Hello everyone and welcome back to Digital Story!
So, before we begin, some sad news: Novice is dropping the Reading.
It's sad, but it is what it is.
So, now I'm extending the offer to anybody else who'd be interested.
If you want to do the Reading, let me know in a PM and we'll talk about it.
But for now, here's the next chapter!
Frostbite Savior! Flight of the Valkyrimon!
"How is she?" Gyro asked as they stood near a bed inside the RV, in a room where medical equipment had been set up, and hooked up to a monitor was Norn, asleep in the bed.
"Could be better, but could be worse too I suppose." Weiss said with a frown.
"She just collapsed all of a sudden while screaming in pain. We still don't know why though." Oren added.
"Do we have any idea what caused this?" Emerald asked, very much worried for her friend.
"That's the strangest part. From what we've gathered, she ended up like this immediately after BlackWarGreymon X destroyed the Holy Stone," Oren frowned. "The obvious conclusion is that they must be connected somehow."
"I think I have the answer to why." Gennai said as he suddenly came into the room.
"Gennai? When did you get here?" Tentomon asked curiously.
"Just now." he answered "Anyway, for a while now, there's something about Norn that has been bothering me, and I couldn't quite put my finger on it, so I just looked into it quietly without letting you know, so you wouldn't be worried."
"What did you find out then?" Emerald asked, figuring he'd likely figured it out if he was telling them.
"Norn is similar to me." he said "She's made up of data. She was born in the Digital World."
The group blinked at that, taking a moment to process what he just said. "Okay…that…definitely wasn't expecting that…" Pierce said.
"But…it DOES make sense now that I think about it…" Emerald frowned, remembering when she and Morphomon first met Norn. "So she's like you…but if that's the case, why are you okay while she's like this?"
"Because unlike me, Norn is a LOT more linked to the Digital World. Her Origin Code, the foundation that becomes the basis for beings like us, is that of a backup server…specifically one of Lord Yggdrasil's," Gennai said.
The silence that followed was one that you could hear a pin drop.
"I'm sorry, did you just say that Norn is…some kind of backup to Yggdrasil?" Palmon asked incredulously.
"That was her original function, yes, but it seems she developed to the point of becoming an individual. It would be more accurate to say she's Lord Yggdrasil's daughter now," Gennai sighed. "But as a result, the distortions are negatively affecting her. Lord Yggdrasil can handle them for now, but she isn't handling them as well due to her nature."
"Is there anything we can do for her to try and shield her somehow?" Rusty asked with a frown, still carrying Bugmon under his arm as it had only been an hour since they returned at this point.
Gennai frowned as he thought about it, before nodding "I'll take care of that. I should be able to set up some kind of firewall around her to shield her from the worst of it." he said, before looking to the Chosen "You all just keep focusing on stopping BlackWarGreymon X before he can destroy any more of the stones. Just make sure to be careful. If all the stones are destroyed, it might cause a lot of harm to the Digital World, and in turn, to Norn as well."
"Then that's even more reason for us to stop him," Gyro nodded, everyone gaining a look of determination at that.
"So far things seem to be working out. Sure BlackWarGreymon X isn't exactly listening to us, but at least it looks like he's still gonna go after the Holy Stones," Mummymon mused.
"Maybe, but he's still too much of a loose cannon for us to be depending on him," Nero said, not looking away from what he was working on.
"And that's going to be our new trump card?" Arukenimon asked a little skeptically.
"No, but it'll hopefully be the stepping stone," Nero smirked, before he stopped and put down the tools he was using. "Even if this world refuses to acknowledge me, there's no denying I have taken for myself that same power that it bestows on its defenders," he said before picking up the object, revealing to be a pulsing blue orb standing on top of a stand made of white tendrils that gripped it tightly, some vein-like objects seemingly snaking out of the orb. "Thus, whatever they can do, I can as well."
"So… what are you gonna call it?" Gazimon asked his partner curiously.
"I decided to keep it simple. The Digimental of Darkness." Nero answered with a chuckle, before he grinned, looking at his partner "Want to give it a test drive?"
