rather awkward and unsure, clearly not expecting to have the interview. They seemed genuine.
"Well, don't keep us waiting, Jimmy, what do you think is really going on with those things?" Qrow said in amusement. This he had to hear.
Ironwood rolled his eyes at the nickname, but chose to ignore it for now "I believe they were created by someone, but that they aren't aware of it. There's no way data can just take on a physical form in the real world, nor can a creature take on such a sudden metamorphosis, and especially not ones so drastic."
"A cactus turning into a fairy of sorts, a beetle suddenly growing a shell, and a squid becoming some kind of humanoid creature. For all we know, the others also underwent these kinds of metamorphosis." Ozpin listed off what they had seen so far.
"And I think you may have been right about a link existing to what happened all those years ago Ozpin, I did some comparisons, and the one that calls itself MetalGreymon looks extremely similar to the dinosaur from back then. I believe they may be one and the same." Ironwood added.
"I believe you may be right. Perhaps he'd also gone through one such metamorphosis," Ozpin nodded. "Though I must admit...these metamorphosis are quite astounding if they even include what appear to be cybernetics."
"If my theory is right, it's because they're artificial. They don't follow the same 'rules' we have to follow," Ironwood said. "At any rate, what are we going to do about them?"
"At the moment? Beyond mobilizing to counter this 'Myotismon', nothing," Ozpin sighed. "There is too much we don't know, and from what little we have seen, these creatures can be highly destructive. I would rather not risk the lives of good hunters more than necessary…"
"Then perhaps I could send a few squads of Atlesian Knights," Ironwood suggested.
"That...may be a good idea," Ozpin nodded. "While I admit I've always had my misgivings about that, this time I do believe it may be prudent to make use of them."
"Just don't mobilise the WHOLE fleet James." Lionheart added dryly.
"...of course," Ironwood nodded...to which the rest of the group gained a deadpan look, all of them realizing that yes, he WOULD have mobilized the whole fleet...not that they could really blame them. Grimm were one thing, which they were...familiar...with. These Digimon however were completely new and unknown.
"At any rate, for now we have no choice but to wait and see. Should any new information come up, we will discuss things further," Ozpin said and with that, the meeting was ended.
Once the meeting was ended, Qrow was making his way to his nieces' dorm room. Earlier he'd actually been at the pier shortly after the fight ended. Heck, he had been on his way to Vale on a speedboat when lo and behold, his brother-in-law and the family dog came zooming past him. In a rowboat. So fast apparently he rammed right into one of the Digimon hard enough to hurt it. By the time he DID get to the pier, the fight was over, and he'd ended up seeing his niece, Ruby, of all people, checking on an out cold Taiyang with what he had assumed to be her teammates. The scene itself, while odd, wasn't really strange. Maybe they'd just been in the area when the fight happened or something. No, what he REALLY found weird, especially now, was the small 'plush toy' Ruby had on her. He didn't know why, but something about that thing was bugging him. At any rate, since he was here, he might as well drop by, while seeing if Taiyang had woken up by now or not.
He eventually reached the door, but before touching the doorknob, he decided to listen in a bit, to see if he might hear something to help him understand why the plush toy was bugging him.
Lo and behold, he was pretty sure he just did.
"Is he gonna be ok Ruby?" a voice he didn't know asked.
"He should be fine Tanemon, he'll wake up soon enough." his youngest niece answered.
Qrow blinked at that, before quickly remembering how all the names of the Digimon they had heard from the news ended in 'mon' which he assumed was short for monster considering what that Zudomon had said.
"I don't know about Gyro and Pierce though." he heard Yang's voice this time, probably talking about friends they had made.
"Yes, well, considering the circumstances, I can't blame them for being so nervous." another voice he didn't recognised talked, this one sounding like someone who was good at a dry delivery.
"Can somebody get this dog to stop licking me?!" another voice pleaded, before a few moments later, whoever it was sighed in relief "Thanks Weiss."
Weiss...why did that name sound rather familiar?
"Summer can't get here fast enough." another voice added.
Qrow paused at that, it took him a few seconds, remembering that they were in fall, so it was unlikely they were talking about the season, which in his mind, meant only one thing…
"It can't be…" he blinked. Could it? With that in mind, he grabbed hold of the doorknob and twisted it open. When he got in, he was met with the sight of Ruby and Yang, along with a girl in white (a Schnee he realized when he noticed her resemblance to another such woman), a black cat faunus, two guys Yang's age who were...standing as far away from Taiyang as possible… a blonde kid who seemed to be trying to go for a knight look, Pyrrha Nikos herself (she was on cereal boxes, so he'd seen her face plenty of times by now) a tall boy who looked like he came from Mistral, a girl shorter than Ruby with orange hair,and most importantly, what appeared to be 10 plush toys, including the one from earlier sitting in a neat pile with each other. A small pink puffball, the plant from before, a child sized pink bird, a large ladybug of some kind, a small guinea pig with bat wings for ears, a small grey seal thing with a tuft of orange hair, a brown puffball with a large horn, a small dog, an overgrown caterpillar, and a blue reptile of some kind.
