[East]
After a clamorous strike, Yuma stumbled on one knee, keeping himself balanced only with his blade, stopping him from collapsing outright. His gasps were harsh and his vision blurry.
"That's enough," Koji, as Lobomon, retracted his lightsabers. "Pushing yourself like this is self-flagellation. You're not learning or getting stronger; you're just hurting yourself."
"I... I should have done more," Yuma said as he looked up, his mind recalling the ambush orchestrated by Nanami.
"I know how you're feeling," Lobomon helped Mushamon. "When my Generation was new, we never won a major fight against important opponents. We had to grow over time."
"I thought we didn't have time," Yuma looked at Koji.
"You're... not wrong. But I made the mistake of trying to force someone to be ready when they weren't and almost paid for it big-time," Koji remembered when he impelled Coro's evolution by pushing Arshan off a cliff. "Our goal is still the same: get to the east and find Spencer Damon. He's a powerful Digidestined, and maybe with you, we'll have a chance to get him to join us."
"Join?" Yuma asked in confusion.
"Hey, guys!" Before Koji could answer, they heard Yoshi yelling out to them. "You might wanna see this!"
Staying close to a mountain trail to hide from their pursuer, the East Team decided to rest while trekking a mountain path. However, Yoshi obviously finished scouting ahead while everyone rested.
She led the group towards higher ground, reaching a cliff. The clearing allowed them to view the new area.
There was one word to describe the endless view before them: junk. Out of all the fantastical views the Digital World offered, the group arrived before an endless landscape consisting of ripped steel, trash, and other unwanted.
"Look at all that!" Lalamon floated beside Yoshi.
"My my, I wasn't expecting this of the Digital World," Funbeemon found herself scanning the area—if anything was worthy of keeping with her.
"I gotta admit, my Generation didn't see anything like this," Yoshino scratched her chin. "What about yours, Koji?"
"Some within the ballpark, but nothing to the point of it being the environment of an entire area," The Digital Warrior of Light kept his gaze for any sign of other Digimon, but spotted none, even while he remained as Lobomon.
"Is there something to eat there?" Goofy asked while looking at the others.
"He does bring up a point. It would be hard to find extra resources in that kind of environment," Yuma put a hand on his chin.
"I-I actually want to go now," Baron managed to say, barely containing his excitement. "There's a good chance I can work with something there!"
"Excelsior, chaps! Shall we peregrinate thither and partake in jollification?!"
Everyone in the East team paused at the 8th voice in their group. Slowly, six people turned to the end of their group, specifically where Baron was.
"W-Why is everyone looking at me?" Baron, panicking at the sight of multiple eyes falling squarely on him.
Unfortunately for the orphan, the others were right to look in his direction: behind his head, a sock puppet with a black top hat moved into the view of everyone.
Yuma was about to open his mouth until Yoshi elbowed his side and shook her head vehemently.
Koji fought the overwhelming urge to sigh. "We should make our way soon. There's a helicopter remains near the border; we'll head there and rest before figuring out how to navigate the area."
"Why doth we tarry in such idleness? Escapades beckon! Onward with alacrity, tally-hooooo!" The sock puppet flailed not unlike a Muppet before moving forward, almost pulling an unsuspecting Baron as Goofy laughed and followed after him. Funbeemon flew after them, wanting to eye anything useful, and Yuma sighed before following after his partner.
Lobomon pinched the bridge of his nose. "Why is the 7th Generation so weird?"
Lalamon spoke up, "I think the Digital World is scraping the bottom of the barrel." "Lalamon!" "What? You noticed the dip in quality compared to the 6th Generation!" The floating plant responded after Yoshi's yell.
"Sometimes," Koji said as he began to walk after the newcomers. "I wish I was in Arshan's team."
[North]
After ascending to the top of the tower in Whamon City, Arshan noticed the dark hallway that Nene unflinchingly advanced into. A part of Arshan did not want to go down the dimmed, and chilling path—how unfortunate that Doumon was right behind him and his movement made the teen follow after the Digidestined General. But he was more worried for the other two, Kyoko and Cas. Kyoko and Sangomon at least had Thetismon heralding them forward: Nene's Ultimate and Sangomon seemed to hit it off. But poor Cas? She had Lamortmon, who seemed amicable despite his appearance, but being away from Uver made Cas both relaxed and stressed. Cas was like a living house-of-cards, even the breath of a single letter threatened to make her collapse on herself.
Arshan wanted to make sure Cas and Kyoko were safe, but he was unsure what to do, or if he could even do something. How could he defend himself without Coro?
"Believe in me who believes in you punching someone! Go punch that Ultimate behind you!"
… Even when Coro's presence was long gone, Arshan could hear the imaginary cheers of his best friend, goading him to fight using a DNA charge he never accessed. (Sometimes, he wondered what forces beyond thought pairing two personalities like them together was a good idea?)
"We've arrived," Nene's voice made everyone pause before two grand doors of stone with odd symbols glowing. The 6th Generation beauty waited before the gates opened themselves with the echoing noise of gravel grinding on the ground.
However, the doors opened to reveal only more darkness.
"What are you waiting for? The doors are already open." A confident voice echoed from within.
Nene only looked back and motioned the newcomers forward.
Arshan glanced around, before he realized all eyes fell on him.
It was fair to say that Arshan disliked being the center of attention, past actions disbarred. As such, why—in this godless Digital World—was he the one who had to be the "leader" of the group!? Kyoko at least had her partner in Sangomon, where he had to be separated from Coro! But Arshan suspected she also did not enjoy being the center of attention, and as much as he hated being so, he would not put anyone else through his suffering. And the less said about Cas being the one to go first, the better. But that only meant he was the best candidate by default.