"You even have to ask?" Gazimon smirked back.
Nero grinned, before holding up his own Digimental with a dark look "Digimental Up!" he roared as the Digimental gained a dark glow, before dark energy bubbled out of it like goo and soon flew towards Gazimon as he was cocooned in the energy, the Digimental too being covered in the goo-like energy as it flew towards him.
"Gazimon, Armor Evolution!" his partner's voice came through the cocoon, sounding warped as flashes of dark light shone through it, showing his body stretching and growing, power building, before the cocoon soon burst, revealing his new form.
"Trostlomon!" the new evolution announced itself, looking as if Gazimon's body had grown to the size of a larger beast, white tendrils from the Digimental covering several parts of his body, including the upper half of his face, his torso, his arms and his legs, hardened to look like armor, but still looking rather alive as they twitched slightly, the orb now in the center of his chest and pulsing, looking like something was writhing within, as wings made of white tendrils rested on his back.
Digimon Analyzer: Trostlomon
Trostlomon. Virus Type. An Armor level Mutant Digimon. My Partner when using the Digimental of Darkness to Evolve. Perhaps not my finest creation, but it gives him a substantial boost, and will serve us well as a stepping stone for greater heights. The unique form of dark energy created as a byproduct of this Prototype functions as both offense and defense. His special attacks are Dark Breakdown, which launches his energy at an opponent, dealing damage while also corroding objects and the surrounding area; as well as Shadows Rush, using the energy as a shield before ramming into his opponents.
Trostlomon let out a roar which created a small shockwave, causing papers to fly from the force…and a mug to nearly crash into the ground if not for Arukenimon quickly using one of her webs to catch it. "Boys, I understand you're excited with your new toy, but please take it outside," she snorted in amusement.
Trostlomon laughed "I do believe we are, aren't we boss?" he asked Nero with a grin.
"Indeed we are my friend. Let's see how they deal with the new you." Nero said, matching his grin as he climbed up onto his partner's back, the two eager for some mayhem.
A bustling city was going through its day to day activities as the people milled about. As such, nobody really noticed or paid attention to the person who was walking along the streets, dressed in a hat and trenchcoat, save the occasional odd looks that ultimately ended in shrugs. This was well and good for the individual as he did not feel like dealing with this anyway.
Lionheart frowned as he continued walking through the streets. He didn't pay any mind to the people, as he was here for a reason, and he wouldn't be distracted. "Just to reconfirm, it's here, right?"
"It should be. Of course, fortunately with all the chaos happening nobody is aware that we are here. So we can search at a thorough pace," the voice in his head said.
"Well, I suppose we should start in the obvious places it might be first then," Lionheart sighed as he then started looking for a map of the area. It seemed he was going to be here for a while.
Qrow hummed a bit as he walked behind Penny and Monodramon, biting into a meat apple he'd found earlier "Been here for a while already… but honestly, it just impresses me more that the girls and the other kids managed to survive on their own for months in this world."
"I think that means they could qualify as survival experts, correct?" Monodramon wondered.
"By the strictest definition of the terms, I do believe so yes." Penny said with a nod as she thought about it.
Qrow chuckled a bit at that, taking another bite, before he paused, his eyes narrowing "I see him, over on that cliff." he said, nodding at a direction to their right, causing Penny and her partner to turn, seeing BlackWarGreymon X overlooking the horizon at the tip of a cliff nearby.
"Well… hopefully he listens to us this time." Monodramon said, before the three of them headed to where Black stood.
Black frowned as he looked over the horizon, searching for the next Holy Stone. Although he'd convinced himself that this would lead him to what he sought, there was that nagging feeling at the back of his mind. He was apparently more distracted than he thought he was because…
"Hey, you look like you've got a lot on your mind," Qrow said, causing him to turn to look at them.
"Oh, its you three again," Black said, probably a bit more gruff than he intended.
"Well that's a real nice way to greet us," Monodramon huffed.
"Oh leave it be, Monodramon," Penny chuckled a bit.
"What do you three want?" Black said.
"To talk to you. You need a friend or two." Penny said simply as she smiled at him.