"Oh! Uncle Qrow," Ruby said in mild surprise. "We didn't hear you knock."
"I...figured I'd surprise you a little," he said, putting on a look of amusement. "So...how's Tai doing?"
"Dad's fine. He should be up soon, though honestly we think he's just...really tired," Yang said.
"Heh, no surprise there…" Qrow chuckled. "I honestly thought I'd been REALLY drunk when I saw him zoom by on a rowboat."
"I...can imagine that would be a shock," one of the two boys who were clearly twins said. The one with the goatee.
"Almost spilled my flask." Qrow admitted with a smirk, before looking more closely at the twins "So… why are you two so far away from Taiyang?"
"We don't want to get punched." they both answered together.
Qrow blinked at the answer "Why would he punch you?"
"Short answer, I'm dating Pierce, the one with the goatee, and Ruby is dating Gyro, the shorter one with the goggles." Yang answered for them.
Qrow blinked several times at that "Well… that was fast." he said, before looking back at the twins "You won't have any troubles with me as long as you don't force them to do something they don't want to, alright?"
"Yes sir." Gyro said with a nod, his body relaxing slightly.
Qrow nodded, he could tell the boys were honest at least, so he wouldn't hound them like Taiyang might, before he looked back at the girls "So, you gonna introduce me to your friends?"
"Oh! Right, almost forgot." Ruby said with a nervous laugh "So, this is Weiss Schnee, I don't think a full introduction is needed."
"I've met the oldest schnee kid already… I just hope you're not too much like her." Qrow commented idly.
"...I don't think I want to know what that means." Weiss said after a moment.
"Moving on," Ruby quickly said, hoping to steer this away. "This is Blake Belladonna. She's from Menagerie and she and Weiss are on our team," Ruby said, introducing said faunus.
"Nice to meet you. I heard you're the one who trained Ruby," Blake said with a small smile.
"I am." Qrow said with a nod, before glancing between Weiss and Blake "Never thought I'd see a Schnee get along with a faunus." he admitted.
"I like to make my own decisions." Weiss answered, crossing her arms.
Qrow smirked "Good on you for that then."
"Next up is our neighbours I guess." Yang said with a chuckle "First up is Jaune Arc, he's the leader of their team."
"Nice to meet you sir." Jaune said with a simple polite nod, which Qrow returned.
"Next up, Pyrrha Nikos, and she wishes she needed an introduction." Yang said with a laugh.
"Don't like the fame then?" Qrow commented.
"I really don't." Pyrrha admitted, earning an understanding nod from Qrow.
"Then you have Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie, they've been together for like years now." Yang continued.
"Only recently started dating though." Nora said with a small laugh.
Ren just nodded with a light chuckle.
"Heh, quite the group you got here," Qrow said as he looked them over...before turning his gaze to the pile of plushies. "And what's the story with these guys? Don't recall ever seeing you with them," he said.
The group glanced at each other for a split second, before Weiss decided to speak "Their mine. I just, uh, gave one to Ruby."
Qrow looked at them dryly "Is that so? Funny, they look pretty weird though, don't think I've seen these things in stores before."
"Custom made." Weiss said easily.
"Uh-huh." Qrow answered dryly "Then how come I heard Ruby talk to someone called Tanemon earlier, and there's no one else in this room. Plus, the way that name ends, sounds pretty similar to what the Digimon called themselves."
"Uh…" Ruby gulped.
"Okay girls I think that's enough. He's onto us, so no point hiding it I guess," Gyro sighed. He knew it would likely be a matter of time, but still...he hadn't expected it to be THIS fast…
"Does that mean I can complain about being Koromon again now?!" Koromon asked, some annoyance in his tone.
Seriously, they had mastered this, but the interview had forced them to stay in the Perfect Level a bit longer, so now he was back to Koromon.
"Please stop it with that." Tsunomon requested dryly.
"...okay...I knew I shouldn't be surprised, but this is still...quite something…" Qrow deadpanned.
"Your telling me." a voice said from behind him, one that made him freeze.
Qrow turned around so fast, it was a miracle his head remained screwed on. There, standing right in the doorway, was Summer Rose.
"Though I can't say I'm surprised you were the one to find out. It's been a long time, Qrow," Summer chuckled, amused at the rather...silly...expression on his face.
"Bu...wha...huh?" Qrow seemed to have a hard time finding his voice.
