20. Raging Bull

The digimon stood in the courtyard of Saurus Fortress was gigantic; almost as big as MetalTyrannomon.
It had a muscular humanoid body covered in what appeared to be a chocolate brown body suit with a pair of brown boots on it's feet. It's head was that of a bull, complete with black horns, spiky dark brown hair and a large golden nose ring.
In place of it's left hand was a cylindrical metal contraption ending in three pistons and surrounded by springs.
Shinyu heard a ping from his digivice and raised it to see that a new file had appeared in the database. He selected it and brought up the info.

Minotaurmon
Champion Level
Virus Type
Beast Man Species
Earth Affinity
Attacks:
Demon Arm (Neutral) - Punches it's foe with the Demon Arm on it's hand.
Darkside Quake (Earth) - Generates a massive earthquake with the Demon Arm that covers a considerable range.
General Info:
A dark digimon whose power is derived from rage. While lacking in speed, it has extremely tough skin that is not easily penetrated.
The weapon on it's left hand is called the Demon Arm and it's blows are powerful enough to cause earthquakes.

"No way. That can't be Tarumon," said Charlie.
"D-Did you see any other b-beast digimon roaming around the f-fortress?" Saltimon replied. "Because I'm p-pretty sure we would've sp-spotted one that size!"
Kartik stood staring up at Minotaurmon as he swung his massive head to and fro as if scanning the gathered crowd for something. His bloodshot eyes landed on Kartik but their was no recognition in them, just pure rage, and he instantly resumed his search.
Relemon's face peeked out from his bag. She was trembling and could barely manage a squeak.
"What is the meaning of this?"
The crowd parted to let MetalTyrannomon through. He stared down at the group with anger in his eyes.
"Is this another of your human digivolutions?"
"This wasn't us!" Shinyu answered. "Kartik doesn't even have a digivice. I have no idea what caused this."
"S-Something must've triggered a d-digivolution while we were a-apart." Saltimon added.
"And I bet I know what." Charlie pointed at a group of Rookies. A tall blue horn stuck out of the crowd, slowly moving away from Minotaurmon.
At that moment, the huge Champion spotted his targets and let out a wordless bellow as he advanced on the Rookies.
The smaller digimon scattered with cries of fright, leaving KoKabuterimon and Muchomon exposed. Bowmon was still clutched under Muchomon's flipper.
Minotaurmon swung his Demon Arm up and brought it down towards them. KoKabuterimon shielded the other two with his body, while knowing it was futile.
Just before it hit it's mark, the Demon Arm was caught by a metal-encased hand and Minotaurmon turned to find himself face-to-face with MetalTyrannomon.
"This is my domain." MetalTyrannomon said with a snarl. "There won't be any killing without my permission. Now stand down."
Minotaurmon glared at the dinosaur digimon in silence for a moment - then brought his right hand up and punched him in the face.
Jaws dropped all over the courtyard.
MetalTyrannomon's head had turned with the blow. His eyes opened and fixed Minotaurmon with an ice-blue stare.
"I accept your challenge."
With a roar, he barged into Minotaurmon and knocked him to the ground. Opening his half-metal jaws, he lunged for Minotaurmon's face. The Beast Man digimon managed to get his Demon Arm up in time to jam it into MetalTyrannomon's mouth.
"Merde, merde, merde, merde!" Charlie gripped her hat as the two huge digimon rolled around in a death grip. "We've got to do something!"
"I'll go get Smilomon!" Shinyu ran back towards the ring.
"Charlie, l-look!" Saltimon pointed to KoKabuterimon and Muchomon. The duo was running across the courtyard towards the barracks, possibly looking for a hiding place.
Charlie gripped Saltimon's hair and hoisted herself onto the spider's back.
"Let's go, buddy!"
Saltimon set off in pursuit of Baalmon's followers, leaving Kartik with BlackGreymon and Tuskmon.
"Stay here with him." Tuskmon said to his friend. "I need to get the Rookies out of harm's way."
BlackGreymon watched Tuskmon join a group of soldiers rounding up the smaller digimon and lowered his head. He felt so useless.
"BlackGreymon."
He looked down at Kartik calling his name. The human gestured to where Minotaurmon and MetalTyrannomon were fighting.
"Can you please take me over there."

