11. Capture And Escape

Blitzmon tried to fight the urge to yawn, but the fatigued sigh escaped his mouth anyway. Birdramon's blue eyes flicked towards him, filled with disapproval.
"Sorry."
He attempted to focus on the canyon path before them, but tiredness and boredom was making his eyes droop.
"Are you sure we haven't missed them?"
Birdramon turned her head and gave him a scathing look. He held his hand up in a calming gesture.
"I'm just saying; none of the alarms we set up have so much as tingled and we haven't even seen any tracks. Maybe they didn't take the canyon route after all."
"Then where else would they go?" Birdramon questioned, frustration edging her voice. "If they're seeking out MetalTyrannomon then they have to go through the canyon. It'd take weeks to travel around the wastelands on foot and if they value their lives, they'd never try to cross on top of them. This is their only feasible route."
"Then where are they?!"
Blitzmon's reply came out sharper than he'd intended. He hadn't slept for longer than a few hours since they'd left File City, and Birdramon wasn't one for conversation that didn't involve their mission.
Birdramon opened her mouth to speak again when the sky suddenly turned black. Her fiery feathers appeared to burn brighter in the darkness. She seemed to think better of what she was going to say and returned her gaze to the path before them.
"Get some rest. I'll keep watch."
Blitzmon felt bad for snapping at her. She'd been pushing herself even harder than him and, as Baalmon's wings, she must have been feeling particularly pressured to succeed.
"Thanks. Wake me when you spot them."
Birdramon's answer was a piercing screech of pain. She lifted her left leg to reveal Smilomon hanging from it with her fangs buried in the limb.
Blitzmon ran forward and tackled Smilomon. Her spinning teeth were torn out of Birdramon's leg, causing the avian digimon to cry out again.
The two Champions rolled over and over in each other's grip. Smilomon's claws tore gouges in Blitzmon's armour but couldn't penetrate it entirely, so she gripped the horn on his helmet in her jaws and started twisting.
A wrenching pain shot through Blitzmon's neck as it began to bend in an unnatural angle. He dug his fingers into Smilomon's fur.
"Punishment Shock!"
Arcs of electricity shot from his hands and ran all over Smilomon's body. She roared in pain, releasing his horn. Blitzmon took the opportunity to rear his head back and slam his forehead into her nose.
As Smilomon released her grip on him, Blitzmon looked up to see shadows darting across the canyon.
Kumomon was in the lead, followed closely by Charlie. Behind her came Kartik and Tarumon. Shinyu brought up the rear, looking towards Smilomon just in time to see her get headbutted and drop to the ground.
"Smilomon!"
He took a step towards his partner.
"Keep going!" Tarumon called back to him. "It'll take more than that to keep Smilomon down!"
No sooner had he said that then Smilomon sat up and wrapped her paws around Blitzmon's shoulders, keeping him from standing.
"Birdramon! Stop them!" Blitzmon called out.
Birdramon had been crouched over her wounded leg. Upon hearing Blitzmon's cry, she spread her wings and propelled herself into the air.
"Meteor Wing!"
Feathers of flame rained down over the canyon.
Tarumon grabbed Kartik's wrist and pulled him down to the ground. He shielded him as much as he could while watching the fiery projectiles shoot through the air.
Kumomon and Charlie had almost reached the outcrop when the bombardment started. Kumomon sprang forward, disappearing behind the mound of rock. Charlie ran after her, keeping her eye on the spot she'd vanished into. This caused her to miss the burning feather shooting towards her until it was almost on top of her.
"Ah merde!"
She threw herself towards the ground but a blast of hot air, from the feather striking the earth, sent her flying. She managed to bring her arms up around her head before she hit the canyon wall but the impact still knocked the breath out of her.
"Charlie!"
Smilomon looked at her friend lying prone on the ground then turned her head with a growl towards Birdramon. She gave Blitzmon a swipe with her paw, knocking him away from her.
Digging her claws into the ground, she faced Birdramon and took a deep breath.
Shinyu looked up from where he'd been crouching with his hands over his head. He saw what Smilomon was about to do and shouted out to her.