"He appears to be in shock," came a new voice, as a bipedal fox came in after Summer, followed by a kid who looked like he'd been living in the forest for years, a big owl wearing ninja gear, a short guy dressed like a wizard, and a guy who was clearly the older brother of the twins.
"Considering what he's just seen...it's really no surprise," the boy sighed.
"I'm surprised he's doing worse than me… then again, I DID have the suspicion Summer was alive." the older brother murmured to the wizard.
"That and you didn't personally know her. These things have an impact too," the wizard added.
"That's fair. So...how long do you think before he snaps out of it?" the young man asked.
"I got this," the small seal said, before floating over to Qrow's hand, and giving it a small bite.
"Gah!" Qrow snapped his hand back. "Did you HAVE to snap me back to reality THAT way?" he asked in annoyance.
"Yep," the seal said in amusement.
"Bukamon…" Jaune sighed at his partner's actions.
"Anyway, Bukamon's antics aside..." Summer started in amusement "How have you been Qrow?"
"I'm… good, I guess. I should be the one asking you that though, you've been gone for 11 years." Qrow said after a few moments.
"A little under 14 years actually," Summer mused.
"Huh?" Qrow blinked.
"Time moves a bit differently for some reason between worlds. It's been about 14 years for me," Summer explained.
"Wait...between worlds...so let me get this straight," Qrow sighed, putting the pieces together. "We couldn't find you cause you were actually in where the Digimon come from?"
"That is correct," the bipedal fox said.
"And you are?" Qrow decided to ask.
"Ah, allow me to introduce our little...rebellion group if you will," Summer said. "The fox here is my Digimon partner, Renamon. The boy is my student, Keenan, and the owl is his partner/adoptive brother, Falcomon. The wizard is our resident bookworm and ancient text specialist, Wizardmon, and the young man is Azure Vermillion. He's not part of our group per say, but he's been helping out a lot since we came here."
"I'm Ozpin's new teacher on the school, and the guy who got Summer a new scroll." Azure introduced himself with a laugh.
"He's also been really helpful in getting information to us." Wizardmon added, and the ones in the know were positive he meant more than just simple intel.
"Right…" Qrow mused. "Wait, what did you mean by 'Digimon Partner'? Judging by the way you said it, it's more than just a partner who's a Digimon," he said, noticing that detail.
"Well...you're not wrong," Summer admitted, but inwardly wincing at THAT misstep. Not that she didn't trust Qrow, but she really would rather if some of the finer details remained unknown. "It's a little something that happens if a Digimon and a human or faunus forms a strong bond. They become 'partners', and form a...I suppose a 'symbiotic relationship' would be a good way of describing it."
"And not the bad kind of symbiotes either, we sort of make each other better I guess, the humans helping the Digimon evolve into stronger forms, and the Digimon helping the humans understand themselves better." Gyro added his own explanation in as well.
Qrow would have asked more, but the sound of someone stirring on the bed got their attention. Hearing Taiyang start to wake up, the Digimon immediately went back to their 'just plushies act', while Summer pulled her hood on, before Renamon and Falcomon seemingly vanished, both of them pulling a 'ninja trick'.
"Dad? You okay?" Ruby asked worriedly as she and Yang went up to their father.
"I'm… I'm ok yeah." Taiyang said with a grown as he sat up, rubbing his head with a wince "What happened?"
"We were hoping you could tell us, you kind of rammed a rowboat into a monster at the pier and you and Zwei got sent flying off." Yang said, simplifying it for him.
"Did I at least hurt whatever I hit?" Taiyang couldn't help but ask.
"From what we heard, you distracted it at least." Ruby said, smiling a little.
"Better than nothing at least." Taiyang said with a laugh, before looking at both his daughters "I'm relieved to see you're alright though, I saw the news earlier and I kind of panicked before running off and commandeering a fisherman's boat."
"Did you use the 'official Hunter business' line?" Qrow asked with a snort of amusement, something Summer had to hold back so her husband wouldn't notice her too quickly.
"Of course I did, fastest way to get here." Taiyang said with a shrug.
"I rented a speed boat, and you somehow got here faster than me." Qrow shot back dryly.
"I did?" Taiyang blinked. He...really wasn't paying attention when he was rowing. "...though I'm sure I felt a few bumps along the way…" he mused.
"I'm sure it wasn't anything to worry about," Yang said reassuringly.
Meanwhile, out at sea, a pirate crew was futilely trying to save their ship which was taking in water from a gaping hole in the hull, shapes suspiciously like a rowboat, a man, and a dog.
Not too far away, a large rock formation, big enough to sink a ship that wasn't careful, had been split in two, and just after that, a sea serpent Grimm was slowly fading away...sporting a hole right through its back area, and its mouth agape, as it had been killed in that position.