-

KoKabuterimon and Muchomon had almost reached the barracks when Saltimon skidded in front of them to block their path.
"Hey, Terimon." Charlie greeted the blue beetle from Saltimon's back.
"You know that's not my name!" KoKabuterimon stamped his foot before quickly straightening up and regaining his composure. "Hello Charlie."
"And you must be Birdramon, or whatever you're called now. What did you do to Tarumon?" Charlie glared at Muchomon, who returned the hostile look but stayed silent.
"Nothing! He just went ballistic!" KoKabuterimon replied.
Charlie looked at Bowmon tucked under Muchomon's flipper. The puppy-like digimon was trembling and a low whine escaped his mouth.
"Could it have had anything to do with that little guy?"
KoKabuterimon looked to the In-Training and his green eyes seemed to dim.
"We weren't going to hurt him." Charlie was sure she wasn't imagining the remorse in his voice. "We just didn't want anyone to find out we were here."
Muchomon gave him a slap on the arm.
"We don't need to justify ourselves to this human!"
"Maybe not; but what about my friend here?"
Charlie patted Saltimon's head. The spider raised her fangs and hissed threateningly.
"Okay, here's what's going to happen. First, you're going to let that little guy go."
Muchomon narrowed her eyes and tightened her hold on Bowmon. KoKabuterimon placed his hand on her shoulder.
"You might as well. We've already been found out."
With a frustrated sigh, Muchomon placed Bowmon on the ground.
Charlie hopped down from Saltimon's back and knelt down, holding her hands out to the In-Training. After a moment's hesitation, he hopped into the arms. She stood up straight and looked sternly at the two Rookies.
"Second; we're gonna take you to MetalTyrannomon and you're gonna tell him everything Baalmon has been up to."
"We're not saying anything!" Muchomon crossed her flippers stubbornly.
"Uh, Ch-Charlie."
"Just a sec, Saltimon - Look, I don't want to see you guys get hurt but MetalTyrannomon might feel differently if you don't cooperate."
"Are you threatening us, human?"
"Ch-Charlie."
"One moment, buddy - No, I'm just warning you that the digimon around here won't be as nice as us."
"From what I've seen, they're more likely to take our side than yours. You really don't seem to understand that nobody wants you here!"
"That's not true!"
"Charlie!"
"What?!" Both Charlie and Muchomon turned to Saltimon just in time to see her body burst apart, leaving Kumomon standing in her place.
KoKabuterimon and Muchomon looked down at the reverted digimon, then slowly turned their attention to Charlie.
"Whuh-oh."

-

Shinyu sprinted back to the fighting area with the sound of roars and snarls ringing in his ears. Couldn't one thing go right today?
He quickly skidded to a stop as GeoGreymon jumped out of the ring and hit the ground mere feet from him, almost knocking the boy off his feet with the force of his landing.
"Watch it, human!" The dinosaur digimon called over his shoulder as he ran off towards the crowd watching MetalTyrannomon's fight. Allomon followed closely behind, having run around the side of the ring.
Shinyu slipped under the rope fencing and ran to Smilomon. She was still crouched on all fours, shaking with the effort of keeping her body off the ground. Her eyes were unfocused and Shinyu had to snap his fingers in front of her face a few times to get her attention.
"Wuh, huh?" Smilomon looked around the empty ring. "Where'd everybody go?"
"They've all gone to watch MetalTyrannomon beat the tar out of Tarumon." Shinyu told her.
"What? Why?"
"Because he digivolved and punched MetalTyrannomon in the face when he stopped him from killing Blitzmon and Birdramon who, by the way, have snuck into the fortress in Rookie form!"
"Wow. Glad I didn't ask for the long version."
"That was the long version. The short version is; everything has gone to - "
A loud bellow from Minotaurmon drowned out Shinyu's words. Looking up over the heads of the crowd, Smilomon could see him being lifted in the air by one of MetalTyrannomon's hands clasped around his neck.
"Well, what're we waiting for? We gotta save him."
Smilomon nudged Shinyu onto her back and ran to the fencing. She cleared the ropes with a mighty leap and sailed through the air - only for her body to burst into particles, and Tigremon and Shinyu to hit the ground with a couple of thuds.
"Are you kidding me?!" Shinyu wiped dirt off of his face with his shirt sleeve. "You have the worst timing!"
Tigremon shook her fur out, coating Shinyu in a fresh layer of dust.
"Well, excuse me! In case you didn't notice, I just got the snot beat out of me by GeoGreymon!"
"And whose fault is that?!"
"Yours! Why did you stop cheering me on?"
"Cheering you - You totally ignored our plan! What was I supposed to cheer for? Oh, great job hitting his tail with your face Smilomon! Slamming his horn with your body is a fantastic strategy! You've got him on the ropes now!"
Tigremon got to her feet and glared at Shinyu with her paws balled into fists at her sides.
"I have my own way of doing things! Stop trying to turn me into your obedient little servant!"
"I'm not trying to do that! I just want us to work together, like partners are supposed to!"
Before Tigremon could answer, the ground started to tremble. Shinyu saw pebbles jumping erratically on the land around them and a low groaning noise could be heard from below.
"Oh, no."

