Hello Readers,
Guest IG: That wasn't a little emotional element to you. My bad. Thanks for letting me know about the Pop-up store, but it was too late for me. I don't know how to buy them from Japan even if I did know earlier. As for the TCG, I'm starting to get into the game, but I am a newbie with not a lot of the good cards.
Starlit Storyteller: Thank you for the review and support. Trust me if there was a mother dragon mode to me, buildings would be destroyed.
I made a typo mistake in the last chapter, the lizard was supposed to have a gray color on his hands and head. The correction has been made. I apologize for the inconvenience. I wish I had a beta reader.
Here is the chapter: Worst Ways to Go
The dragon was orange-brown with blue hair and yellow eyes. He had a serpentine-like body with two tattered purple wings attached to his back and wore a metallic helmet with two triangular horns extruding from the back of his head. Replacing his hands were robotic gauntlets with three large metal claws on each arm.
Megadramon: An ultimate-level, android-type Digimon whose special attacks are Dark Side Attack and DG Dimension. He was artificially remodeled and programmed to destroy everything. Beware of his gauntlets. They can release missiles that look like eyeless gray piranhas.
Megadramon looked at Kouji with a mixture of curiosity and anger. His life almost ended.
If the vessel was destroyed while a Digimon was taking over in the Real World, their lives would become vulnerable. Usually, they didn't have to worry too much about it. If a random person or object injured or killed them, their fractal code would leave and find a new host.
Unfortunately, the person who was doing the attacking was Kouji. He was a Legendary Warrior. If he defeated a Digimon in the Real World, their fractal code would appear.
Due to the laws of the Real World, all Digimon would be classified as rookies regardless of their original power level, so the Auto-Scan would activate and take the fractal code. Fighting a subpar rookie-level vessel but getting a champion or ultimate-level data? It was like a free meal. Who wouldn't want to take that deal?
When the sharp rock was thrown at Megadramon, he had no choice but to transform into his true form causing a fractal field. It was better to fight at his full strength than go down due to a weak vessel. The life-threatening rock became a weak pebble and harmlessly bounced off him.
"How did you know it was me?" Megadramon asked Kouji. When he took over his vessel, he looked similar to all the other lizards on the island. His appearance was perfect for reconnaissance. The humans would never find out, but the boy did.
"One," Kouji listed out his points. "Your appearance. Unlike the other lizards here, you were the only one with a metallic gray color on your head. Although the color is unique and doesn't mean much, I've seen you a lot since Izumi and I first set foot on the beach. I will never forget an animal with a unique appearance.
"Two, the eggplants. Even for an uninhabitable island, the vegetation here is unusual, especially in their state. In normal circumstances, some of the plants should've been partially eaten by bugs or lizards, but these eggplants look pristine and fresh – like they don't want to be eaten… This made me think of the butterfly effect Bokomon mentioned.
"Third and probably the most important. Lizards don't TWITCH when a beast spirit is mentioned in a conversation. What animal would act like that with only a couple of words? And the rock throw just made everything clear."
"What a clever and overly cautious human you are," Megadramon stated. "But it doesn't matter. Thanks to you two, I have a better idea of where the Beast Spirit of Light is."
Kouji scoffed. "And you think we're just gonna stand here while you take my beast spirit?"
"No," Megadramon answered. "You both will be too busy fighting the plant life here on this island. Come on out!"
Shortly after, the eggplants started to enlarge and turn green. Pointy leaves grew out from their heads, and arms sprouted out from the sides like vines. They had pointed faces, wide mouths, sharp teeth, and vein-pulsing lower body.
There were at least 30 of them.
Vegiemon: A champion, carnivorous plant Digimon whose main attacks are Compost Bomber and Sharp Leaf. They are fierce, brutal Digimon that use the sweet scent of their breath to attract small prey and pull them in using their tentacle-like vines to devour them.
"Make sure to turn them into fertilizer!" Megadramon commanded and flew off. He was going to retrieve the beast spirit.
Spikes shot out on one of the Vegiemon's hands, and the carnivorous plant swung them at Kouji like a medieval mace. The boy backed out dodging the swing, and the attack hit a tree taking off a deep piece of trunk.
[Compost Bomber] Some of the other Vegiemon threw some of their newly processed pink poop at Izumi like throwing baseballs. The girl ducked out of the way and feces flew deeper into the forest.
"Okay now that's just gross," Izumi commented, disgusted.