"Smilomon! Don't -"
"Roar Force!"
The shockwave hit Birdramon in the midsection, driving her into the canyon wall. Cracks from the impact spread around her; some travelling to the tunnel entrance where Charlie lay. A layer of rock broke off the wall above Charlie and fell down in chunks.
Smilomon's jaw dropped as she saw the rubble cascading down towards the stunned human. Before she could move, she was shoved aside by Blitzmon who sprinted towards Charlie, electricity sparking along his legs. He dived on top of her just as the rocks crashed down, burying the outcrop completely.
"No!"
Shinyu ran towards the mound of stone, trying to get images of graves and coffins out of his head. He could save her. He just had to be quick. She was going to be alright. No one was going to die today.
A blast of hot air hit him, almost taking him off his feet. He barely had time to register what was happening before Birdramon was upon him.
She pinned Shinyu to the ground with her right foot, her injured leg tucked under her body. Her claws dug into the rocky soil around him and he could feel her foot pressing against his chest.
Birdramon lowered her head towards Shinyu. Up close he could see that, instead of a beak, she had a fleshy naked muzzle with sharp protruding teeth. Warm breath washed over him as she spoke.
"This is not your world."
The sheer venom with which she spoke made Shinyu's blood go cold.
"Get off of him!"
Smilomon ran towards Birdramon with a fierce snarl.
The giant bird lifted her head in an almost casual way and opened her mouth wide. As Smilomon pounced at her, a swirling orb of fire formed between her jaws.
"Fireball!"
The orb shot out of Birdramon's mouth and hit Smilomon, sending her crashing back to the ground. She lay in a small crater with licks of flame burning her fur.
Raising her head, Smilomon gave a defiant growl and started to push herself to her feet. But she only got about halfway up before her eyes unfocused and she collapsed. A few seconds later her body burst apart, leaving Tigremon lying unconscious on the smoking ground.
Birdramon turned her attention to Tarumon and Kartik who were still crouched together.
"I trust you're not going to try anything stupid."
She lightly pushed down on Shinyu, causing the boy to groan in discomfort. Tarumon and Kartik quickly shook their heads.
The corners of Birdramon's mouth turned up and she looked down at Shinyu again.
"This chase is over."

-

Charlie's whole body hurt.
She blinked several times to make sure her eyes were open because all she could see was darkness. Gingerly, she wiggled all of her fingers and toes to confirm they were still attached to her.
Finally, she slowly pulled her arms under her body and started pushing herself up. Almost immediately her back hit something above her and a groan sounded out by her ear.
Whipping her head around; and instantly regretting it due to the ache in her neck; Charlie found herself looking into a pair of green eyes.
"Oh, you're alive... That's good... I don't suppose you know some human trick... to get us out of here?"
Blitzmon was crouched over her and; judging from the strain in his voice when he spoke; he had a heavy weight pressing down on his back.
"C-Charlie! Charlie, can you h-hear me!"
The was a scrabbling sound and a prick of green light shone through some cracks in the darkness. It was then that Charlie realised her predicament. She and Blitzmon were buried under a pile of large rocks and his heavy breathing indicated that he wouldn't be able to hold them up much longer.
"Kumomon, I'm here!"
Charlie started pushing against the rocks where the light was starting to come in stronger. Her arms and back flared up in protest, but she grit her teeth and shoved against the wall of her prison with all her strength.
Gradually, the light strengthened and the rocks began to loosen. Some of Kumomon's legs wiggled through the gaps and pulled away the grit around the edges.
Just as an opening was forming in front of her, smaller rocks began to rain down around Charlie. Blitzmon let out a cry of pain and buckled under the weight pressing down on him. Charlie was now pinned under him and could only reach helplessly for the opening where Kumomon was desperately trying to pull the last stubborn boulder away.
Suddenly, Blitzmon's body started to light up and sparks ran along his arms. Charlie's hair began to float around her and Kumomon was able to push the last boulder away with ease. It was like the rock had become weightless.
Blitzmon grabbed Charlie by her backpack and thrust her through the opening. Once she was free, she turned back and reached out for his hand. Just then the glow along his body died and the pile collapsed on top of him, leaving only his outstretched arm visible.