"So...who are your friends?" Taiyang asked. "...and why are those two boys looking like they want to jump out the window at a moments notice?"
Speaking of Gyro and Pierce, the two of them were silently trying to work out an escape plan in case Taiyang tried to hurt them.
"Uh…" Ruby was at a loss for words as she looked at her boyfriend and his brother, before focusing back on her dad "Well, we already did introductions with uncle Qrow, but we have Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Gyro Vermillion, those three are on a team with me and Yang, and then you have Jaune Arc, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie, Lie Ren and Pierce Vermillion are team JNPPR, their our neighbours from across the hall and our friends." Ruby said, pointing to everyone as she presented them.
Meanwhile, Gyro and Pierce had moved into a corner of the room and were talking on a scroll with… someone.
"Wait… overprotective father in law is part of the life insurance package?" Gyro asked lowly.
"Yes sir, we get a lot of men who end up marrying women who have hunters for fathers, so threats happen often." the female clerk answered him.
"Huh… nice to know." Pierce said, blinking in surprise.
Back with Taiyang, he'd been introduced to all their friends, and then noticed the additions beyond his brother in law. "And these are?" he asked. He figured the woman in a hood and the young man were teachers...though the one with a wizard outfit and the young boy had him a little curious.
"Oh uh…" Yang started thinking best how to answer that.
"Who the woman in the hood is? Well...you're gonna have your mind blown," Qrow spoke up in amusement.
"Uh...why?" Taiyang asked.
In response, the woman chuckled...a VERY familiar chuckle, before she lowered her hood. "It's been a long time, dear. Sorry it took so long...but I'm finally back," Summer said with a warm smile.
A few seconds passed and…
"...I think you broke him, teacher," Keenan said as he waved a hand in front of Taiyang who had the look of 'Error 404' on his face.
"Mind explaining a certain detail while we go hide?" Gyro requested as he, Pierce and their partners were at the door.
Summer sighed a bit "Sure, I'll call you when I've confirmed he won't kill you." and they were gone in the blink of an eye.
"Wait for us, we're getting a cramp like this," Veemon said as he and Koromon went after them.
"I'd better go with them," Azure sighed.
"I'll come along," Keenan added.
"Mind if I join?" Wizardmon said as well, the two of them going after Azure, Falcomon joining shortly after.
"Keenan," Summer suddenly said, causing said boy to stop and turn...just in time to catch something. "The Blue Card?" he asked in surprise.
"I get the feeling you may need that," Summer said, earning a nod in response.
"...those two certainly ran away fast," Keenan mused as currently they were in Vale, looking for the two brothers.
"Considering how protective Taiyang can be...I don't blame them for wanting to be well away from the 'blast zone' when he finds out," Azure sighed.
"Well, I'm certainly not complaining. I've always wanted to see Vale as well," Wizardmon said, as he was once more taking pictures.
"Try to remember what we're here for, okay?" Falcomon sighed, currently dressed in a hoodie to hide his features.
"By the way, while we walk...what's with those cards?" Azure asked, looking at Keenan's card holder.
"Oh, these? They're cards our D-Arks made using data from Digimon we defeated in the past. It's a special feature from this type of Digivice that allows us to use their powers to strengthen our partners...temporarily at least," Keenan explained, pulling out the cards that were in his 'collection', and giving them to Azure who looked them over.
Azure hummed in interest as he looked through the cards, seeing that Keenan didn't have THAT many at the moment, the most notable ones were a card of a green dinosaur with gigantic horns coming out of its shoulders, apparently called Tuskmon, and a card of a large white bird called Kokatorimon.
"So, these cards give your partner abilities like the Digimon on the card have?" Azure asked, shifting through the remaining cards.
"Yeah, sometimes it equips them with new body parts, other times it let's them use an attack from that Digimon." Keenan explained a bit more clearly.
"It's even possible for some Digimon to willingly give up a small amount of data to create a card." Wizardmon said, just as Azure found a Wizardmon card and a Renamon card.
"So, it's like an extra line of coding being temporarily added to a Digimon's program then." Azure murmured.
"Precisely, an added function if you will." Wizardmon said with a nod.
"And what about the Blue Card?" Azure asked when he shifted to it.
"It lets a Digimon partner that is at the Adult Level evolve to the Perfect Level," Falcomon said.
"So it's like the Crests then?" Azure mused.
"Well...yes, the Crests WERE the base we used to create this," Wizardmon admitted. "But it's not quite the same. Suffice to say, there is nothing quite like the Crests, and there are only a few of them in existence, each with a predetermined holder to a degree."
"So wait, you're saying outside from the few who DO have Crests, anyone else wouldn't be able to reach beyond Adult?" Azure blinked.
"Precisely," Wizardmon nodded. "And while the Blue Card is modeled after a Crest, its still no substitute by itself."
