"Anyone else at a loss here or is it just me?"
Ivan looked around the small digital space where Trevor and the rest of the AEGIS crew-minus Jesse-sat, the latter deep in thought with the information gathered. Ivan put his hand down, realizing he wasn't gonna get a response from the studious group.
At the center of the table was a wide screen, depicting a board pinned with information stringed about. "Black Imperialdramon, Omnian War, Drasil, Bagramon, Representative and now Vermillion Pharmaceuticals, were all interconnected in various ways, with space to add newer details over time."
"Let's start with the representatives themselves," Ciel suggested, opting to break the silence and take the lead. She tapped on the icon, which opened and divided into 4 subsections, each covering one of the four main representatives. "Azurena of the East was attacked first by the mysterious assailant, possibly due to her connection to Drasil, Sovereign of the Zenith…"
"And speaking of Drasil, this individual has some knowledge of ancient Omnian History, which is why Bagramon is suspected to know something." Trevor responded.
"Bagramon claims to not have a hand in this, but has also admitted a third party factor." Garretson replied. "What this particular factor is, we're not sure as of yet."
"We can assume then that the assailant has a direct connection, either being that third party, or someone sent by them."
"Could they be a Saibatar?" Blanc suggested.
"Possible, but less likely." Trevor answered. "All of that tech is in AEGIS custody, so unless someone has the means to manage that outside of their purview, then there's no reason why this individual's appearance suddenly has taken us all by surprise. Besides, if they were a Saibatar under AEGIS's control, then why go through such trouble when they could've went after Drasil directly?"
"So you're suggesting the target isn't Drasil?"
Trevor leaned forward and tapped the screen where Vermillion Pharmaceutical was labeled. "Check this out."
The group leaned in as the folder opened, revealing news articles of an upcoming drug in production.
"Aripiprazole? Olanzapine? Risperidone?" Blanc read out loud with a sense of uneasiness. "Did I say those right?"
"Look further down." Trevor instructed. The group scrolled further, and that's when they caught the outlier.
"Neuralink technology…" Ciel pondered. "Vermillion Pharmaceutical developed the technology for this?"
"Meaning what?" Ivan asked. "Neuralink tech has been a thing for decades now."
"Do you remember the young girl at AEGIS with the severe dissociative identity disorder a while back?" Garretson asked.
"That girl, Rae, right?" Ivan asked, earning several nods. "Is she and the Reps connected somehow?"
"Lord Vernon of the north was her doctor while Lady Azurena, her caretaker. I'm gonna go on a limb and assume whatever medicine she took was developed by Vermillion and STREAM Corp." Trevor said. "I tested my hypothesis by confronting Kaden Grant initially, on the basis that the user knew Azurena's IRL identity as well as them possessing an Imperialdramon. However, Gabumon here confirmed its not him."
"You sound unsure still." Garretson crossed his arms.
"That's because he hates being wrong," Gabumon materialized besides him.
"No one asked you." Trevor groaned and rolled his eyes. "I know what I saw that night…"
"Assuming you're right, what would be the motive?" Ciel asked. "From our understanding, Kaden and Lady Azurena have a close relationship, not to mention that he retired from Digimon after the Omnian War. And based on your observations of him recently, he seemed very much in the dark."
"I know," Trevor sighed. "Even his alibi checked out. Ugh we're missing something here, but what is it?"
At that moment they all got chimes on their devices. Ivan looked and his eyes widened. "Looks like we don't have too wait long for an answer. Explosion in midtown results in massive car pileup!"
Garretson shot up from his seat. "Alright people let's move it! Ciel, Blanc, aid in evac of civilians. Trevor, meet up with Jesse to continue to investigate. Ivan provide sitrep."
They all saluted.
Afterward they one by one teleported out of the digital space, leaving Ivan remaining as he got to work.
Meanwhile off in the distance of ground zero, a tall man wearing a black trench cloak and sunglasses watched on, a blinking D-Com on his ear.