-

Minotaurmon was thrown to the ground. His face wore a groove through the dirt before his body came to a halt.
MetalTyrannomon breathed deeply. Despite his lower level, Minotaurmon showed impressive endurance to the dinosaur's blows. Even now, he endeavoured to rise from the ground, leaning on the metal contraption on his arm.
MetalTyrannomon held out his left hand with it's claws spread out. A circular node in the middle of his palm began to shine with a pale blue light.
"Stay down," he said sternly. "I'm giving you a chance to keep your current life. There won't be a second offer."
Minotaurmon silently raised his head to stare viciously at MetalTyrannomon. The springs on his Demon Arm stretched as the pistons on it's end were drawn upwards.
Only when Minotaurmon bared his flat teeth in a sadistic smile did MetalTyrannomon realise what was happening. Before he could do anything, the pistons slammed into the ground.
A thunderous boom echoed off of the courtyard walls. For a moment, everything was quiet; then the cracks started.
Small at first; they grew wider as they snaked along the ground, spreading out in a circular area with Minotaurmon at it's center.

-

Kartik held on to one of BlackGreymon's horns as the digimon broke free from the crowd and started running towards Minotaurmon.
"MetalTyrannomon really won't be happy with us interrupting his fight." BlackGreymon said nervously.
"This has got to be a misunderstanding." Kartik replied. "If I can just talk to Tarumon; I'm sure we can sort this out."
He hoped he sounded more confident than he felt. Remembering the way Tarumon, or whoever he was now, had looked at him before caused his back to twinge in discomfort as he shuddered.
A soft squeak sounded from his bag and he looked down at Relemon's anxious face peeking out.
"Don't worry." He put on a comforting smile. "Tarumon wouldn't hurt us."
No sooner had he finished speaking than the ground began to shake. BlackGreymon stumbled and Kartik had to wrap his legs around his horn to keep from being thrown off his head. Relemon squeaked in fright and transformed into a snow globe. Kartik pushed her deeper into his bag.
"Stay there until I say it's safe!" He had to raise his voice to be heard over the cracking sounds reverberating around them.
A nearby wall was shuddering. Slabs of stone were breaking off and falling to the ground. BlackGreymon had to dodge a particularly big chunk and Kartik shut his eyes as a cloud of dust sprang up from the impact.
Couldn't they go anywhere without something getting destroyed?