The rest of the Vegiemon elongated their arms high in the air. The vines connected and overlapped each other making a giant net. Once the net encompassed most of Kouji and Izumi's vision, it dropped down on them. These devious plants were trying to entrap them like fish!
[Execute! - Spirit Evolution: Lobomon & Kazemon]
[Lobo Kendo] Lobomon used his light swords and sliced the vine net apart. Pieces of vines dropped to the ground wriggling around a bit like worms before going still.
[Sharp Leaf] Some of the Vegiemon retaliated back and took off some leaves on their heads. They hardened like metal, and the carnivorous plants threw them. The leaves spun like shurikens heading straight toward the two Legendary Warriors.
[Hurricane Wind] Kazemon unleashed a pink gust of wind. At first, the leaf shurikens stopped, and then they spun in the opposite direction at the Vegiemon. The two carnivorous plants got punctured and pierced by their own attack. Fractal code appeared around them and automatically entered Kazemon's Digivice. The Vegiemon transformed back into eggplants and dropped to the ground.
Unfortunately for the two Kazemon defeated, another two Vegiemon came and replaced them. Their arms stretched out moving toward the Legendary Warriors ready to grab and pull them into their razor-sharp teeth.
"Ugh," Kazemon blasted out another pink gust of wind pushing the vines away. "There's no end to them!"
"At least it's better than their original intentions," Lobomon stated. "Imagine what would happen if we were surrounded by them."
The original plan of these Vegiemon was to probably wait until Kouji and Izumi walked deep into the eggplant clearing. Once the two were at the center, the Vegiemon would spring up and attack surrounding them. Luckily, Kouji caught them early, leaving the carnivorous plants to launch a frontal assault. This situation was better than being surrounded.
"Besides, I don't think their new plan is to attack us anymore," Lobomon continued, slicing some incoming vines.
"What do you mean?" Kazemon asked.
"Megadramon left, leaving us with these Vegiemon," Lobomon explained, thinking about their enemies' actions logically. "Although they're tough, the two of us are strong enough to take them head-on. It would just take us a lot of time to do it…" A light lit up inside his head. "This means that Megadramon's primary plan has always been the beast spirit and acquire it before we do. These guys are just here to stall us!"
"Makes sense," Kazemon agreed with the logic. "Let's go after the cyborg dragon then."
"Easier said than done," Lobomon looked at the hoard of Vegiemon moving toward them. Their arms stretched out everywhere around them making a blockage. These Digimon-eating plants were not going to let them through easily.
Kazemon stared at the vicious plant hoard and smiled. "We'll just have to make our own way then. Lobomon, you go on ahead and get your beast spirit. I'll stay here and do some weed-whacking.
"And how do you suggest I get through that?" Lobomon asked, pointing at the marching plants.
"Follow my lead!"
[Tempest Twist] Kazemon leaped to the front and stood on her hands. Shortly after, she went into a spin doing her signature whirlwind kicks, and swatted the vines away. Her momentum continued, and she sent some of the Vegiemon in front flying. The rest backed away a little wary of being hit in the face.
"Lobomon!" Kazemon shouted while still spinning. "Twisting Springboard!"
The Light Warrior understood his friend's meaning and jumped on one of the ends of her feet. Like a propeller, Lobomon spun around one time before being launched into the air. He glided right above the hoard of carnivorous plants.
Once Lobomon landed behind them, he kept running toward the center of the island. The Vegiemon in the back turned around and elongated their arms trying to stop him.
"Oh, I don't think so!" Kazemon added a wind element and accelerated her spinning. Soon, the butterfly became a hurricane, and all the Vegiemon got sucked in. They flew toward the center of the storm and were met with whirlwind kicks knocking them into the air.
The sad part was that they couldn't escape. Whenever the Vegiemon were kicked into the air, they would be sucked right back in the hurricane to be kicked again. It was a never-ending process.
The carnivorous plants tried using their vines to stop her or grab something outside the hurricane, but it was useless. Kazemon's spinning was too fast, and the hurricane was too strong. The vines kept getting defected or ripped apart by the kicking and suction force. All they could do was be constantly kicked.
The Wind Warrior was like a blender. She would pound and pulverize until the Vegiemon became vegetable juice. Fractal code appeared around some of them who took assault first and automatically entered the butterfly's Digivice. Eggplants flew around everywhere.
"Hehe," Lobomon saw the hurricane from afar and smiled. His friend was going to be alright. Now he could focus on his beast spirit.