The poor teen wished Coro was here. Stifling his groans, the brunette walked through the gate. When passing through the doors, his weight shifted as he heard the sound of a click under his step.
A low rumble vibrated, lights erupted open, revealing grand architecture and gold-lined walls. The sound of gears turned as the very floor shifted and turned upward, not unlike the sequences used in the live action Transformer movies. But the complex shifting motion ended, revealing a handsome man sitting on the throne with unrelenting swagger. He was tall, commanding, the kind of face one would see on magazines with distinct purple hair, and red eyes in a shade that growing women would love. Said person leaned on his throne, resting his cheek on his fist with a lazy smile. The clothes he wore were to one you would see in most movies, a very handsome bad boy. He sported a black T-shirt under a red leather jacket, torn in some places, but it gave him a rugged look. His pants were deep black with some tears, but it only added to his style. Beside his throne was a Dracomon, told by the newcomer's Digivice.
"Welcome one and all!" He proclaimed, throwing his hands outward in an animated fashion. "So you're the newbies who made some waves, huh? Rumors have been going around saying that you guys can affect The Tyrant. Isn't that a handy power to have?"
He kicked off the throne, swaggering towards Arshan while Cas and Kyoko stepped closer to the brunette: Kyoko picking up and holding tightly to Sangomon while Cas even reached and pulled on Arshan's left sleeve. Neither's instinct liked this new Digidestined in front of them.
"Damn, you all look like a sorry bunch," Takeya noted aloud with a scoff before turning his attention to Nene. "These losers were the ones who impressed you?"
"Technically," Nene looked at her hands, as if checking her nails. "The boy did; the others? They were just there."
Arshan glanced towards Nene. He did not notice how uninterested she was towards the two friends of his. He thought back to when Tai told him about the sixth generation about how all of them were practically cherry picked to lead the Digimon to their full potential as generals of war. While Tai talked about the amazing feats, Arshan couldn't help but feel pity for them. It sounds horrible: being asked to fight a war—no—being forced to lead a war, and even losing still. It was only now that when he was getting a good look over at the sixth generation Digidestined, Arshan felt an overwhelming sense of defeat and hopelessness coming from her. But he couldn't focus more on those thoughts when Takeya turned his attention to him.
"This?" The tone of his voice suggested that he was not even remotely impressed. "This ragged, beaten-up punk is the guy that impressed you?"
"He is the infamous Restorer that has reached the Mega level in less than a week. I literally saw him fight off Matt Ishida. That's not a feat that anyone can do, especially for the first encounter with him as an enemy." Nene returned pointedly.
While they were having a conversation, Arshan stared at Takeya. Yes, he was saying mean things, and unlike Koji and Yuma, he wasn't doing this out of compassion for a weak soul in a hard world. This person was ambitious only for himself. But, looking at him, Arshan didn't care much for his insults, because they were true to some extent. What actually got his attention was…
"Is your back okay?"
Arshan realized he blurted the question out. When he did so, both Nene and Takeya stared at him with wide eyes.
"I uh," Arshan stammered. "I just felt this… soreness… coming from your back."
"Wow," The Dracomon spoke. "How'd you know about Lord Kazu—"
"It's Takeya," The purple-haired man answered far too quickly. "And don't call me Kazuma… and Lord. The Duke is good enough as is, and I don't want Ragna Lordmon supporters hearing people call me that."
"As for you," The duke narrowed his eyes at the brunette. "A neat trick, but—"
He was interrupted when the beautiful Nene coughed into her hand. "Your Digimon are currently dismantling the ship. Can we already move onto the next phase of the plan?"
"Plan? What plan?" Sangomon asked.
Takeya didn't appreciate being interrupted, but at the same time, he had an obvious favoritism towards Nene. With a snap of his fingers, the ceiling above them cut into a perfect circle before floating down and revealing an elevator. The Duke and his partner went forward towards the console in the center, but Nene stopped Arshan before he could make his step.
"Try not to get on his bad side, alright? I won't be speaking up for you again. Keep in mind, just let him ramble, he likes to hear himself talk." That was all Nene could say before she followed after him and his partner.
Arshan looked about Kyoko and Cas, even if he didn't look, he could feel their apprehension, but seeing as Nene's Digimon were still behind them, the brunette inhaled deeply before he followed out the other humans. When everyone was on the elevator, they lifted up into the air. Then Arshan noticed the Duke's digivice hanging from his pants.
It was a third generation variant, the kind that was using cards to empower his partner. But that was odd because Henry and the others never mentioned him. A part of him was about to ask Nene, but he remembered it was probably best not to speak to him, especially if he had that reaction to this odd soreness and stinging sensation in his back. Arshan took note of these oddities: just who was this guy and how was he able to become the leader of a Digimon city or rather its Duke?
The poor teen sighed. He wondered what the little guy was up to in jail. The thought did not linger as eventually, he was able to spot the end of the elevator ride. He didn't know what to expect. Yet he was still surprised: before them was basically a stadium-sized room filled to the brim with technology styled after the many human depictions of Atlantis, old yet advanced beyond normal understanding. Most of all, Arshan marveled on an archway the height of a ship. Over hundreds of Digimon worked tirelessly on it: using their powers to either connect, build, or reinforce the massive archway which the entire area seemed to be in support of.
"What is this place?" Kyoko asked while surveying the area.
Takeya only smiled, a smile that was very matter-of-fact. "This is the answer to all our problems, created and funded by me of course: it's a gateway to the HUMAN World, back home!"