"Oh, no!"
Charlie scrambled back to the rock pile and started pulling at the rubble. Her arms felt like they were on fire. She was starting to go lightheaded from the pain.
"Don't just stand there, Kumomon! Help me get him out!"
Kumomon looked up from wiping dust off of her legs.
"N-Need I remind you that he was trying to c-capture us not ten minutes a-ago?"
"We can't just leave him here!" Charlie's legs were shaking as she lifted a rock the size of her head. "He protected me! Even if he works for Baalmon; that doesn't make him a bad guy!"
Kumomon sighed.
"A-Alright, fine. Just stop before you h-hurt yourself." She waved Charlie back from the pile. "A-As with most things in l-life; the key is to work sm-smarter, not harder."
She spent a minute simply looking at the rock pile, moving her leg through the air as if tracing an invisible path. Charlie was sat behind her; her knee fidgeting in impatience. Finally, Kumomon motioned Charlie over and pointed to a flat rock about halfway up the pile.
"W-When I say 'now', push that r-rock in as far as you c-can, then get cl-clear."
She hopped down and took a hold of a smaller stone jutting out of the bottom of the pile. When Charlie was in position, she started to pull.
"Now!"
The small stone popped out of the pile like a cork. This seemed to destabilise all the rocks above it. They shook, then began to tumble over each other in a rockfall.
Charlie shoved the flat rock into the pile as far as it would go then jumped clear of the falling rubble. The rock acted as a makeshift roof, preventing more stones from piling on top of Blitzmon.
Now that the rubble around him had mostly fallen away, Blitzmon's head and torso were visible. There were cracks in his helmet and armour and the outlines of his body were blurring.
Charlie and Kumomon took ahold of his arm and started pulling him free of the pile. It was still hard going due to his greater size.
Just as his body finally cleared the rocks, it burst into particles; and lying in it's place was a smaller digimon that looked like a blue beetle with a large horn on it's forehead and a long yellow scarf around it's neck.
"Whoa!" Charlie dropped his arm in surprise. "He shrank!"
"R-Reverted." Kumomon corrected her. "It happens sometimes when h-higher level digimon get seriously injured. Th-They drop back to a lower l-level and use the excess e-energy to heal themselves."
Just as she finished speaking, a groan sounded out from the digimon in front of them. His pupilless green eyes seemed to light up as he pushed himself to his knees. He looked up at Charlie and cocked his head in confusion before bringing his big forefeet up to his face.
Just as Charlie was about to ask if he was okay; he threw his head back and let out a mournful cry.
"Noooooooo!"

-

Baromon grumbled to himself as he descended the stairs to City Hall's basement. He'd had no luck finding the information Baalmon wanted. It seemed he had no choice but to get it out of Blucomon directly. After two days without food, maybe the arrogant little dragon would be more compliant.
Reaching the end of the stairs, he saw Akatorimon standing guard by the basement door. The large bird digimon straightened up upon noticing his approach.
"Baromon, sir. The prisoner is still refusing to talk."
"We'll see about that." Baromon nodded towards the stairs. "Why don't you go get something to eat? I'll have a word with the prisoner myself."
Akatorimon looked hesitantly back at the door.
"I believe Baalmon didn't want the prisoner harmed."
"Baalmon wants the knowledge he's hiding, and entrusted me with the task of getting it." Baromon flicked a thumb over his shoulder. "Now go grab a meal, and let me handle things here. That's an order."
Akatorimon reluctantly gave his key to Baromon and climbed the stairs, glancing back before disappearing from view.
Baromon unlocked the basement door and stepped inside, closing it behind him.
Blucomon was lying curled up by the wall with his back to Baromon. His unnatural stillness informed Baromon that he wasn't sleeping.
"I know you're awake. It's time to end this little game. I want to know where you've hidden the information on that human's machine; and I bet you would like a sandwich. So, how about you break this vow of silence you've got going on, and we can both get what we want, hm?"
Blucomon didn't move or answer.