"Then how does it work?" Azure asked, now very interested.
"With a secret ingredient," Wizardmon said. "The Blue Card works by essentially forcing open the link between the human and their Digimon partner, increasing the connection's strength. Essentially, the Human and the Blue Card come together to become an artificial Crest, which we've dubbed a 'Matrix'," Wizardmon explain.
"Hence why Evolution using the Blue Card is known as 'Matrix Evolution'," Keenan nodded.
"Interesting...very interesting," Azure mused.
"He kinda reminds me of Wizardmon when he really gets into a book." Falcomon whispered to Keenan, who nodded.
"Would you mind if I study these a bit when we get back to Beacon? This is actually all giving me some very interesting ideas, but I'd need more data first." Azure requested.
"Sure, I don't mind." Keenan agreed easily enough.
"Thanks… and… how are you handling the news?" Azure asked, remembering when Keenan had seen the current date.
Keenan frowned as he was reminded of that little detail "I'm concerned I guess. Anybody would be tough when they find out they went into a new world for 10 years, only to come back out and learn only 6 months passed since you fell in."
"Yeah...it's...surreal...finding out that an entire village was wiped out while we were here planning on how to save lives…" Azure sighed.
"Nobody is to blame but the Bandits," Keenan said simply and more than a little coldly.
"You… REALLY want to hurt Raven, huh?" Azure said a bit nervously.
"I'm going to tear her arms off if I get the chance, how's that for an answer?" Keenan said with a scowl. "I saw the whole thing happen you know. One moment our village was peaceful, next thing we know, we were under attack and not by Grimm. They did it on purpose you know. Destroyed the gates so when the Grimm DID come, they took full advantage of everything," Keenan growled. "I saw her kill them right before my eyes. I didn't even get a chance to even start to mourn when the Grimm came in not long after. I barely even remember HOW I ended up in the Digital World," Keenan said. "All I remember was how utterly helpless and afraid I felt, knowing I was going to die and everyone who cared was already gone. Then everything was cold. I don't even remember how long I was just lying there in the snow until Frigimon found me…"
Azure was just a bit apprehensive as he listened to Keenan explain his past in full detail, it reminded if of several things, notably some anime characters who were consumed by a thirst for vengeance "And what do you plan on doing when you do get your revenge? Or if you CAN'T get it?"
"Continue to defend the Digital World, like I have for the last 10 years of my life." Keenan answered simply. "I know what you're thinking. I'm not going to sacrifice everything I care for just to get my shot at Raven. I want her to be brought down so my family and everyone she's stepped on can rest in peace, but I will NOT do it at the cost of my new family."
Falcomon smiled when he heard that. "And I'll be here to give you a flick in the head if you ever get a bit too far," he added encouragingly.
"Like you've always been?" Keenan chuckled.
"You two really do act like brothers when you're not all serious." Azure said with a small laugh.
"We basically are," Falcomon chuckled.
Meanwhile, in another part of town not too far from them, something else was going on.
A pair of Digimon were lying down on top of a taxi, everyone walking by thinking they were just ornaments because of how still they were.
The first looked like his body was made from a sac, a green cape hanging off his back, with a jack-o-lantern acting as his head, an axe embedded into the top of it.
The second was literally just made from stones.
"Hey… Pumpmon?" the stone one muttered to his friend.
Digimon Analyzer: Pumpmon
Pumpmon. Data Type. A Perfect Level Puppet Digimon. Pumpmon was apparently born from a bug in a computer network that happened on halloween, and likes to act like a trickster. Despite being a Perfect Level, it acts more like a child, preferring to enjoy life rather than fight. His special attacks are Trick or Treat, creating a giant pumpkin out of thin air and dropping it on his enemies, and Surprise, creating a jack in the box type of object that launches a random thing at his opponents, from pies to knives.
"What is it Gotsumon?" Pumpmon asked his friend.
Digimon Analyzer: Gotsumon
Gotsumon. Data Type. A Child Level Ore Digimon. A Digimon made from data on different minerals, he has a cheerful personality with a mischievous side to him as well. The varying ores that make up its body can actually changed based on his location. His special attack is Angry Rock, shooting a stone from the top of his head.
"Humans aren't very smart are they?" Gotsumon said with a snicker, finding it funny how none of the humans were paying attention to them.
"They sure aren't. Bet they wouldn't notice until we do something," Pumpmon laughed.
"Well then, what do you want to do? Seems like there's a million things we can do for fun," Gotsumon grinned.
Pumpmon hummed in thought at his friend's question, looking around the current area, before his eyes landed on something "There!"
Gotsumon looked where his friend was pointing at, and grinned even wider "That's gonna be fun!"