"What makes you say that?" Black couldn't help but ask incredulously.
"Because some of us know what it's like to push other people away and just force ourselves to be alone." Qrow said "I've done that for years because of my semblance."
"Semblance?" Black repeated the word curiously.
"A special power unique to everyone who has an active aura on Remnant… and mine is the worst." Qrow snorted "I'm constantly emitting bad luck everywhere around me."
"Basically supposedly when you're around him, stuff tends to go wrong…which we can confirm," Monodramon said, idly rubbing his head. He supposed he should be glad so far it was just tree branches and random stuff falling on them the last couple of days.
"I see…" Black mused. "I…imagine that would be something that would isolate you one way or another."
"Pretty much," Qrow shrugged.
"But that doesn't mean we'll stay away," Penny added. "Everyone needs a friend."
"I'm not everyone," Black said.
"Funny, pretty sure I said something like that a long time ago," Qrow snorted. "Point is, we get it. You're dealing with stuff…and you're probably going about it in a questionable way."
"Trying to make me stop what I'm doing?" Black glared a bit.
"We couldn't MAKE you do anything. Literally," Monodramon deadpanned.
"We're just giving you advice on what we'd suggest you could do instead." Penny added with an almost innocent look.
"Thanks, but I'm fine," Black said, and before they could say more, he leaped away, quickly disappearing from view.
"Well…that didn't go so well," Qrow sighed.
"Could have been worse. At least he just walked away," Monodramon sighed.
"I just hope he can see reason sooner than later…" Penny sighed. "Before the others have to resort to more…permanent measures…"
Back on Remnant…
"So all we can do is leave it to Gennai for now." Ruby said with a sigh as they'd left their mentor alone with Norn to work on making a firewall that would protect her.
"He should be able to help her and keep her safe." Palmon told her, patting her partner on the back.
"The bigger issue here is the source of the problem," Bemmon sighed. "Unless we stop BlackWarGreymon X, we're gonna have bigger problems on our hands."
"And its like every time we almost convince him, something else shows up to make him want to destroy the stones again," Jaune sighed.
"At this point…" Gyro started, before sighing "I think we might have to consider permanent solutions." he said with a frown.
"You sure?" Agumon asked him in worry.
"Not really… but so far it's been impossible to stop him." Gyro said, looking conflicted "I really don't want us to have to do it, but…"
"But between him and the Digital World, the Digital World comes first." Pyrrha finished for him with a grimace.
"It's really not an easy choice, huh?" Gabumon said with a frown.
"Clearly not. But unless we manage to talk him down then we'll have to do it." Biyomon added.
"If not us, hopefully Penny and the others are having better luck," Ruby sighed, remembering how insistent Penny was quite insistent on trying to get through to Black. Seeing Black as something of a kindred spirit really seemed to light a fire under the android girl.
"We'd all prefer that. But yeah, we…have to be ready in case we don't have a choice," Oren sighed.
Right as he said that, the alarm went off. "That's our cue. Let's go," Gyro said, though lacking the usual energy they'd have this time around.
The Holy Stone pulsed softly from its resting place in the middle of a canyon. Up above a battle raged as BlackWarGreymon X charged forward, only to be met with a barrier of light that repelled him briefly. "I was aware that you were hunting the stones, and it seems you intend to destroy mine next. Unfortunately for you, I am QUITE equipped to handle beings like you," his opponent said, revealing to be a large white avian Digimon with six wings that glowed with a brilliant light, a true Valdurmon.
Digimon Analyzer: Valdurmon
Valdurmon. Vaccine Type. An Ultimate Level Holy Bird Digimon. Said to live up in the stratosphere, this Digimon is the guardian of the sky, said to have existed since the dawn of the Digital World. Its light can spread far across the whole Digital World, bringing a sense of peace to all those who see it. Special attacks are Purge Shine, cladding its body in a special barrier that completely nullifies attacks with evil will towards it, and Aurora Undulation, unleashing its purifying light at full power, enough to pulverize even a star.