[East]
Footsteps rushed on a rusty catwalk, its steps echoing the frantic pace. Marc knew he had little time left, and the sound of metal shattering behind him only hastened his determination. Unfortunately for him his path ahead was also broken, leaving a huge gap between his end and the other with nothing but a gaping darkness underneath. As Marc reached the gap, he made the mistake of turning behind him, seeing something unspeakable, but now his choices were made clear: unending darkness or eternal suffering.
His only option was to risk a leap of faith. Just as he was about to jump, he quickly turned, and— "This scene was brought to you by at Etemon's Deodorant! Guarantee to make you smell good, even in the most direl of situations!"
"Cut! Cut!" Etemon shouted, making Marc groan and drop his pose.
"What is it NOW!?" The afroed human looked over to the side, where Etemon was holding a megaphone.
"Alright now, I need ya to really give it your all, darlin'. Sell me that deodorant like it's the King's secret weapon, uh-huh! Lay it on thick, baby, make me believe it!"
"But in the middle of a chase!?" Marc shouted, exasperated at how this script made no sense!
"Oh, that's the perfect time for product placement, baby! When everyone's glued to the screen, hangin' on every word, uh-huh!" Etemon shouted. "The energy's left the building, folks! Take ten, everybody, uh-huh!"
At his words, all the other Digimon left the area. Marc leaned into the catwalk handrails, sighing as he did and being annoyed at all of the circumstances that led him to this moment.
"You know I've seen a lot of people try to run away from their problems before, but you're the first one that I've met that's running away by acting in a movie. Marc perked up at the voice and turned to see Kari walking up to him. He already felt a headache at the thought of her, and possibly others, learning about his "acting gig".
"The only reason why I said yes to the stupid script is because Etemon promised me a powerful card that will help later on," Marc felt annoyed in the clothes he was wearing; sure he looked cool, but was uncomfortable.
"You know," Kari decided to lean on hand rails across from Marc. "That card he's offering you is a lot better when there's a Digimon there to use it."
Mark frowned after hearing that. By her tone and words, he could tell that Bibi went to them for help. He exhaled deeply and said, "Look I just needed some alone time. It's nothing personal to Bibi. …How is she?"
"She's fine with Gatomon. Poor girl thinks you're angry with her," Kari shrugged her shoulders.
"It's not her fault," Mark pinched the bridge of his nose as his headache got worse. "Some events gave me bad memories and I usually deal with it alone."
Kari was silent and gave a small nod in respect of wanting to be alone. After a few seconds, she opened up. "Did you know that I was a sickly kid growing up?" After blurting the phrase, Marc raised his brow at Kari. "I got into an accident and my brother blamed himself for it even though it wasn't his fault. But at the time, I thought it was mine because I couldn't kick the ball properly and play with him," Kari said as she reached to grab her other arm. "Long story short: that event caused a lot of issues between us, sure we both still love each other, but the Digital World happened to exploit those issues. It even involved a different world that the Digital World was connected to instead of the Human World: a world of darkness and negative emotions forming a Dark Ocean, so to speak. That world attracted me and a few others who were to its siren call. To be honest, I'm envious of you: your tantrum is leading you to become famous in the movie while I got stuck with eldritch horrors trying to eat my very soul."
"Ouch," Marc winced. "And here I was complaining about how Etemon believed mixing dancing with gunfire was "artistic brilliance" the likes no human or Digimon ever saw before."
"Oh, I don't know," Kari smiled. "I think it would be a great comedy; I know the others would get a huge laugh out of this," While Marc was inwardly dying, Kari laughed before she became serious. "The point was I wanted you to know that everyone here that's been brought to the Digital World has issues, my brother included. I don't know what yours are but don't take it out on Bibi or Dorulumon, they're the ones who were sticking by you the most."
Mark perked up at the mention of Dorulumon. He realized that he had not asked about their other companion in this journey. "Hey, where is he anyway?"
Now, it was Kari's turn to side deeply. "I don't know and I'm worried for him. The others are saying that the storms are gonna pick up soon again and we can't find him."
After hearing that, Marc cursed under his breath. "I screwed up big time, didn't I?"
Kari gave a small smile. "In the Digital World? Marc, you'll only make even bigger mistakes. The key is what we're going to do about it, and I think I know what you're about to do."
…
"Alright, break time's over, folks! This time, I want ya to sing while introducin' that new deodorant, uh-huh! ...Hey, where'd ya go?" Director Etemon noticed empty air where a human should have been. He scratched his head and looked around. "What's goin' on? Did they all leave the building or somethin'? Maybe go home?"
[North]
The three could not believe their ears when they heard Takeya speak.
"Home? As in Earth?" Arshan asked in disbelief.
"Is there any other human world?" The purple-haired Digidestined rolled his eyes.
"Uhhh, how?" Kyoko looked to Arshan. "They told me all gateways to Earth were sealed by Ragna Lordmon."
"All OLD gateways," Takeya turned and motioned to the entire area. "That's why we're making a new one!"
The proclamation of such an idea stunned the human newcomers. The Digital World was such a fantastical and mysterious place, but its rules—chaotic and random as they were—happened to also be ironclad. That is why…
"What do you mean, make a new one?" Sangomon asked.
"It's obvious isn't it?" Takeya turned back to the other humans. "The big guy closed all of the current portals. Instead of trying to undo his inviolable seals, we'll just make a new gateway, one that he can't seal as easily. From my understanding, all of the gateways of the human world have existed for a very long time and while they could be closed, they were always still powered up in a way. What I plan to do is create a gateway that can be turned on and off. It will be "on" for people who need to travel, but "off" in case you-know-who catches wind of this. By the time he does realize, even with his future sight, the gateway will be undone, and there will be nothing for him to seal.