With that in mind, the two ran across the street, causing a traffic jam when several cars had to stop in alarm. Their destination? A casino, one that was in for a night it wouldn't soon forget.
"What happened here?!" Azure said in alarm as they saw the traffic pileup, caused by a few cars that had ended up colliding with each other.
"A traffic accident? But there's no sign or traffic light. Why would they stop suddenly?" Keenan frowned, knowing a few basics about the world thanks to Summer, and what little he still remembered of his childhood.
"Well, there's an easy way to figure this out." Wizardmon said, before walking up to a woman who was making sure her car was alright "Excuse me miss, what happened here?"
The woman looked at him, some annoyance on her face, but clearly not directed at him "Some kids started running through traffic earlier, caused a traffic jam."
"Kids? What did they look like by any chance?" Azure asked, a sneaking suspicion in his gut.
"Well...they were both in these weird costumes. One of them was dressed like he was made out of rocks, and another had a pumpkin for a head," the woman said.
"Thanks," Azure nodded, before they moved away. "Does that description ring any bells?" he asked the Digimon.
"Sounds like a Gotsumon and a Pumpmon to me." Falcomon mused.
"Are they strong?" Azure wondered.
"Not particularly, which is surprising for Pumpmon since he's a Perfect Level." Wizardmon admitted.
"Well strong or not, they're causing a lot of trouble as is. We'd better find them before-" Keenan started.
"Hey! Get back here you little brats!"
"...nevermind…" the boy sighed.
Turning to the source of the shout, they saw the two small Digimon...running off with a bag full of casino chips...which they apparently didn't bother cashing in.
"...so many questions, not sure I want answers…" Azure sighed.
"Just go after them?" Wizardmon offered.
"Just go after them," Azure nodded, to which they all did.
"I guess we just follow the casino chips then?" Falcomon asked.
"Yeah, think you can get us a bird's eye view?" Azure requested.
Falcomon simply nodded, before moving fast enough he left the hoodie behind and took to the skies in a second.
"I don't know if I'll ever get used to ninjas." Azure said with a sigh.
"I know what you mean." Wizardmon agreed, shaking his head.
The group soon followed the trail, Falcomon searching from the air. "He's found them," Keenan reported, using his D-Ark, as on the screen, he saw Falcomon going to a store, one that had a broken door then… "ARGH! MY EYES!"
"Jesus christ!" Azure jumped at the sudden scream "What the hell happened?!"
"A horrible sight! I need brain bleach!" Keenan said as he was practically trying to claw his eyes out.
"That's...probably pretty bad…" Wizardmon gulped.
"But all the more reason we need to make sure everything is okay," Azure sighed, to which he picked up the boy and put him over his shoulder, the two running to the scene, revealing a clothing store...with a passed out Falcomon, complete with foam from his mouth, lying on the street. Turning to the store quickly….
"...that is just WRONG," Azure said with a twitching eyebrow, while Wizardmon looked like he wanted to hurl at the sight before them.
In the display glass of the shop was Pumpmon and Gotsumon….wearing a pair of bikinis for some reason...and not just that, they had on rather awful looking wigs, and seemed to have applied make up and various other beauty products in a way that less resembled a supermodel, and more….frankenstein's monster, giving the image that was basically quite disgusting.
"Okay...I'm afraid to ask...but what the FUCK are you two doing?!" Azure said, looking decidedly sick.
Gotsumon and Pumpmon looked at him, turning to each other, and then back to him, before grinning "Having fun!"
"...okay, you know what, I'm gonna assume there's a bigger story to that, but first...Wizardmon...PLEASE…" Azure groaned.
Wizardmon nodded, still looking more than a little green, before using his staff to make the horrendous costumes go away.
"Awww…." the two trouble makers said in disappointment.
"Now explain. The only Digimon that have gotten here other than the ones on our team all work for Myotismon. THAT ring any bells?" Azure asked (right after finding a convenient bucket of water, and dousing it on the two traumatized brothers, snapping them out of it).
"Well, I mean, we came here with him yeah." Pumpmon said as he and Gotsumon walked out of the display area.
"But he's boring, all he wants to do is make us work, work, work! WE just want to have fun!" Gotsumon added.
Azure blinked at the answer, not expecting it, before slowly getting an idea, making him grin a bit "Well… I could probably find some more fun things for you two to do if you agree to help out?"
"Really? Like what?" Pumpmon asked with a head tilt.
"Ever heard of video games?" Azure asked with a grin.
"No, what are they?" Gotsumon asked.
5 minutes later…
"This is awesome!" Pumpmon and Gotsumon cheered together as they were playing a fighting game in an arcade, Azure standing behind them.
"So here's the deal, if you both promise to not cause trouble for the people of Vale, and if you can, tell us any info on Myotismon, like say….his base or something...I'll show you guys more and more fun stuff to do," Azure says.