"Are you in position, Karas?" Mayor Negri's voice came through.
"Yes sir. Awaiting further instructions." The one known as Karas responded.
"Excellent. Watch for now. Confirm their objective. When the time is right, make your move."
"Understood." The man acknowledged, hanging up. Afterward he then jumped off the side of the building, freefalling until he vanished in a cloud of purple binary.
Chapter 8: Clash of Dragons
Turn 1: Assailant
"I'll start by hatching Gigimon, and then digivolving it into Guilmon." The assailant stated, summoning the feral red dragon digimon, hissing with dilated pupils.
Gigimon (BT5-005)
Color: Purple
Level: 2
Guilmon (BT5-071)
Color: Purple
Level: 3
DP: 2000
"I'll end by playing Wormmon from my hand. Wormmon's effect reveals the top 3 cards of my deck. I can add one card with Imperialdramon in its name or a red or purple card with 'free' in its traits to my hand. I also trash another card with the same requirements, and the remaining cards returns to the bottom of my deck."
Wormmon materialized, the timid green worm digimon crawling along the pavement as three cards materialized overhead.
Wormmon (EX3-055)
Color: Purple
Level: 3
DP: 1000
MEMORY
0-3
The cards flipped one by one revealing: Shadramon, Flamedramon and EX3 Guilmon. The Assailant took Shadramon, sent Flamedramon to the trash and sent Guilmon to the bottom of the deck.
(Turn Change)
Turn 2: Cyrus
Cyrus drew. "I hatch DemiMeramon and then digivolve it into Jazamon."
A sentient fireball materialized briefly before transforming into a mechanical bird-like digimon with gleaming red eyes and glowing sky blue energy talons.
DemiMeramon (BT10-001)
Color: Red
Level: 2
Jazamon (EX3-047)
Color: Black
Level: 3
DP: 1000
"Next, I play Vorvomon from my hand."
Vorvomon was a rock-based mini dragon, the same size as the Jazamon in the Raising Area. It let out a little roar as it hovered off the pavement.
Vorvomon (EX3-005)
Color: Red
Level: 3
DP: 1000
MEMORY
3-0
"And to end, I play the tamer Hina Kurihara." Cyrus finished, summoning a tamer resembling a young woman dressed in blue and white. Her dress had a pixelated design throughout, and overall she looked like a mascot, as compared to most Tamers who were dressed in more casual outfits.
Hina Kurihara (EX3-065)
Color: White
MEMORY
0-3
"Vorvomon's effect triggers," Cyrus stated. "When Hina enters play, one of your Digimon with 3000 DP or less is deleted. I choose your Wormmon!"
Vorvomon's jowls ignited and with a quick belch of flames, Wormmon was incinerated effortlessly.
(Turn Change)
Turn 3: Assailant
"Not bad," the Assailant smirked as they drew. "You're aiming to one up the Eastern Representative huh?"
"My only priority is wiping you out so nothing remains." Cyrus stated matter of factly.
"Oh. Well, I can say at least the feeling is mutual! Guilmon move out!"
Guilmon obediently stepped forward as the Assailant revealed his next card. "Next, Guilmon will digivolve into Growlmon!"
The feral Guilmon embraced the streams of red and purple binary code, digivolving into its more mature, ferocious counterpart.
Growlmon (EX3-057)
Color: Purple/Red
Level: 4
DP: 5000
MEMORY
3-1
"When digivolving into Growlmon, my digimon is allowed to delete one of your Digimon with 3000 DP or less, otherwise, the top 2 cards of both our decks is trashed. Since Vorvomon is present in your battle area, Growlmon, take it out!"
Growlmon roared and charged towards the rock dragon digimon. As it tried to evade Growlmon's lunge, the bigger dragon chomped down on its rock-like wing and swung it over its head and onto the pavement, shattering it into binary.
"And while your standing there Growlmon, Security Attack!"
Growlmon hissed at Cyrus raising its claw to strike him. Standing unimpressed, a Security card blocked the strike before him, taking the impact from Growlmon in full.