The idea sounded simple, but there was practicality in it. Arshan didn't know how portals worked, but the idea of creating a portal that could disappear the moment after it was used and appear only when it's needed sounded amazing to say the least. Yet for all those amazing but simple ideas, one question rose to the top of Arshan's mind.
"How did you even make this?" The teen knew a human wouldn't understand magic or science enough to pull off spatial gateways to other worlds.
Takeya put his hands behind his head. "Let's just say, I have a few experts working on it. But I have to admit, even though we technically got it working, Ragna Lordmon covered his bases. The many seals he put up has not only stopped the current gateways, but their left over energy has wrapped around the dimensional barriers, preventing travel between our worlds even with a new portal. But that's where you curious newcomers come in: your power can affect the seals' energy and weaken it enough for us to use it. That way, we can finally go home."
"And," Kyoko said as she looked at Sangomon in her arms. "Our Digimon?"
"Don't think so small. If Digimon want to go into the human world to escape the Tyrant, who am I to deny them? Well… if they have the price to pay for it, then even better." Takeya laughed.
All 3 humans had their eyes widened. He was going to make Digimon… pay to travel to the human world?
"Isn't sending Digimon to the Human world a bad idea?" Arshan didn't know much about people, but suddenly sending refugees of empowered aliens into Earth was not the best plan considering most alien movies are either killing them or getting romantic with them. Somehow, the latter felt scarier.
Takeya shrugged his shoulders. "Who cares? We all get what we want."
"We can go home," Nene spoke up, walking again towards Arshan. "All of you SHOULD get out of here while you can."
"What? But what about—" "Forget them, forget all of them." Nene interrupted Arshan, narrowing her eyes at him. "You don't understand. The Digital World is a hell hole. It will break you in ways you aren't ready for," Her face softened, as if almost begging the boy, "I am saying this for your own good, get out now while you still have the chance."
Takeya spoke up again, "Hurry up and get that power to work. I don't have all day here."
All eyes fell on Arshan. For the poor teen, time slowed down. To him this was indeed an answer to all his problems: ever since he had come to the Digital World, he found himself constantly thrust into peril, and that did not include the looming threat of a god-like and immortal being hounding him and others on to what would likely be the end of another world. Leaving would mean he wouldn't have to fight anymore. He wouldn't have to run anymore. He could be at home in peace, with the most he would have to worry about is his homework.
That was all he had to do: just say yes. Afterward, he could probably get a good night's rest for the first time in a long time.
Those were all the logical things that went through the young teens mind. But a small but immutable part of not just his mind, his heart, and soul, they all cried out a single name.
Coro.
How innocent was the little one that in a decaying, dim, and destroyed home, he still gave a warm smile that calmed even the anxious Arshan? Would this be how Arshan thanked such a loyal and faithful friend: by leaving him?
No, not just him. Tai, Kari, Henry, Koji, Stefania, Yuma, Mark, Yoshino, Mimi, Kyoko, Cas, and all their Digimon partners. Even the likes of Karatenmon and BZ stood out in the teen's memory. Especially for the older generations, they had to fight tooth and nail, but despite all their truly outstanding effort, they never succeeded. What could he possibly do if amazing and talented chosen couldn't?
-"Thank you for saving my brother."-
His own memory gave him an answer, and it used the same two words again but from someone different,
-"Thank you, Great One!"-
Arshan realized something: he never got to thank Coro for becoming his best friend.
"... No."
It was a single word, not even spoken loudly. But the fact Arshan said it when Takeya pointed to him was more than enough for everyone to stop what they were doing and stare.
"Excuse you?" Takeya laughed as if he heard a joke, but many could tell he was not happy. "I must have misheard, but there's no way you just denied a chance to get out of this hellhole."
Arshan had to admit that he didn't like everyone looking at him, a part of him wanted to backtrack what he just said. Instead, he thought about Coro; he thought about the cat he let die. And he remembered his mother… despite all the wrong she had done to him, Arshan never forgot the memory of her breaking down crying before he left in the car, likely never seeing her again. All his regrets stemmed from inaction of some kind. He couldn't do that again, not to Coro as he did with his mother and the cat.
"I want to leave, but I made a promise," Arshan was usually nervous, but at this moment? For once, Arshan wanted to be the one who was brave and protected others. (not realizing he already had before.) "I'll help remove the seal, but I can't stay. I need to get to the North of here."
Everyone stared at the teen before The Sagacious Duke only exploded into laughter. "Oh! Oh! That's a good one!" After gaining some air back, he wiped his eyes from some forming tears. Yet when he turned to Arshan, the smile dropped. Hard. "You really are an idiot. No—not an idiot—a retard with severe brain damage. Honestly, you're probably clinically insane!" He motioned to everything around him. "Look around you! This is a world where the strongest rule! Ragna Lordmon made sure of that! You see what happens when people talk and fight for ideas like "friendship" and "hope"! Look at where they all are: either captured, beaten, and broken! I have never seen such brain-dead activity where you can see literally better people than yourself fail horribly and think you can do better!"
Takeya walked up and narrowed his eyes at Arshan. "I'm offering you a way out of this. I don't usually want to, but I'm feeling benevolent lately. All you have to do is obey and be quiet and you don't have to die," The adolescent threw his hands up in the air. "Why am I even trying to reason with a foolhardy wretch? This is why I hate all of you other humans: all that power given to us here gone to waste. I know the fear that is caused through pain, I know how miserable and scary it feels to be a loser and I have seen Digimon break in front of my eyes countless times but in the end I stopped feeling fear and just felt cold, because I realized that no matter how much suffering and despair others go through I myself will never have to experience the same, as long as I possess the means to protect myself everything is fine, as long as I am safe that means I am the winner! And here I am: the ruler of the City that once held me captive! But what are the others doing? Floundering around and failing! That is the result of your pathetic actions, and if you go that path, I'll laugh at your failure like all the rest!"