"Sure!" the two of them cheered...almost immediately at that.
"...that was easy…" Keenan and Falcomon sweatdropped at how easy it was to get these two to 'betray' Myotismon.
"Kids tend to be pretty easy to bribe, with some exceptions of course." Azure whispered to them.
"Now here's hoping we actually get something useful from those two," Wizardmon said. "You know, all things considered, this has been a pretty good night...even if we haven't found Gyro and Pierce yet."
"Oh you did NOT just say that." Azure groaned.
"What? He didn't say anything bad, I mean, really, what's the worst that could happen?" Keenan asked, and Azure gave him a look that could dry up an ocean.
"If I don't survive this night, I'm kicking your butts in the next life," Azure deadpanned, and as if on cue, the machines started to malfunction, as the sound of wings could be heard, a swarm of bats somehow entering the building. To finish it off, a familiar figure rose up from the shadows, the bats flying by his side.
"I had a feeling you two would be causing trouble again, but this is one I can't overlook," Myotismon frowned deeply.
"And THAT, is what happens when you tempt fate," Azure deadpanned to his companions, before turning to Myotismon. "So...what do we owe the 'pleasure' of meeting you tonight of all nights," he said, keeping a straight face.
"Well now, this is interesting," Myotismon mused. "The students of that blasted woman, their resident magic user...and you...I can tell you're connected to the holders of Courage and Miracles. To think coming to retrieve these two trouble makers...or should I say...traitors now...would yield an interesting encounter."
"You call it interesting, I say it's murphy being an asshole." Azure muttered, drawing his weapons, hoping they could at least do SOMETHING against the vampiric Digimon.
"Hmph, you've certainly got their spirit," Myotismon mused. "But it won't do you any good."
"We're not going down without a fight!" Keenan growled, pulling his boomerang out. Triggering a hidden switch, the Boomerang extended and unfolded, revealing what appeared to be a bow, but with no arrows. Pulling on the string, an arrow made of energy manifested on the bow, before he let go and it fired at Myotismon.
Myotismon frowned, and simply knocked the attack aside, barely even singeing his hand. "I will deal with you four shortly," he said coldly, before turning his gaze to Pumpmon and Gotsumon and frowning, much to their fear. "But AFTER I deal with these two traitors." However, before he could get far, a bullet impacted against his cloak, revealing it to be Azure.
"Sorry, but I can't let you do that," Azure frowned.
"Oh? And why is that?" Myotismon asked, raising a single eyebrow at him.
"What? Do you think I'm just going to let you kill a bunch of kids? I'm a hunter, it's my job to deal with people like you." Azure explained simply.
"Very well then, I'll deal with them after I've dealt with you! Bloody Stream!" he declared, swinging the whip of energy towards Azure.
"Thunder Cloud!" Wizardmon countered, hitting the whip with blasts of electricity from the literal cloud he'd summoned, knocking it off course. "I'm not letting you do as you please either!"
"And neither are we!" Falcomon and Keenan added, as Keenan grabbed his D-Ark.
"Falcomon, Evolution! Peckmon!"
"And more!" Keenan added before pulling out a card.
(Play 'Slash!')
"Card Slash! Tuskmon!" Keenan called out as he scanned the card. Immediately a pair of large tusks appeared from Peckmon's back, and wasting no time, he charged forward, ramming into Myotismon, pushing him out of the arcade...and smashing the door too.
"You two run! We'll hold him off!" Azure shouted, before turning to Wizardmon. "Can you bring them back to Beacon?"
"What? But I can't just leave you three to fight HIM!" Wizardmon gasped.
"You can come back for us after this, but right now we need to get them to safety!" Azure said.
Wizardmon thought about it. He seriously thought about it. But as much as the logic was sound...every fibre of his being was screaming 'NO!' to him at the thought of abandoning his friends even if for just a while. Especially against that monster. With that in mind...he made his decision. Going to the two mon, he said, "I'm gonna cast an illusion spell to hide you both. Once I do, get to the big castle in the distance, and wait for us at the fountain. The spell will keep you both hidden for a day, as long as you don't bump into anyone. Do NOT lose the spell or you WILL die when Myotismon finds you," he said, dead serious.
"R-right!" the two nodded frantically as Wizardmon casted his spell. Once they were gone, he turned to the fight that was going on outside, and joined in.
Azure did a double take when he saw him join in "Why are you still here?!"
"I couldn't just abandon you all to him! It's not right!" Wizardmon said, casting a a few Thunder Clouds above Myotismon, who flew out of the way of the bolts of lightning.
"Are you sure? You said it yourself that you're more of a researcher than a fighter," Azure asked worriedly. He'd come to like the odd Digimon over the last week.