Baromon growled through his sharp yellow teeth and stomped over to Blucomon, grabbing him by his white collar and pulling him to his feet.
Blucomon's head and arms hung limply. His cuffs were covered in a thick layer of frost. His eyes were heavy with exhaustion but, as they raised to meet Baromon's, there was still a glint of defiance in them.
Baromon raised his free hand and summoned fire into his palm.
"Is there something you want to say?"
Blucomon coughed and raised a claw.
"As a matter of fact, yes." He lifted his manacled wrists to his chest. "Since you're such an intelligent digimon; you should have no trouble telling me what happens to metal when it's constantly exposed to freezing temperatures."
He yanked his wrists apart, snapping the cuffs between them.
"Ice Mash!"
Before Baromon could react, Blucomon slammed his ice-covered claws into his stomach. He reeled back, shocked at the power of the blow.
Blucomon stood with his claws raised. All the weakness he'd shown before had disappeared.
"How are you still so strong without any food?" Baromon gasped from the cold pain in his stomach.
"That's where you're mistaken." A voice sounded from his right.
He turned his head just in time to get socked in the face by a red boxing glove. Bringing his hands up to cover his throbbing nose, Baromon's third eye widened at the blue-furred canine stood before him.
"A Gaomon? How did you get in here?"
The beast digimon nodded towards the air duct on the ceiling.
"Doors aren't the only means of entry around here."
"I'm surprised you didn't foresee that coming." Blucomon said with a condescending grin.
Baromon's blue face took on a shade of red as he engulfed his fists in flames and attacked Gaomon with a barrage of punches.
Gaomon ducked and weaved, avoiding Baromon's blows while striking him with quick jabs of his own. Dodging a wide swing, he slid in close to his opponent and landed an uppercut right under his chin.
Baromon staggered, shaking his head to clear his vision. When his eyes refocused, Gaomon had disappeared.
"Double Backhand!"
Baromon was struck on the back of his head, causing him to spin around and get hit again by the back of Gaomon's gloved fist. The blue dog spun around, repeatedly slamming his fists against Baromon's face.
Tottering around with spinning eyes, Baromon found himself face-to-face with a smirking Blucomon.
"Baby Hail!"
Tiny icicles shot out of Blucomon's mouth, battering Baromon's body and pinning his cloak and robe to the wall.
The two Rookies stood triumphantly before their beaten foe.
"File City doesn't answer to Baalmon."
Blucomon tore off the remains of his cuffs and threw them at Baromon's feet. The Demon Man digimon weakly raised his head, his face warped by a vicious snarl, only to slump down unconscious.
Blucomon opened the door a crack and peered around.
"The cost is clear. Let's go."
He and Gaomon quickly marched up the stairs and arrived in an empty hallway. Gaomon pointed to their left.
"Let's head for the back exit. It's not as heavily guarded as the front."
As they jogged, Gaomon looked over at his companion.
"So, what's this information Baromon was looking for? He said something about the humans."
Blucomon lowered his voice and moved closer to Gaomon.
"It's about a machine one of the humans brought with him from the Physical World. It apparently has the power to make digimon temporarily digivolve, regardless of their strength, and can even open and close gates."
Gaomon's eyes widened.
"Imagine what Baalmon could do with that kind of power. Are you sure they won't find it?"
Blucomon let out a little snicker and winked at Gaomon.
"No one ever checks the recycle bin."
"Stop right there!"
They both looked behind them to see Akatorimon running down the hallway after them. His long legs quickly ate up the distance between them.
Gaomon skidded to a halt and turned to face their pursuer.
"Keep going! I'll hold him off!"
"No way! We'll fight him together!"
Blucomon went to stand beside Gaomon, only to get shoved back.
"The others need your help. You have to be ready to take the city back. My mission is to get you out of here. Now go!"
Gaomon charged towards Akatorimon, letting out a howling war cry.
Gritting his teeth, Blucomon turned and sprinted down the hallway. He soon came upon the back exit but didn't slow down; charging through the door and sending it slamming into the Candlemon who had been on guard.
As the unfortunate Rookie slid down the wall with dazed eyes, Blucomon disappeared into the darkness of the night.