Arshan silently perked up at that. Takeya spoke and said "I" a lot of those times, but it made the brunette eyed Dracomon, who was just staring at him with almost… curiosity? Did… did he not even care about his own partner? But more than that, Arshan listened to his speech and he realized…
"I'm scared too," The teen said, standing tall, his green eyes steady. "And because I know what it's like, if I can help others out of that feeling, I will."
Wham!
Without warning, Takeya punched Arshan in the face, knocking the teen over.
"Arshan!?" Kyoko yelled the teen's name and went to see if he was okay.
"God, I was getting tired of listening to you speak," Takeya wiped his fist.
"Aaaa..h?" Cas started to gas for air, while watching Takeya rant and confront Arshan, she had this pit in her stomach that only grew worse and worse. When she saw him hit Arshan, the one possibly nice person to her in not just the Digital World, but in Earth, she panicked. She unleashed a scream as her Digivice, the wrist on her watch, started to go haywire.
"No you don't! Doumon!" Nene acted fast as the Taoist digimon placed a seal tag on the pale woman, one symbolizing sleep. Quickly as the others, Cas fell only to be caught by the Ultimate.
"Take their Digivices and put them all in a cage!" Takeya shouted before several Shurimon, shown in Arshan and Kyoko's Digivice, appeared behind them in a puff of smoke. In that same instant, they grabbed all of the Restorers and disappeared, leaving behind their Digivices on the ground.
Takeya fixed his coat with an exhale. "Every word was like listening to nail on chalk," The Duke smiled. "Now, Nene, since you've returned, how about we continu…"
"Kazuma, she left."
"I told you, call me Takeya!" The purple-haired young man blinked after the knee-jerk reaction. "And what do you mean by…" When he looked ahead, Nene was already leaving the area, as if she had somewhere better to be. Takeya didn't notice the surprised and confused look on her face as she did.
"Tch! Now I have a headache. Hurry it up with that Titan of Steel body! And get Wisemon over here! He'll have to be the one to figure out these new Digivices!"
While everyone went back to work, Nene could only think back to Arshan's words. "... He's too much like Taiki… too much.. Too…"
[?]
"Ughhh, that's gonna sting for a while," Arshan wished he didn't have such a splitting headache. Man, he can't believe he got punched. But even though he thought his eyes were open, it was incredibly dark. … Wherever here was?
"A-Arshan? Is that you?" The teen perked up when he heard a muffled voice. He followed it until he hit a wall… with his face.
"Owwww…" He shook it off as he heard his name again beyond the hard, metallic wall. "Kyoko? Is that you?"
"Y-Yeah! I'm here! It's so dark, and I can't even see a way out!" As he heard that, Arshan did notice his area was without even a window. "They even took Sangomon from me. I can't find her!"
Arshan realized that there was also someone else missing. "Cas? Cas!"
"...?"
He doesn't know how he heard it, but on the other side of his "cage" He heard something more muffled than Kyoko's voice.
"Cas, are you there?" Arshan made sure to put his hands ahead as he reached the wall on the other side.
"..."
"Are you alright?!"
"..."
The teen sighed. She sounded fine, but even if she wasn't, how could he help in this situation? … Actually…
Arshan felt the wall and slid down to sit—almost collapse on the floor. "Guys… I… I'm so sorry. I wanted to help, but I ended up making things so much worse. I should have just kept my mouth shut and at least you two would have been able to go home."
Of course, Arshan hated himself for not shutting up when he should have. If he did, these two could have gone home while he could have just asked later after helping. He was hating himself for being such an idiot!
"No." The teen perked up when he heard a voice. But it wasn't Kyoko… it was from Cas? "I-I didn't want to go back to the Human World. I didn't want to help them. …I…I'm glad you said no."
Inside her cell, Cas lifted her head from huddling in her knees. She didn't realize she was speaking to someone until after her voice left her mouth. But, she understood, with Arshan's confession, he was starting to hate himself. And she… she…
-"I'm scared too," The teen said, standing tall, his green eyes steady. "And because I know what it's like, if I can help others out of that feeling, I will."-
She recalled the teen's declaration; she never thought of that: suffering, but ensuring others don't fall into the same circumstance. That boy, Arshan, helped her when everything felt worse. … No one had done that for her before. And hearing Arshan feel bad, when he was trying so hard to help her, spurred Cas into wanting to reciprocate his kindness.
Even if she was still wary.
"S-She's right, Arshan! I thought you were… kinda cool… back there," In the darkness, Kyoko's face became red at the memory of the brunette. When hearing Arshan stand up for someone who wasn't there… the act of caring for someone even when they physically weren't there, utterly unlike her mother, Arshan had endeared himself to Kyoko's respect. "And I didn't want to leave Sangomon or any of the Sistermons behind like that."
There was one small but loud voice in Kyoko's mind, one that demanded the wringing of the Duke's neck, which she might have done at any moment of his speech had she not been holding onto Sangomon. But Kyoko shook her head; she promised to swear off those kinds of thoughts.
"Really?" Arshan was touched that the two would support him even at this moment. He believed he didn't do anything worth much support. "Thank you, both of you." Although he was feeling better, silence filled the three cells.
"So, how long are we going to be here?" Arshan finally asked.
When his only response was silence due to the realization that no one knew the answer, the brunette recognized he really should practice thinking before speaking.
[West]
It was long past the point of "dangerous", now it was "suicidal" to be out while effects of the Thunder Titan took place. Somehow despite there being no rain, the frequency of electricity hailing from the skies substituted the waters. Lightning destroyed, and set a blaze to Safari lands that Etemon's crew were traveling in.