-

"Couldn't you have held on just a little longer?!"
Charlie ran with Bowmon in her arms and Kumomon in her hood.
"I've only d-digivolved twice! I'm still getting u-used to it!"
Kumomon turned and spat a sparking wad of webbing at their pursuer.
KoKabuterimon quickly sidestepped Kumomon's attack and kept up the chase. He was feeling more comfortable running in his Rookie form. Sadly, the same couldn't be said for Muchomon. The penguin digimon waddled as fast as she could, but Charlie and KoKabuterimon were quickly outpacing her.
"Grrr. Curse these short legs! KoKabuterimon, don't let them get away!"
"We only want the device!" KoKabuterimon called after Charlie as he started to gain on her. "Give it to us and we'll leave!"
"No way! I just got this thing!" Charlie shot back.
"Let me help!" Bowmon hopped up onto Charlie's shoulder and let out a deafening bark, sending yellow sparks flying into KoKabuterimon's eyes. The beetle digimon stopped and pawed at his face with his upper limbs.
"Gah! Th-That was right in my e-ear!" Kumomon put a foreleg over her head and glared at Bowmon.
"Well, it worked." Charlie patted Bowmon's head as he settled on her shoulder. "Come on. Maybe we can stop this fight if we tell Metal T about - "
The ground suddenly rocked beneath Charlie's feet. She fell forward onto her hands and knees. Bowmon slipped off of her shoulder and rolled away from her.
Before she could get back to her feet, two cracks in the earth snaked around Charlie. The slab of stone she was kneeling on tilted up as it started to sink into the ground.
"Kumomon, jump!"
Kumomon sprang from Charlie's hood onto more stable ground. Charlie braced her feet against the slanting stone and leapt after her. She just managed to grab onto the edge as a narrow chasm opened up in the earth.
"Charlie!"
Kumomon wrapped her forelegs around Charlie's wrist and pulled as hard as she could. Bowmon grabbed the sleeve on her other arm in his teeth. Though both the small digimon tried, they weren't strong enough to pull her up.
Charlie tried to push herself up with her feet but the rocky wall crumbled away under her trainers.
"Okay, okay, okay. No biggie." Her voice rose as she tried to fight the panic that was rising in her chest. "Maybe it's not that far a drop."
She looked down at a pitch black opening in the earth with no bottom in sight, before quickly pulling her eyes away.
"Oh, that was a mistake! Why did I look down? You never look down!"
KoKabuterimon's eyes flickered as his sight cleared. He'd crouched down as the ground shook around him, having no idea what was causing it. Now he looked up to see a large crack running through the earth ahead of him.
On his side of the chasm, Kumomon and Bowmon were leaning over the edge. Standing up, KoKabuterimon could see the top of a familiar gray hat and realised, with horror, what was happening.
He ran to the chasm with his arm outstretched. Just as he arrived, the edge crumbled away. Charlie's sleeve tore as it was ripped out of Bowmon's mouth and Kumomon let out a cry of despair as her partner's hand slipped from her grip.
"No!"
Without thinking, KoKabuterimon threw himself into the chasm, quickly becoming becoming lost in the shadows.
"KoKabuterimon!"
Muchomon caught up just in time to see her comrade disappear over the edge. She stood beside Kumomon and Bowmon; their animosity forgotten in their shared shock.
Suddenly, a white light shone out of the chasm.
Rising out of the ground with Charlie in his arms was Blitzmon. His armour was glowing with yellow energy as his anti-gravity field lifted him back to the surface.
Charlie had her eyes tightly shut. Upon realising that she was no longer falling and was still breathing, she opened one eye and looked around.
"Whoa! Blitzmon! You came to my rescue again! You're like my personal Supermon!"
She threw her arms around Blitzmon's neck. The digimon rolled his eyes as he landed back on solid ground.
"This just shows that the Digital World is too dangerous for humans. You should go home before you get yourself killed."
He put Charlie down and watched as Kumomon jumped into her arms.
"Ch-Charlie! I th-thought you were - Th-That is, I n-nearly..." Kumomon gave up on trying to talk and pressed her face into Charlie's shoulder. The girl gently stroked her head.
"I'm okay, buddy."
Muchomon walked up to Blitzmon.
"That's a worrying habit you're developing." She looked over at Charlie. "Don't forget our mission."
Charlie's head whipped around.
"Seriously? Do you even see what's going on here?"
Around them, digimon ran to and fro as the ground and walls of the fortress continued to shake. The smaller digimon sort cover while the bigger ones braced themselves against the crumbling walls, trying to keep them upright.
"Yes, I see it alright! Yet more carnage caused by you and your friends!" Muchomon pointed an accusing claw at Charlie.
Before an argument could break out. Blitzmon held his arm in front of Muchomon.
"We can play the blame game later. You guys should find shelter."
"What about you?" Bowmon asked from his place by Charlie's feet.
Blitzmon drew himself up and placed his fists on his hips.
"It's time for the Master of Thunder to get to work."