At that declaration, Valdurmon's body glowed brightly. Seeing that, Black moved to stop whatever Valdurmon was about to do…only to be stopped when a barrier appeared, knocking him back. "Purge Shine," Valdurmon declared simply. "You won't be getting near the Stone as long as I'm here!"
Black managed to quickly right himself before glaring at Valdurmon and creating a Hades Force, which he hurled at the Digimon. However, Valdurmon simply focused his energy and… "Aurora Undulation!" he declared as the powerful blast of light was fired, impacting the Hades Force and after a brief struggle, overwhelmed it, forcing Black to evade.
However, Black didn't give up. Snarling, he pulled into a Dark Tornado, and went straight for Valdurmon.
"You don't learn do you?" Valdurmon frowned. "Very well then, Aurora Undulation!" he called out as the powerful blast was fired and hit Black dead on.
Black grunted as he fought against the attack, the blast starting to push him back, before he pushed harder, and to Valdurmon's surprise, actually started to push back against the attack. So surprised he was that he couldn't evade the attack that despite the greatly weakened momentum, managed to land a hit. He grunted in pain as he was knocked back from the attack, but rather than having to stop of his own effort, his momentum was cut short when he felt something catch him.
"Guess even you're having trouble with this one," came a familiar voice as Valdurmon realized it was TyrantKabuterimon.
"Indeed old friend." Valdurmon said with a sigh, before smiling slightly "But it's nice to know I have you backing me up."
TyrantKabuterimon chuckled a bit "Well, you'll like this then. I sent a message along to the new Chosen kids, they should be here soon to back us up."
"I look forward to meeting them then." Valdurmon said with a grin. "But till then, we have a Stone to protect."
"Indeed. I fully intend to pay back this one for last time," TyrantKabuterimon agreed as the two soon faced off against Black.
"Two of you won't make a difference," Black growled before, creating another Hades Force and hurling it at them.
"That didn't work last time. It won't work again! Aurora Undulation!" Valdurmon growled as he fired his attack once again, meeting the Hades Force head on, and unlike with the Dark Tornado, the Hades Force didn't have a way of maintaining its momentum and was soon pierced through by the Aurora Undulation, forcing Black to hastily get out of the way. However, when he did, TyrantKabuterimon capitalized on the brief opening and fired his Insect Cannon, the insects quickly homing in on Black and hitting him in the armor, causing Black to growl as he was pushed back from the force.
However, Black wasn't about to falter so easily, and with a growl, surged forward, closing the distance quickly as he lashed out with a kick, only to be blocked by one of Valdurmon's wings, leaving him open to TyrantKabuterimon lashing out with his tail, knocking Black away. "You're getting predictable. It was hard the first time perhaps, but our team has honed our skills over the years. We wouldn't allow an enemy to get the better of us more than once."
"Then I'll simply have to do better!" Black snarled, before focusing his energy and creating another Hades Force, but this one was much larger than any he'd ever made before, and it was clear he was ready to hurl it soon too.
But before he could, a beam of energy suddenly cut through the center, causing him to let go of it and fly away from it as it blew up, causing him to growl "Who's there?!"
"The cavalry, that's who!" Ragnamon suddenly declared as he and several other of the Chosen's partners flew in to attack.
"You all again?" Black snarled as he quickly evaded several attacks.
"Yep, us again. Look, we get you're having a bit of an existential crisis, but seeing as your attempt to solve it kind of risks destroying everything, we gotta put a stop to that. Nothing personal of course," MetalGarurumon said, firing a Cocytus Breath.
Black just glared at them before hurling several smaller Hades Forces which were blocked by Valdurmon's Purge Shine.
"This would be a LOT easier if you'd just stop and listen already!" Ragnamon growled. "Literally everyone is trying to tell you to stop it and you're still going!"
"I don't care!" Black roared "If you're just gonna lecture me again, I LITERALLY don't care! This is the only way for me to find my purpose, and if it destroys the Digital World at the same time, then so be it!"
"Even if you damn thousands of innocent Digimon along with you?!" Phoenixmon asked him in anger.
"Even then!" Black said with a narrowed gaze.