"Dorulumon, where are you!?" Gatomon's Ultimate form, Angewomon cried out. She created a holy barrier that took on lightning strikes but even so, there was a good chance she couldn't last here for long. Risking turning into Ophanimon or her other Mega may even attract the Thunder Titan if they were at the edge of its range.
Yet, if the stakes were high even with an Ultiamte's help, how much more dire is Dorulumon's state? Is he safe? Or is it too late?
Marc suffocated under his frustrations. The more he shouted, the more he was silenced by the crash of thunder. His emotions reached the breaking point as he kicked a nearby stone out of Angewoman's shield, the result being lightning smiting the rock and marring that part of the Digital World, and leaving a smoking crater with a burnt scent the West Team could still smell through the barrier.
Kari knew Marc was blaming himself for the current situation. It was one thing if it was himself, but he put a friend in peril. She knew better than to speak about emotions, as it may make him angrier. But she did keep an eye on him while trying to search for Dorulumon. So instead, being practical might help.
"We need another approach to this. Looking blindly isn't helping," Kari said aloud. "Let's put ourselves in Dorulumon's shoes: if we were him right now, where would he go?"
"Well, he's got drills," Bibi offered her thoughts. "And Karatenmon alluded at him being a shut-in… maybe he made a cave or went in one?"
It was as good as any idea. By chance, they were near a valley that would be another excellent place to take shelter from the storm.
"There!" Angewoman pointed deeper. In the bottom of the cliff wall, there was a cave that did not look naturally made.
The West Team made their way faster than before as the lightning around them grew more frequent, some hitting the barrier and causing even Angemon to grunt under pressure.
"No, stop!" A voice shouted to the West Team, but it was interrupted by the bolt of thunder. The warning made the four stop, but only Angemon suddenly felt a chill run through her spine.
"Oh no!" Angemon looked up and realized the mistake. Out of the cliff, multiple unknowns geysered out of the very earth. Only when they were surrounded did everyone recognize what they were: Eaters.
They had stumbled on to a nest of them. Even as some were smote by the random bolts, it barely detracted from their number which reached hundreds.
"Angemon, Digivolve!" "Not without dropping the barrier! If it falls, they can get you or the others!" As soon as she said this, one larger thunderbolt hammered into Angemon's barrier, making Angemon focus on strengthening it. However, with that gap, the Eaters began to swarm, launching themselves at the barrier repeatedly. The Ultimate fell to her knees as the combination of the Eater swarm and bolts drained her shield faster than she was ready for.
Marc, sensing danger, incited to activate his Digivice. "Bibi, Digimodify: Evolution!"
In a burst of light, Bibi elevated into Aquilamon. The red, horned Champion spread her wings in preparation for the worst. In the meantime, Marc fished for his cards, looking for anything that would get them out of this trap. However, the alien sounds of the Eaters, the booming storm, and the growing cracks on the forcefield made the teen panic and drop his deck to the earth.
"Shit!" The afroed teen knelt, trying to spot a card he thought had potential getting them out of here.
"I-I can't…hold…!" Angewoman screams could barely be heard over the consistent cracking of energy alongside the battering of Eaters.
Time slowed. In moments, the forcefield would break. Either the Eaters would get them, allowing Ragna Lordmon access to a Restorer, or they would be stricken down by the very element of Thunder itself.
Marc's mind went into overdrive: was this it? After trying his best to not be a liability, to want to be as important as the others: Stefania's upbeat and supportive attitude, Yuma's serious but amazing ability to fight in the front lines, and Arshan? He was the one the Digital World chose first, and Marc silently knew he was potentially the best of them. Arshan did the impossible: inspire hope when there was none.
And what of Marcus Graves? What did he offer?
Marc's mind only replayed his shouts at Dorulumon. His hatred… his… parents? The memories overlapped. Try as he might, all he recalled was making a mistake that caused his parents to restrict his freedom thereafter. He argued with them, one particularly hated discussion before he was taken by the Digital World. Now here he was, dragging so many others into a situation caused by him.
Was this how it was going to end: with his parents ultimately being RIGHT about him?
"HEY!"
It was a shout—no, more akin to a roar. The Eaters all turned, allowing gaps in their crowd for the West Team to see who had stolen their attention: Dorulumon.
"You want something to eat!? I'm right here!" With that Dorulumon fired a drill right at one of the eaters, causing it to fall. Only half the Eaters turned and followed after the wolf. However, because it was only half that still gave the West team more room to breathe less enemies to handle and more importantly a chance to fight back
Mark looked down, his hand near two cards that caught his attention. There was no time to waste. "Bibi, get ready for a counter attack!" Marc slid the card as the Champion bulleted out of the forcefield to line up a clean at the other half of the swarm. "Digimodify: Deltamon's Triplex Force!"
The ghostly image of three Digimon heads gathered energy before blasting it over the Eaters, freeing the pressure from Angewoman's barrier. With the Ultimate's burden gone, she dropped the weakened barrier and focused solely on offense.
The only way to describe Angewoman's wrath was divine, aptly put. A single arrow smashed through regrouping Eaters attempting to rise from Bibi's attack.
Dorulumon, avoiding both lightning strikes and Eaters, shouted to the humans. "Get to shelter from the storm! Into the cave I made!"
Kari ran up to help Marc get cards. When both were finished, they bolted for the cave with the Digimon giving them cover fire with incoming Eaters. Marc, also using the Restorer System to turn some stray Eaters back into Digignomes that passed by the three Digimon.
"We're almost there!" Kari was fast despite her appearance, trailing ahead of Marc. It was only when they were about to take shelter, did a sudden feeling in her Crest make Kari stop her and the Restorer.