-

"Are you sure about this?"
"I've been told this over and over since elementary school; in the event of an earthquake, get under a doorframe."
Shinyu and Tigremon were crouched in the entrance of a low-walled building that housed what looked like a large sand bath. It was most likely where the dinosaur digimon went to clean themselves.
"This sure is a lousy time for the Digital World to update." Tigremon looked around at the shaking fortress.
"I don't think this is an update." Shinyu replied. "I think it's Minotaurmon. His weapon has the power to cause earthquakes."
"How do you know that?" Tigremon turned to him with a raised eyebrow.
"It's right here in the digivice." Shinyu activated Minotaurmon's profile and showed it to her. "There's a whole database in here full of digimon we've seen. It's how I came up with the battle plan that you ignored."
"Jeez! You just can't let things go! How long are you gonna keep bringing that up?"
"It was less than ten minutes ago!"
An ominous crack sounded above their heads and they both looked up to she the entranceway starting to break apart.
"Look out!"
Tigremon grabbed the front of Shinyu's shirt and jumped clear just in time to avoid getting buried under the collapsing stone. They both lay coughing and dust and sand swept over them.
"I think you've been grossly misinformed about doorways."
"Get clear!"
Not far from where they lay, a group of digimon had been trying to brace the walls of a tall building, but the stone at the base was cracking and falling off in chunks. The digimon were forced to flee as the building teetered and fell.
Time seemed to slow down for Shinyu as the building toppled towards him and Tigremon. With no chance of getting out of the way in time, he pulled Tigremon close to him, crouched over her and shut his eyes.
Shinyu wasn't exactly counting the moments before he'd be horribly crushed but, after ten seconds of nothing, he couldn't help but wonder what was taking so long.
Opening his eyes he gasped at seeing himself and Tigremon floating in the air. The collapsing building hovered above them.
A familiar figure in blue and yellow armour walked casually up to them with smiling eyes.
"Hey there. Shinyu, was it? How's about I give you a hand?"
Blitzmon took a hold of Shinyu's shirt and moved him out from under the suspended building.
Shinyu and Tigremon fell to the ground once they were clear of Blitzmon's anti-gravity field. Tigremon instantly jumped to her paws and growled at the humanoid digimon.
"What are you up to now?"
"What does it look like? I'm saving you from the earthquake your friend caused!"
Blitzmon held his arms out to the building and it slowly lowered to the ground.
Tigremon still looked aggressive. Shinyu put his hand on her back.
"Can you help the dinosaur digimon?"
He looked around at the fortress' residents as they struggled to keep the rest of their home from falling apart.
Blitzmon nodded.
"Leave it to me. You two find some cover."
He took off at a run towards the nearest group of digimon.
Tigremon scoffed.
"Look at him. Acting like a good guy. I don't care what he says; he and Birdramon had some part in this."
"We'll figure it out later." Shinyu said as he got to his feet. "We really should find some shelter. We're just in the way out here."
Tigremon followed Shinyu as he ran towards an alcove where some Rookies had gathered; but she shot an angry look back at Blitzmon before losing sight of him among the dinosaur digimon.