Although Megadramon had a head start, Lobomon wasn't too worried. His initial meeting with the cyborg dragon and the Vegimon told him a lot about their current situation. There were two main factors.
The first was when Megadramon twitched in his lizard form. People only do that when they hear something surprising or shocking. It must've been the former. Lobomon could tell from how well-adapted the cyborg dragon was to the island's environment. It may be speculation, but Megadramon may have already checked the coordinates of the area.
The second was the Vegiemon. They were plant-type based Digimon, and most of the island consisted of grass and trees. If the Beast Spirit of Light was spotted, the Vegiemon would have noticed him by now through the wildlife.
What did this tell him? His beast spirit was still hidden. The island was pretty small compared to Japan, but their enemies still weren't able to locate it. Although his GPS was way more accurate than a Digimon's instincts to detect other energy signatures, their enemies could make up for it in numbers.
So where was his beast spirit?
If their enemies already searched everywhere above ground then that would mean…
Lobomon looked at the ground. Every step felt like he was going up a hill then it hit him. Instead of going to the GPS coordinates at the top of the island, the Bearer of Light ran around the middle part looking for something.
Before stepping on Sukomonare Island, Kouji studied its topography. He knew the island was uphill when journeying to the center. If his beast spirit wasn't on the island, what about inside it?
Lobomon sprinted for some time but stopped when he saw something unusual. Up ahead were a bunch of medium to large rocks stacked together. It looked like a landslide happened a long time ago. Most people would just look at the stones for a second and move on, but the Light Warrior thought differently.
The landslide was completely cut off from the plant life looking out of place. The formation of the rocks told him a story. It felt like they were covering something.
Without a second thought, Lobomon used his light swords and slashed at the landslide multiple times. The blades easily cut through like butter. The rocks broke into smaller pieces falling to the ground. Dirt and debris flew everywhere.
When the smoke cleared, Lobomon could see a cave leading into a tunnel. The rocks were hiding the entrance!
"Bingo," Lobomon said and walked into the cave. He kept one of his light swords on hand as a flashlight while traversing the narrow tunnel.
From what he could observe, this tunnel hasn't been touched by humans before. There were no cave paintings, and the structure seemed to be naturally formed. It made sense. Sukomobanare Island barely had any visitors here, and the rocks did a really good job hiding the cave.
After a short walk, Lobomon could see the light at the end of the tunnel and went into a sprint. He gripped his light sword tightly just in case of an attack. Being overly prepared was never a bad thing.
When he finally exited the tunnel, and his eyes adjusted to the new light, Lobomon was struck with an amazing scenery.
The Bearer of Light entered a large cavern as deep as the eyes could see. Naturally made rock pillars held the area together. Stalactites grew all over the ceiling with droplets of water dripping to the ground. Rays of sunlight shot down from the small holes above making the minerals on the bedrock sparkle.
Thanks to the sun and water, small patches of grass grew on the cavern's ground. Sunlight reflected off of each blade shining brightly. One even had a five-petaled flower growing in the center.
Lobomon took a moment to take in the artistic environment. This place was just too breathtaking!
This was one of the main reasons Kouji wanted to travel the world. Although nature can be dangerous, it is also beautiful. There were so many different places to explore. So many sites to be discovered. And so much life to feel. Kouji wanted to experience it all.
Lobomon journeyed deeper into the cavern. There was no doubt in his mind that his beast spirit was here. It was the perfect place to rest and not be disturbed by anyone.
Sure enough on one of the sunlit grass patches was a phantom wolf. He wore white, blue striped armor with sharp, golden blades sticking out of his claws, chest, and shoulders. Attached to his back were golden claymore wings, and hidden behind each leg were wheels like skates.
KendoGarurumon: A variable, cyborg-type whose Special Attacks are Howling Star and Lupine Laser. He is the beast spirit descended from the Ancient Warrior: AncientGarurumon and can move at extremely high speed. His golden claws and blades are known to tear through those he considers evil without wasting a single breath.
The Beast Warrior of Light was curled up with his eyes closed sleeping. Light kept pulsing in and out all over his body. Since KendoGarurumon was in his spirit form, he needed to conserve his energy. So when the wolf first landed, he snuck inside the island to hide until his chosen partner found him.
Seeing his beast spirit sleeping peacefully, Lobomon relaxed. It looked like Megadramon hadn't found the cavern yet. It was time to reunite with KendoGarurumon!