Just in time too, a particularly strong electrical blast prevented both from making a safe path forward. However, it was so close that it knocked both humans off their feet. Marc tried to get up, but only saw an Eater flying at him without time to react—
"Marc!" At the last second, a drill smashed into the Eater, allowing Marc to reach for his Digivice and shine the Restorer Program on it. As it finished, Marc was about to thank Dorulumon, but as he turned… he realized a horrible fact.
Dorulumon saved him at the expense of himself. The afroed teen's eyes widened as he saw Eaters latch themselves on to Dorulumon. The champion didn't avoid or swat them away… because he used his last attack to save Marc. Before he could even sound his first vowel, a mass of Eaters took down the champion. "Dorulumon!? Bibi, help him!"
Bibi looked away after blasting an Eater before she felt a surge of energy by a new Digimodify card: Hyper Speed. With speed faster than her kind had, the Champion blitzed towards the Eaters—only to hit air.
The blob, impossibly, jumped upward and latched itself into the cliff walls. To the horror of everyone, they watched the blob form… into that of a pseudo-wolf, no face, but tendrils growing off from every part of the body.
Marc's eyes widened. "Let go of him!" He yelled as he took his Digivice and pointed it at the new form. However, as the Restorer Program primed, the blob leapt off, avoiding the ray.
"Angewoman!" Kari shouted over to her partner. The Holy Digimon looked in their direction of what appeared and primed one of her signature Holy Arrows… only to turn around and fire it to another reinforcement swarm of Eaters. Avoiding another blast of lightning, Angewoman struggled to find a way to help.
In fact, now that she was paying attention… Was it her, or were the lightning strikes focusing on separating her from the others?
Kari knew she had to get Angewomon to… wait. Where's her Digivice!? The Second Generation Digidestined felt empty air where her Digivice should have been and quickly searched the area, realizing it had been knocked out of her hand when that last lightning bolt threw her and Marc off.
It was just Bibi and Marc… versus the Eater in the shape of a Wolf. A flash of lightning, and the Eater form was gone, making the pair search in confusion. Only when a shadow cast over Bibi, did Marc scream. "Above you!" Luckily, Bibi was still in Hyper Speed mode and avoided the Wolf Eater from swiping its giant claw at it. However, some tendrils on its side whipped out at equal speed, moving in Bibi's blind spot, causing the Champion to crash with the speed of a meteor.
"Bibi!?" Marc could not run to his friend when he saw the Eater Wolf pounce for him. There was no longer anyone else to sa—
"Treason vortex!" A spear descended between the Eater and Marc before it exploded with a dark whirlwind that warded away the transformed Eater. As the gales faded, a figure stepped out, throwing away his cape to reveal…
"Dark Knightmon!?" Kari yelled as the little brother of Bagramon, their former enemy, came to their rescue?
But the black Ultimate ignored her and turned only his head at Marc. "Get to your partner! I will hold it off until we can pin him down!" Without waiting, the Ultimate sped off to attack the Eater Wolf. Marc ran to Bibi.
"Bibi, please be alright!" Marc blundered when looking back at the battle. Dark Knightmon's appearance failed to shift the scales in their favor. Though Dark Knightmon and Angewoman fought with ferocious might, the battle's tide surged against them. Lightning smoted at the two at every moment their battles threatened to shift in their favor, forcing them on the backfoot throughout. Kari struggled to find her Digivice, which was necessary to get Angewoman to Mega Level.
As seconds ticked away, their chances of survival plummeted.
A groan dragged Marc to the present. "Marcy?" Bibi stood—groggily—up. "Get-get back. I'm gonna keep fighting!" Yet, she staggered, her body still wracked from the blow. Seeing her injured, indirectly by him, Marc's heart fractured.
"Bibi, I'm so sorry," The afroed teen confessed as a sinner would before death. "This is all my fault! My parents were right about me!"
Of all reactions Bibi could do, kicking Marcy was the least expected. Marc reacted slow, but beheld as a bolt of thunder hammered Bibi; had he stayed, he too would have been stricken!
Marc forced himself up despite his body screaming that he wasn't ready, rushing back to the smoking crater where he saw his partner sacrifice herself for him.
"Bibi!? BIBI!?" The smoke refused to clear, causing Marc to step back or else inhale more smoke.
The young man could only stare, his failures piling boldly one after the other.
He was wrong. And now, everyone would pay the price… but as Marc believed his incompetence to be complete, a small thought blossomed in his mind: the memory of Arshan. Not just him, but Yuma, Stefania, and all the rest. The memory still hurt, still cut deep, but this time, it didn't bring him to his knees. Instead, he realized how much each of them were changing: Yuma with his patience, Stefania with her new power, and Arshan? Well, he hoped that poor kid was alright. The point was: they could all change, so why not him?
Maybe Marc would fail forever. But he'd watched others fight their way back, and for the first time, he believed he could too.
Spurred by emotion, Marc veered then dashed at The Eater Wolf. "Hey! Over here!" Swinging his arms to catch the attention of the formed swarm. It worked.
Marc had one chance at this: as fast as the beast was, it moved in one path. In other words, Marc was going to do his first, and possibly last, try of bullfighting. Instead of a cape, he would use the Restorer Program to use on the charging creature.
The creatures veered at Marc. Seeing the abomination, the afroed teen felt his body instinctively trying to get him out of the way of this deadly gamble. Instead he stepped forward priming his Digivice and keeping his gaze on—
Something had caught the young man's attention: a color blue. In the opposite hand where his Digivice was, Marc held a blue card. When did he get that?
"Marcy!" With Marc distracted, he swiveled up to see The Eater closing in faster than he wanted to. But his courage did not go unanswered, a blur of red swept him off his feet, revealing Bibi had gotten up and saved him from the creature.