-

MetalTyrannomon managed to keep his footing as the ground broke apart around him. He could hear the frightened cries of his digimon as destruction spread like a wave through the courtyard.
He kept his focus on Minotaurmon who was still crouched glaring at him with those hate-filled eyes and pounding the ground with his weapon. His soldiers would handle damage control while he dealt with the source of the problem.
Steadying himself, he took aim with his left hand again.
"Nuclear Laser!"
Just before he fired, a jagged spike of rock burst from the ground and drove itself into his gut. Stumbling back, he threw his arm up in an attempt to regain his balance and a shell of pale blue energy shot into the sky.
It was almost invisible against the white void until it exploded, casting blinding light over the fortress.
MetalTyrannomon placed a hand over his stomach and closed his eyes with a grunt. The rock hadn't pierced his skin but the sudden shock of Earth data sent streams of pain shooting through his body.
That momentary distraction was all Minotaurmon needed.
MetalTyrannomon opened his eyes just in time to get rammed in the face by Minotaurmon's head. He landed hard on the ground causing a tremor almost as strong as the earthquake.
Minotaurmon's boot came down on his right arm pinning it to the ground. The Champion then straddled MetalTyrannomon and grabbed his left arm.
Curling his lip back in another cruel smile, he lifted his Demon Arm up above his head and slammed it down into MetalTyrannomon's face. He brought it up, and then down again. And again. And again.
"Tarumon, stop!"
BlackGreymon picked his way along the cracked earth as quickly as he could, taking care not to jostle Kartik too much.
Seeing MetalTyrannomon lying prone under Minotaurmon made his legs go numb and he had to grab a pillar of rock to steady himself.
MetalTyrannomon didn't lose. It was like the Digital World itself was turning upside down.
On his head, Kartik called out to Minotaurmon again.
"Tarumon, it's Kartik! Please talk to me!"
Minotaurmon ignored the boy's cries and continued his beating of MetalTyrannomon.
BlackGreymon lowered himself to the ground.
"He's not listening! I've got to stop him before he kills MetalTyrannomon!"
Kartik slid down BlackGreymon's carapace to the ground.
"Please try not to hurt him!" He pleaded "There's got to be a reason he's like this!"
"It's not really him I'm worried about getting hurt." BlackGreymon replied before running towards Minotaurmon.
"Mega Flame!"
A stream of blue fire shot out of his mouth and hit Minotaurmon on the side of his face.
The bull-headed digimon bellowed in pain, then turned his angry glare on BlackGreymon. The dinosaur gulped before raising his claws and baring his teeth.
"Yeah! Come get me, hairbag!"
Minotaurmon charged with his head down, aiming his horns at BlackGreymon. The shorter Champion met him with his own antlers and the two of them clashed with their horns locked together.
The monsters turned in a circle, pushing and twisting with their heads as they attempted to overpower each other. The claws on BlackGreymon's feet dug into the ground as he strained against Minotaurmon's strength.
The tip of his tail brushed against something hard and he risked a glance back to see a chunk of upturned earth poking out of the ground behind him. An idea came into his head and he slackened his efforts against Minotaurmon.
Feeling his enemy weaken, Minotaurmon put on a burst of power and pushed BlackGreymon back. The dinosaur's feet skidded against the ground until they touched the mound of earth.
Bracing a foot against it, BlackGreymon twisted on his other leg and broke free of the horn lock. Minotaurmon's momentum brought him crashing, face first, into the rocky mound.
"Bit Fire!"
Three balls of fire shot out of BlackGreymon's mouth, one after the other. The first hit Minotaurmon's exposed back, leaving a black burn mark on his suit.
Minotaurmon managed to avoid the other two by slipping around the chunk of earth and taking cover behind it. Drawing his left arm back, he drove his Demon Arm into the mound, breaking it apart and sending rocks flying at BlackGreymon.
The dinosaur brought his arms up and lowered his head to withstand the barrage of stone. When the painful blows stopped, he raised his head - just in time to get slugged in the face by Minotaurmon's Demon Arm.
He twisted as he fell, landing hard on his stomach. Minotaurmon grabbed his tail and, with a roar, hefted him over his shoulder and slammed him into the ground.
BlackGreymon's eyes felt like they were spinning. A brown blur filled his vision as Minotaurmon took ahold of his nose horn and pulled him up to his knees.
Taking aim at BlackGreymon's head, Minotaurmon swung back his Demon Arm. But before he could strike, he was punched in the head by a metal encased fist.
He fell to the ground, dropping BlackGreymon, and looked up to see MetalTyrannomon glaring down at him.
"We're not finished."
Gritting his teeth in anger, Minotaurmon charged at the cyborg dinosaur and punched with his Demon Arm.
MetalTyrannomon caught it with his right hand, gripping it so tightly with his claws that Minotaurmon couldn't pull it loose. The Beast Man digimon bellowed furiously in MetalTyrannomon's face. The dinosaur stared back at him coldly.
"That's enough."
The Demon Arm exploded in a ball of fire. Minotaurmon was sent hurtling back with particles gushing out of the torn stump that was his left arm.
The hole in MetalTyrannomon's right palm closed and he turned to look down at BlackGreymon who was gingerly pushing himself up from the ground.
"This was my fight. You shouldn't have interfered."
BlackGreymon lowered his head as his leader walked past him.
"You fought well, though."
He couldn't help but look up upon hearing this, but MetalTyrannomon already had his back to him.
Minotaurmon lay on his back gasping for breath. A steady stream of particles floated up from his maimed arm. His half-lidded eyes still glared at MetalTyrannomon as the dinosaur digimon walked up to him.
"Your strength is something to be respected." MetalTyrannomon said, looking down at his fallen foe. "But you should've been wiser about picking your opponents."
He aimed his left hand at Minotaurmon. His palm began to glow again with pale blue light.
"I hope you'll take that lesson with you to your next life."
"Wait!"
Kartik ran across the courtyard, stopping to take in gulps of air as he reached MetalTyrannomon's feet.
"Please... don't... kill him."
MetalTyrannomon turned his head and fixed Kartik with a cold stare.
"What makes you think you have the right to ask anything of me? I let you into my home and look what's happened to it!" He nodded behind Kartik and the boy turned to look at the destruction all around the fortress.
There were jagged holes in the stone walls. Large cracks ran through the ground. Rubble was strewn everywhere.
But the hardest thing to look at was the digimon. Smaller ones were starting to cautiously emerge from various hiding places and the larger ones slumped with exhaustion from their efforts to mitigate the damage.
Seeing the fear and anger on their faces made Kartik feel sick and his eyes burned as he faced MetalTyrannomon again.
"You've every right to be angry. We messed up. Badly." Kartik got down on his knees and lowered his head, pressing his hands together. "I am so, so sorry."
He looked over at Minotaurmon. The digimon's breathing had slowed and his eyes were barely open. The outlines of his body were starting to break apart.
"But, please let me try to help Tarumon. He's protected me since I came to the Digital World. I can't just let him die."
MetalTyrannomon glared at Kartik for what could've been thirty seconds or an hour. Kartik was too focused on Minotaurmon's slowly disintegrating body to properly gauge time.
Finally, MetalTyrannomon lowered his arm and nodded towards Minotaurmon.
"Alright. Let's see this human power of yours."
As Kartik approached Minotaurmon, he became aware of the crowd forming around them. Glancing over his shoulder he saw Shinyu and the others weaving through the digimon's legs, but they were prevented from coming any closer by MetalTyrannomon barring their way.
Swallowing nervously, Kartik turned his attention back to Minotaurmon.
"Tarumon? Can you hear me?"
He could've sworn he saw movement under the huge digimon's eyelids but there was no response. Tiny bits of his body were floating away into the air.
A sharp ache hit Kartik's chest and his vision became blurry with tears.
"I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have left you alone. I could see there was something bothering you. I should've stayed with you and helped you like a partner."
Kartik's nose started to run. He wiped it with the back of his hand, feeling like a child crying to his mother. He took a breath and forced himself to keep going.
"If I'd bonded with you before, maybe this wouldn't have happened. I wanted to, but... I was scared. Scared of things changing. Of finding out I'd made a mistake. Of not being good enough and letting you down." He sniffed. "But I ended up doing that anyway."
He stepped right up to Minotaurmon and placed his hands on his slowly dissolving cheek.
"Please give me another chance. I'll try harder. I'll be stronger. Just come back." He pressed forehead against Minotaurmon and closed his eyes. "Please, Tarumon. Come back."
A white light shone so brightly it penetrated Kartik's eyelids. He opened them slightly and peered at his left hand. The light shone from under his palm and he could feel something taking shape. Gripping the object he turned his hand over and looked upon his digivice.
The band running around it's edge was a chocolate brown. It's screen was already lit up and a rope of light snaked out. It flew straight to Minotaurmon and spread all over his body until he was completely covered. He then began to shrink and small multicoloured glowing cubes flowed along the light into Kartik's digivice.
Finally the light faded and lying at Kartik's feet was Tarumon. His eyes were still closed and he lay still, but his body was whole.
A ping sounded from the digivice. His mind blank, Kartik looked at the screen.