Down below, the Chosen were watching the fight, half of them having held off on evolving their partners just yet.
And as they listened to Black's words, they felt a mix of anger and pity towards him, that this was the path he was choosing for himself.
"Dammit…at this rate it looks like we're gonna have to apologize to Penny later," Gyro pinched the bridge of his nose.
"He…really has no intention of stopping does he?" Pyrrha frowned as well.
Aile clenched her fist next to her, shaking "... Cruel." she said, before looking up, glaring at Black with tears in her eyes "How can you say something so cruel?!" she shouted up at him.
Black paused, seemingly surprised at the sudden outburst, but he didn't stay that way for long. "What do I care what happens to this world? I never asked to be brought into existence, and now you still stop me from trying to find a purpose?" he growled, even as he was once again fighting, the others clearly not taking his words lightly.
"Because all you'll do is hurt others! If you were really strong you'd use that strength to help everyone! That should be the best purpose you could ask for! But right now… right now you're just acting like an ignorant bully, destroying everything around you and hurting those weaker than you!" she shouted up at him as, unknown to her, her crest started to shine brighter in her clothes.
Black glared. "Then prove to me just what this strength is!" he said, right as he kicked an attack coming his way.
"Fine, if you that's how you want, then we'll show it to you! You don't get to do whatever you want without repercussions!" Aile said, as her Crest shined brightly, before it floated out of her clothes, the Tag no longer able to hold the energy anymore shattered. The moment it did, the Crest flew into Aile, her body glowing with the same color as a powerful pillar of energy was released from her, briefly grinding the battle to a halt. The energy soon gathered into Aile's right hand, and without hesitation, she grabbed her Digivice, the light entering it as it transformed into a Digivice Crest with a sky blue grip.
Looking down at it for a moment, she smiled, before turning to her partner "Hawkmon!"
"I'm on it!" he declared as he flew up ahead of her right as she aimed her Digivice at him, the light bursting out of it.
(Play Brave Heart)
"Hawkmon, Warp Evolution!" he called out as he did a backflip, before a beam of light shot out of him, revealing Aquilamon from it, who turned and released another beam that soon revealed Silphymon, turning again to release one last beam, revealing a brand new figure. He was a humanoid figure, wearing what appeared to be a white bodysuit that covered his whole body save their face. On his head was a bird-shaped headgear with a black visor over his eyes, while on his waist was a belt and sash. Light formed on him as a golden armguard appeared on their left arm, while bits of armor appeared on his legs as well. From his back sprouted a wing-like cape as well as a crossbow strapped to his back, followed by a sword and a quiver full of arrows forming at his waist and hung off his belt. He grabbed the sword, doing a few practice swings before sheathing it once again and raising his right arm as a golden bird flew down and perched on his arm before he brought his arm back down to chest level. "Valkyrimon!" he declared.
Digimon Analyzer: Valkyrimon
Valkyrimon. Vaccine Type. An Ultimate Level Warrior Digimon. The golden bird Freyja follows him around wherever he goes as his faithful companion, acting as his scout and warning him of any approaching dangers. He goes from one battlefield to the next, an aurora shining from his armor which reformats the scattered data of passed Digimon into brand new eggs. Special attacks are Fenrir Sword, drawing his cursed blade and slashing at the opponent, causing them to freeze over, and Aurvandil's Arrow, firing a bolt from his crossbow that never misses his target.
Valkyrimon stood proudly in the air for a moment, drawing his sword as Freyja flew next to him "BlackWarGreymon X… I will show you! Mine and my partner's strength comes from our desire to protect all!" he declared, before suddenly rushing forward.
"Prove it if you can!" Black snarled as he charged forward to meet the attack. However, right as he was about to strike, Valkyrimon moved. He seemingly blurred out of the way, before he appeared behind Black, his crossbow already drawn and loaded.
"Aurvandil's Arrow!" Valkyrimon declared as he opened fire, Black just barely able to bring up his shield to block the attack, though the force pushed him back a bit. However, he was quite focused on immediate attack, that he was left completely unprepared for the Aurora Undulation that hit him from behind.