"Bibi, you are amazing, and I'm sorry for ever treating you badly!" Marc yelled as the red champion lowered him in a safer area. Marc's eyes hardened when he shifted his gaze back at the Eaters and held the new blue card: he had a much better plan in mind now. "Now let's save Dorulumon! Digimodify! … Matrix Evolution!"
The swipe of his card symbolized his determination, the next was the manifestation of that emotion.
"Aquilamon Digivolve too…!" Energy surged around Bibi, like before, her evolutions were more primal, raw, but it never lacked in any of the power about to be unleashed.
The Eater Wolf rushed for the pair again. However, it was lanced by two concentrated lasers, sending it crashing back. Yet the lasers did not stop at its target, yanked upward, the power of the attack cut the storm clouds, clearing the skies above them. Dark Knightmon, Angewoman, and Kari looked up as black feathers started to fall.
In particular, Kair, by the edge of her eye, saw the screen of the Digivice showing a new Digimon. Picking up her Digivice at last, she was shocked when she read. "Crowmon?! But she looks different from Falcomon's Crowmon!"
In the 5th Generation, another had reached the Ultimate Level of Crowmon with Keenan. However, Bibi's Crowmon lacked the more majestic and noble features Falcomon's evolution did. Yet, hers mirrored her evolution, raw, fierce…and about to unleash it all on the opponent before her.
"Digi Modify: Kaiser Nail!" Marc swiped a card with a Were Garurumon on it...before swiping another card right after?! "Digi Modify: Shadow Wing!"
The second card was another ultimate card, one belonging to Garudamon. The two energies swirled into Bibi before she liberated them into a black version of the Garudamon attack. The faint shape of a phoenix slashed through the air with more speed and precision than the usual attack and sliced off the legs of the Eater Wolf.
While everyone else was impressed with the combo, Marc hurried his Digivice and activated the Restorer Program, turning The Eater back into hundreds of Digignomes. He also made sure to aim at the downed ones further down, beaten by Angewoman and Dark Knightmon. When The Digignomes made way, Marc hurried towards the center. "Dorulumon!? Dorulumon!"
To his horror, it was not just the Eater that was de-limbed. However, while the abomination was given a clean and quick cut, Dorulumon was not as fortunate. His body static-like, with three of his legs eaten off, his right torso empty and near hollowed, and his left face entirely gone.
Marc was aghast, but activated the Restorer Program on the Digimon. Yet, the longer he did so, the more he noticed Dorulumon was not getting any better…
… bits of his body were starting to fade away.
"Damn it, what's wrong with you!?" Marc vented on his Digivice. "I've seen you work on gods, why can't you heal him!?"
"You are," A dry chuckle escaped Dorulumon as he opened his remaining eye. "They… got to my core. I'd be fully dead… if not for you, Marc. But seems like I'm going to have to go back to the cycle… this will give me a chance to talk to Wizardmon again…" Dorulumon mused aloud, as if being mortally injured was akin to an inconvenience.
"No, no, no!" Marc stopped his Digivice as he knelt to the disappearing Digimon. "This is all my fault. I should have never said any of that!"
"You weren't wrong," Dorulumon gasped as his body started to become more see-through. "I did fail to protect those I cared for… until now."
"You wouldn't need to protect me if I didn't make such a blunder! Why are you so happy!? I ruined your life!"
"No," Dorulumon formed a smile even with half his face gone. "We all make mistakes, Marc. But I saw you able to overcome your grief and make things right. That's better than I ever could… this isn't your fault… remember… that…" His voice became slower as his eyelid lowered and lowered to a close.
The founder of Xros Heart's body shattered, revealing an egg that slowly vanished into thin air.
Marc, seeing one he respected vanish into thin air, only yelled in a piercing shrill as he hammered the ground with his arms.
As the sun shined down on the West Team, only a pyrrhic victory greeted them.
[Further West]
How unfortunate that with Bibi clearing the storms, it caught the attention of the personification of Thunder.
He…lp.. Me… no… stop! Don't… sense… another… Chosen!
Despite the context of the voice, Ancient Beetlemon began its inevitable march to where it last sensed its storms interrupted.
The West Team had revealed themselves to the Titan of Thunder.
[Author Notes]
So, here's the newest Chapter of Failsafe! Whooo! First of the new year!
Good news: we finally meet Takeya proper and get a new Ultimate with Marc(y)! Bad news: The rest of the chapter. Hot damn.
Fun fact: Most of Marc and the West Team's portion was actually changed. I was actually thinking of a different set of enemies/Digimon to cause his growth but then, like the Grinch on Christmas, I had an idea. (A terrible, no-good, very bad idea.) This was the result.
Anyway, I surprised myself at how "fast" I was able to make this chapter. Using Speech-to-text opened my writing in ways I didn't know before.
And a little late, but Happy New Year everybody! Hopefully, this story is gonna go strong!
[Alternate Scene: What goes around comes around.]
Takeya punched Arshan in the face, but after he did so, everyone heard the distinct sound of…
"HEY!" Everyone turned to see Kyoko rolling her sleeves, looking extremely irate and marching towards the duke. "Treat the way you want to be treated, punk!" Without the same warning, Kyoko smashed a fist into Takeya's jaw, knocking him to the ground, which no one expected from the young lady that stood by and watched.
Cas, Nene, and everyone stared at the action.
"That's hot."
Before they all turned to Arshan, while holding his chin, as the teen realized he said that out loud. "Can someone kill me now?"
How unfortunate (maybe) for him, The Water Titan appeared.
Coro (who is there somehow): why does she have ginormous bo–*gets oceaned*
[Le Fin]