Cyrus
Security: 5-4
The card unveiled itself as an Option card, to which Cyrus took. "Security Trigger: Heir of Dragons. I draw 2 cards from its effect."
"I'll wrap my turn up with Veemon, who'll let me discard DinoBeemon here in order to draw 2 cards."
As Growlmon returned to its station, Veemon materialized, just as eager to battle as well.
Veemon (EX3-004)
Color: Red
Level: 3
DP: 1000
MEMORY
1-2 (Turn Change)
The assailant took the two cards and grinned, pleased at what was pulled. "Your move. Don't disappoint me."
Cyrus scoffed, "Says the copycat."
Turn 4: Cyrus
"Activating Hina's effect, so long as you have a digimon present I gain a Memory."
MEMORY
2-3
Cyrus drew for turn and moved Jazamon into the Battle Area. "Jazamon digivolves into Greymon and then into Lavogaritamon!"
The mechanical bird dragon embraced a mix of red and black binary code and glowed, reforming from the silhouette of Greymon and then into a wyvern-like shape. Lavogaritamon was a rock-like wyvern digimon with flaming talons and a grim expression on its face, not do different that how Cyrus usually carries himself.
Greymon (BT8-064)
Color: Black
Level: 4
DP: 6000
Lavogaritamon (EX3-011)
Color: Red
Level: 5
DP: 7000
MEMORY
3-1
1-2
When my digimon digivolves into a digimon with the Rock Dragon, Earth Dragon, Machine Dragon or Sky Dragon trait, Hina suspends to activate any On Play effect it possesses!"
This took the assailant aback, this detail changing an otherwise straightforward dynamic.
"Lavogaritamon's On Play effect deletes one of your digimon with 5000 DP or less. I choose Growlmon!"
Lavogaritamon huffed and fired off a blast of molten rock that caught the surprised Growlmon off guard. A reactionary fireball only intensified the assault as Growlmon roared away and fizzled from existence.
"Okay, didn't see that coming…" The assailant reeled a bit.
"I'm not done. Afterward, Lavogaritamon allows me to play a second Hina from my hand." Cyrus said, summoning the second Hina tamer. "DemiMeramon's effect boosts Lavogaritamon by 1000 for having a non-red card in its sources, whereas Jazamon boosts by an additional 1000 during my turn."
Lavogaritamon: 7000-8000 DP
"Now it's your move." Cyrus stated, giving the assailant a chance to respond.
Turn 5: Assailant
"How kind of you…" they drew and hatched. "Gigimon digivolves into Wormmon, and then I play another Veemon, to discard Paildramon and draw 2 cards."
The digimon reappeared in their respective zones, with Paildramon being discarded in favor of the top 2 cards of their deck.
MEMORY
2-1 (Turn Change)
Cyrus scowled at his opponent. "Don't tell me that you're rattled by that one move…"
The assailant scoffed, "I'd choose your next words carefully, lest you wanna end up like the Eastern Representative sooner."
"Pathetic." Cyrus rolled his eyes.
"Excuse me?"
"You're not excused." Cyrus drew.
Turn 6: Cyrus
"To start, the effects of Both Hinas trigger, granting me two Memory."
MEMORY
1-3
"Lavogaritamon digivolves into the molten king of the volcanic wastelands! Digivolve now into Volcanicdramon!"
Lavogaritamon took off into the sky as red binary infused into its being, causing it to glow like lava. The wyvern transformed into a full-fledged dragon, illuminating the burning surroundings in bright fiery light above. Flames licked the windows of surrounding skyscrapers, some melting upon impact, while the loud roar of the emerging dragon caught the attention of everyone who was in eyeshot of the blazing spectacle.
Volcanicdramon (EX3-012)
Color: Red
Level:6
DP: 12,000
MEMORY
3-1
"One of my Hina's suspend to trigger Volcanicdramon's On Play effect! All of your Digimon with the lowest DP are deleted!"