"Kendo-" Lobomon tried to call out but was cut off when something wrapped around his mouth. Any other words he said after sounded like muffled gibberish. "MMmmmfff…"
The Bearer of Light tried to find out who did this, but all he could was something similar to a long pink rope connected to nothing. He readied his light sword. Even if he didn't know where the rope came from, it won't stop him from cutting the thing off.
Before he could, however, something else swept under his feet causing him to fall face to the floor.
What was going on? Lobomon lifted his head and looked for his mysterious assailant, but he didn't see anyone. It confused him. It was like he was fighting invisible people!
Invisible…
Lobomon looked at the end of the pink rope again, but more closely. At first, he saw nothing, but then slowly, he could make out a faint outline. Someone was there! His assailant was just really good at hiding.
"Oh no," The outline said. "He can see me now."
"It matters not," Another voice answered. It must've been the other attacker. "We found the beast spirit. We have no need to hide anymore."
Two areas started to change, turning greener until two large lizards appeared.
They had a green, red-striped bodies and wore an even darker green armor on their upper bodies. The armor was equipped with helmets and goggles. The most noticeable thing was their eyes. They stared at Lobomon and KendoGarurumon simultaneously even though the two were in opposite directions.
Chamelemon: An armored-level, reptile-type Digimon whose special attacks are Tongue Lashing and Camouflage. Although lacking in offensive power, they more than made up for it in stealth and intelligence gathering. Their skin has a unique ability to scan the surrounding environment and match the colors with the textures of their bodies turning almost invisible. It makes them perfect for hiding and espionage.
"MEGADRAMON!" The Chamelemon, who wasn't holding Lobomon with his tongue, shouted. His voice echoed through one of the holes in the ceiling. "THE BEAST SPIRIT IS HERE!"
Moments later, two metal gauntlets punctured through the ceiling. The stalactites around them broke apart creating a gigantic hole, and a metallic head came through.
"There you are," Megadramon said and looked at Lobomon. "Thank you for your help in locating the beast spirit."
Just as Lobomon knew his enemies' situation well, Megadramon understood it more. Even if he went back to the location Izumi pointed to earlier, there was still a chance that he still couldn't find the beast spirit. So what better way than to have the Legendary Warriors lead him to it.
The whole situation between the Vegiemon and Megadramon leaving was a complete ruse. The cyborg dragon wanted to give Kouji and Izumi a sense of urgency to find the beast spirit. Little did the two know, he had his spies, Chamelemon, watch them. The green lizards had been tailing the Light Warrior ever since he escaped out of the Vegiemon's entrapment.
Lobomon silently berated himself. Megadramon basically used him to make his job easier, and it worked. It was like walking with a bank robber inside a vault full of money.
"C'mere you little pup!" Megadramon extended his arm attempting to capture the beast spirit.
KendoGarurumon woke up due to the noises and the next thing he saw, a giant metal gauntlet dropped down on him like a claw machine. Lowering his wheels, the beast spirit sped away avoiding capture.
The hole Megadramon made wasn't very big, so he could only use his arms to grab the beast spirit. Unfortunately, KendoGarurumon was too evasive. Every time the cyborg dragon came close to catching him, the wolf would just dodge at the last minute. It was incredibly frustrating. Luckily, the cavern was small, so KendoGarurumon was never out of reach.
Lobomon quickly pulled on Chamelemon's tongue trying to break out. He had to help his beast spirit!
Although KendoGarurumon was doing a great job dodging Megadramon. Without a vessel, the wolf was running on limited energy. Every movement and attack depleted him. It was only a matter of time before he would revert back to his relic form making him defenseless.
Unfortunately, the two Chamelemon weren't going to let him interfere.
[Tongue Lashing] The tongue around Lobomon's neck tightened locking him in place. Any attempts to move forward, Chamelemon would pull him back in.
[Camouflage x2] Before Lobomon could retaliate, the Chamelemon turned invisible and the other one swung his tail hitting the Light Warrior in the gut.
"Ugh," Lobomon grunted, dropping to his knees. The strike to the gut was painful, but it wasn't the most important thing. The most important thing was his situation.
He was trapped in a deadlock!
The Chamelemon literally had him on a tight leash. Whenever Lobomon moved too far away, the green lizard would pull his tongue stopping him like a dog. The Light Warrior tried to fight back, but the other green lizard would attack him with his tongue and tail.
The little attacks Lobomon could pull off kept missing. Chamelemon were not known for their speed, but they moved just enough to dodge attacks. Their invisibility was a major factor. How could Lobomon hit something he couldn't see?!