Revert Complete
Data Stored

Kartik stood for a moment with his arms hanging loosely by his sides. He looked down at Tarumon, not daring to check if he was really alive until he noticed the bull digimon's chest moving gently up and down. He was alive.
Weak with relief, Kartik dropped to his knees and pulled Tarumon onto his lap. He hugged the digimon tightly, hot tears running down his cheeks.
Charlie darted around MetalTyrannomon's leg and the dinosaur digimon made no move to stop her. She crouched by Kartik and put her arm around his shoulders. Kumomon gazed down with concern at Tarumon from Charlie's hood.
Tigremon went to join them while Shinyu held back. He looked around at the digimon surrounding them.
Expressions of shock, anger and even fear could be seen on their faces, and several voices sounded out from the crowd.
"Did you see what that human did?"
"He reverted him!"
"Can they all do that?"
"What's that thing he's holding?"
"He better not point it at me!"
"What did I tell you?!"
Shinyu couldn't help but groan as GeoGreymon pushed his way through the crowd. The orange dinosaur was covered in dust; his claws being particularly dirty. Shinyu figured he must've been in the thick of the efforts to save Saurus Fortress.
"This is what happens when you trust outsiders!" GeoGreymon pointed at Shinyu and the others. "I bet this is what they wanted all along!"
The other digimon talked among themselves again. Many of them shot angry looks Shinyu's way.
"You're right to be suspicious!"
The digimon looked around trying to find the source of the new voice.
"Down here!"
Everyone lowered their heads and saw Muchomon waddling into the clearing. Blitzmon followed close behind her.
Shinyu felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise as Muchomon cast her usual cold directly at him.
"These humans are a threat; not just to your home; but to the whole Digital World."