"Positive. I'm NOT abandoning my friends. Not now, not ever!" Wizardmon said in determination.
"Alright then...let's show him who's boss in that case!" Azure grinned, before renewing his attack on Myotismon.
"You fools are only running to your deaths!" Myotismon growled. "Night Raid!" he called out, sending out the swarm of bats, which soon engulfed them, leaving them covered in cuts after it was over.
"Okay...we might be in trouble…" Keenan admitted as Peckmon lost the upgrade from the Tuskmon card.
"Maybe, but doesn't mean we're going down without a fight!" Azure grunted, pushing himself to his feet.
"Keenan… I think now's the time for it…" Peckmon said, groaning as he got up.
"You might...be right…" Keenan groaned.
"If you're going to use the Blue Card, then do it. We'll keep him distracted," Wizardmon said.
"Right," Keenan nodded, drawing the Blue Card while Azure and Wizardmon continued to fight Myotismon.
"Card Slash! Matrix Evolution!" Keenan called out, though gritting his teeth as he felt the surge of energy run through him as it forced open the link between him and Falcomon to create his Matrix.
(Song Change: 'Evo')
"Matrix Evolution," came the drone-like voice from the D-Ark as the energy was released, revealing Keenan holding it to his chest. From the D-Ark a powerful light shone, and out came a purple Matrix Crystal that flew into the sky, an image of Keenan's determined face reflected on the crystal, before it flew towards Peckmon.
"Peckmon, Matrix Evolution!" Peckmon called out as the Matrix entered his chest. He spread his wings as shadows began to cover him, his body shifting and changing as he took to the sky, before the sun emerged, washing the shadows away, revealing his new form. He had now become a crow, sporting golden armor on the upper wings with a sort of golden claw attached to each, the top of his head and his upper beak covered in the same type of armor, as two bells were attached to the white feathers around his neck, and unlike a normal crow, he had three feet rather than two "Yatagaramon!"
"Ok… that's pretty damn cool." Azure murmured when he saw the large black bird in the air.
"What?! Impossible! You don't have a Crest!" Myotismon gasped.
"Do you really think we'd have just stood by and take things as they were?" Keenan smirked from his partner's back. "Well, you thought wrong! Let's show him, Yatagaramon!"
"You got it!" Yatagaramon crowed.
Digimon Analyzer: Yatagaramon
Yatagaramon. Vaccine Type. A Perfect Level Bewitching Bird Digimon. Although his jet black body may strike fear in some, Yatagaramon is said to guide those worthy to a mythical golden land. Should those he guides not pass his trials however, they will forever fall into the Dark Area. His special attacks are Mikafutsu-no-kami, concentrating the energy from the Dokkosho on his wings to his feet before firing it and disrupting the coding of any Digimon that comes in contact with it, and Gurendama, shooting fireballs from his Dokkosho.
"Do you really think this will change anything?!" Myotismon growled. "Night Raid!"
"Not this time! Mikafutsu-no-kami!" Yatagaramon called out, firing his best move, which hit the bats dead on, causing them to break apart into data as their code was disrupted. "Gurendama!" Yatagaramon followed up, hitting Myotismon with several fireballs.
"Gah!" Myotismon growled in pain as he was pushed back, but managed to block most of it with his cloak, but that soon came under assault from Wizardmon, Azure, and Keenan, causing him to growl in frustration. This was completely outside his calculations, so he needed to regroup and rethink some plans. "Fine, keep those two worthless fools. They don't know anything important anyway!" he spat. "But know this, I will have my revenge!" with that said, he fired another Night Raid, using the explosion that followed to cover his escape.
(Song End)
With the battle over, Keenan jumped down as Yatagaramon glowed...and shrunk down till he was back to his Baby form.
The form looked like a hatchling, covered completely in feathers, it's small beak included, with two short legs and two red feathers hanging off his back.
"Pinamon? Why did you revert so far down?" Keenan asked in surprise as he picked up his partner.
"I think that took too much energy from me." Pinamon sighed "Renamon handles it better than me that much is for sure."
"But at least he's gone," Azure sighed, falling on his butt. "That...was really tiring…"
"Tell me about it…" Wizardmon agreed, falling on his butt as well. "But we did it eventually. I'm glad I could fight alongside you," he said with a smile.
"You me both, buddy," Azure grinned as they shook hands. However, when they did, a light shone from their joined hands, and when Azure pulled back in surprise, there in his hand, was a Digivice Core.
"Well… that's not how I pictured this day would end." Wizardmon said.
Well... that just happened.
That's right people, Wizardmon is partnered to Azure, and we have changed the fates of Pumpmon and Gotsumon at the same time.
Because Azure took a moment to be awesome and stupid at the same time.
Best way to be awesome honestly.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed, because...
The Aventure Evolves.