"Normally I'd respect the idea of a one on one, but I can't have you destroying anymore of the Holy Stones," Valdurmon said.
"All of us are fighting to protect the Digital World too, so Valkyrimon isn't the only one you're facing!" Ragnamon added. "Gimlet Gun!"
Black growled as he was forced to evade the attack, but once again, the opening that made was being taken advantage of. He immediately reacted when he felt something come at him, but rather than one of the other Digimon, what had come after him was Freyja. Either way, Black lashed out at the bird who easily dodged his attack, revealing it had been a feint. One that was leading to…
"Fenrir Sword!" Valkyrimon called out as he struck with his sword. Black managed to raise one of his Dramon Killers and blocked the attack. Valkyrimon grunted as he tried to press the advantage, but was forced to back off when Black tried to strike at him with his other Dramon Killer.
"If that's all you have, then I'm not impressed," Black frowned.
"You sure about that?" Valkyrimon smirked a bit, right as Black gasped, and from where he'd been struck, ice was forming on his armor. "You'll find my Fenrir Sword is a little different from what we've used on you so far!" he added as he charged forward and struck again.
Black did his best to evade and defend, but with each hit, more and and more ice started forming from the points of impact, making his movements increasingly sluggish, before Valkyrimon saw an opening and capitalized on it with a powerful kick to the head, sending Black flying away as he crashed on the ground, Valkyrimon landing on the ground not long after as well, standing between Black and the Holy Stone while the others also joined in on the defensive formation.
Black groaned and struggled as he staggered to his feet, his armor now practically covered in a layer of ice while his limbs felt heavy.
"Give it up BlackWarGreymon X, its over," Valkyrimon said, even if he had his sword at the ready just in case.
(Theme End)
Black looked like he still wanted to fight, yet after a few steps he ultimately collapsed to his knees. "How…how am I losing?" he groaned. He still remembered, at one point he had been able to defeat them, yet now the tables had turned. "What is it…that pushes you all forward…?" he gasped.
"Our desire to protect those weaker than us, to help them and heal them. That is the reason the strong like us exist, to protect and guide the weak." Valkyrimon spoke, his sword still aimed at Black. "And when a threat stronger than us appears to fight us? Then we'll just become stronger and stronger until we stop it. That's where our strength comes from, the will to protect others."
"To protect…?" Black said, and for the first time he seemed to be thinking about it.
"By all rights we ought to stop him now lest he continue to be a threat," TyrantKabuterimon frowned.
Valdurmon considered it before turning to the Chosen. "Its your call. You are the guardians of the Digital World now. We will defer to your decision."
The Chosen looked to each other at that, before Gyro put a hand on Aile's shoulder, drawing her attention "Your call."
She nodded, looking down for a moment, before walking up next to her partner, looking at Black as he seemed to be deep in thought, before she nodded at her partner, who returned it and sheathed his sword as she turned back to Black, the ice on him fading away "Go. And think long and hard about everything."
"We're letting you off the hook…THIS time. Next time we catch you going after another Holy Stone, we might not be so forgiving," Gyro frowned.
"Why give me this chance? You've said it yourselves. It would be better to end me right now," Black said, eyes narrowing.
"Because someone still believes that you can be more than you think you are," Ruby spoke up. "Next time Penny tries to talk…listen to her okay?" she sighed.
Black didn't say anything, but ultimately chose to walk away. It seemed that once again he was no closer to finding his answer…if anything he felt like he had even more questions now.
Ta-da!
Yeahp, for once, a stone survived the fight.
And of course, the debut of Valkyrimon... and of Trostlomon, Nero's own Armored up partner.
His name is german in origin, specifically, coming from the first half of Trostlosigkeit, which means desolation, hopelessness, misery, bleakness, all that kinda stuff.
Felt it was a fitting name for a Digimon of such dark origins.
Also, yes, the Digimental of Darkness as it appeared in the old TCG, figured it was only right we give it a chance to shine as well.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed, and that some of you are interested in making a Reading, because...
The Adventure Evolves