This was a typical deadlock and delay tactic. The Chamelemon's attacks aren't strong offensively, but it didn't matter. They only had to delay the Legendary Warrior and give Megadramon enough time to acquire the beast spirit.
'Smart move, but it's not going to be that easy!' Lobomon pulled off the tongue just enough for him to speak and raised his light sword in the air.
"Let there be Light!"
Lobomon's armor and sword released a powerful light and illuminated the cavern. Megadramon and KendoGarurumon weren't affected much due to the distance, but the Chamelemon were a different story.
The green lizards got temporarily blinded pausing their attacks, but most importantly, Lobomon saw them now. Although the Chamelemon could blend into any environment, they couldn't hide their shadows.
Grabbing the elongated tongue, Lobomon flung Chamelemon into the air and then pulled down slamming him onto his companion. Both green lizards erupted in crushing pain, and Chamelemon released his hold on the Light Warrior.
[Howling Laser] Lobomon aimed his armguard and fired a large burst of light energy making a direct hit on the green lizards. The force made them fly, and they crashed hard against the walls of the cavern putting them into a critical state.
Fractal code appeared on them and automatically entered Lobomon's Digivice. The Chamelemon transformed and reverted into chameleons. The two little guys took a moment to look at their environment before slowly climbing their way to the holes in the ceiling and leaving the cavern.
'Well, that's that,' Lobomon thought and ran to the other battle. He handled one obstacle. Now it was time to deal with the other one.
[Dark Side Attack] Megadramon had about enough of this pointless catching and opened his gauntlets. Organic missiles came out and infested the whole cavern. They moved all around and exploded into the ceiling and pillars.
Cave-in!
Large rocks came crashing down. Some landed around Lobomon pinning him. Even KendoGarurumon couldn't avoid them. The falling rocks were too abundant and erratic. The wolf eventually had to stop running, but that was all Megadramon needed.
Two stray missiles came and exploded on KendoGarurumon. The wolf let out a sad yelp. He couldn't hold his spirit form anymore and transformed back into his relic form.
Megadramon reached out and grabbed the Beast Spirit of Light with his right gauntlet. His metal claws closed, securing the beast spirit inside.
"Beast spirit acquired," The cyborg dragon said triumphantly. "Returning to rendezvous."
Megadramon then pulled himself out of the hole and flew away. When he was high in the air, he heard the cavern cave-in and collapsed inside. It made him smile. No one could've chased after him now.
He then flew farther away, but something was strange. He felt flying slightly slower for some reason. Did he gain some extra weight?
Megadramon looked at his body to see what was slowing him, and he noticed it. A certain stowaway was clinging to his tail: Lobomon.
"You!" The cyborg dragon growled.
Before Megadramon exited the near-collapsing cavern, Lobomon slashed out of the rocks pinning him, and witnessed the whole capture. Thinking quickly, he used the falling rocks as stepping stones and jumped out of the hole. His arms reached out grabbing anything as a handhold.
Next thing he knew, he was on Megadramon's tail flying through the high skies. His hands gripped tight on the cyborg dragon's purple fur. One wrong move and the Light Warrior would meet the ground with a splat.
"Give me back my beast spirit!" Lobomon shouted and aimed his armguard at Megadramon. Risk or not, he couldn't allow the Beast Spirit of Light to be taken.
"Sure," Megadragmon swung his tail up, causing Lobomon to go with it. He raised his right gauntlet over his head and brought it down on the Legendary Warrior like a sledgehammer. "There you go."
Lobomon's whole body shook in pain. He now knew what a large metal bell felt like when being hit by a gong. His hands lost their grip, and he free-fell to the ground.
"Enjoy your fall!" Megadramon said maliciously and continued his flight. He could've finished off the Light Warrior but didn't. Gravity would do the job for him.
Lobomon spread out his arms and legs to slow the descent, but it wouldn't stop him from meeting the ground. Even if he was in his Digimon form, it could only do so much to protect him. He was too high in the sky! In the best-case scenario, all of his bones would be broken. He didn't want to even think about the worst-case scenario.
All the Light Warrior could do was sign and close his eyes accepting the fall.
'Well… there were worst ways to go.'
Oh no! Is Lobomon going to fall to his doom? What's going to happen to him?! To find out. Tune in next time on Digimon Frontier 2: Fractal Fusion.
Preview: Howling Star, Slipstream!