"What?!" The assailant exclaimed.
"Don't act surprised," Cyrus cast his hand out. "Blame yourself for leaving out Volcanicdramon's meal for it."
Volcanicdramon set it sights on the pair of Veemon and concentrated a stream of lava down on the pair, who melted away into binary without any say in the matter.
"Lavogaritamon's IE effect: when one of your Digimon is deleted, I gain a memory."
MEMORY
1-0
"And since its still my turn, Volcanicdramon, Security Attack! It's effect trashes the top card of your security as I have a tamer within my Battle Area!"
"No!" The Assailant protested, however the wave of lava continued on, rushing them. The wave kicked up into the air, as one of their Security was burned, while a second one broke apart upon impact. Flamedramon emerged, but was too swallowed by Volcanicdramon's wave of fire.
Assailant
Security: 5-3
Along with Flamedramon went a Terra Force, a would-be answer for Cyrus' dragon. The Assailant was struck with surprise and growing frustration. The Eastern Representative didn't put up as nearly a fight in comparison. What was happening here?
Cyrus crossed his arms, his displeasure with the turn of events getting to him. "I refuse to believe that Sierra lost to the likes of you. I end my turn by playing Jazardmon, who'll reveal the top 4 cards of my deck, allowing me to add one Rock, Earth, Bird, Machine or Sky Dragon and one Hina Kurihara to my hand, while the rest go to the bottom of my deck."
A mature variant of the aforementioned Jazamon materialized, taking on a more jet-like appearance with its wings and thruster-like talons. It was clearly leaning more into the mechanical traits of its anatomy with its digivolution.
Jazardmon (EX3-048)
Color: Black
Level: 4
DP: 4000
MEMORY
0-4 (Turn Change)
Cyrus chose Metallicdramon amongst the cards, while Heir of Dragons, Volcdramon and Sunarizamon returned to the bottom of the deck. Afterward, the Assailant scoffed at Cyrus' previous remark. "It seems that being under Drasil's wings have given you the gall to underestimate my power…"
"Drasil?" Cyrus furrowed his brow. "Oh right…that's you aim, wasn't it? To hunt us Representatives down to get to Drasil?"
"Drasil at some point will answer for their actions, but I'm afraid your hypothesis missed it mark some."
"Oh?" Cyrus grew slightly curious.
"If I were after Drasil, wouldn't it have made more sense for me to go to AEGIS directly?"
Cyrus understood what the implication. "Then tell me, what crimes have I committed that you used Sierra to bait me?"
"She wasn't bait. She was the first one I got to..." he pointed to Cyrus, "Each of you representatives have played a part; you all know what you did!"
"I do, do I…?" Cyrus chuckled, agitating the assailant. "In that case, let me reiterate something that you've seemed to have forgotten…"
Cyrus shot a glare that made the assailant's throat tighten.
"Try as you might you can't kill an immortal. Period." Cyrus sharply stated.
The assailant grit his teeth, growing enraged. "You arrogant son of a—! "
"Silence…" Cyrus held his hand up as he uttered. He then twisted his wrist and griped his palm into a fist, his anger sparking to match theirs. "Speak with your cards or begone from my sight!"
Turn 7: Assailant
The assailant heeded Cyrus request and exhaled. "Very well then…then allow me to open the pathway to your atonement…" They drew and moved Wormmon forward. "I play Guilmon from my hand."
A new Guilmon materialized, sharing the feral demeanor of the previous one.
MEMORY
4-1
The assailant then took another card from their hand and flipped it. "Wormmon, Armor Digivolve into Shadramon!"
Cyrus furrowed his brow as Worrmon wrapped itself with the purple binary and reformed into the moth-like digimon.
Shadramon (EX3-058)
Color: Purple
Level: 4
DP: 5000
MEMORY
1-1
Cyrus watched closely, noting the fact that his opponent didn't end their turn. The assailant smirked at Cyrus' confusion, feeling reinvigorated. "Shadramon's effect allows me to digivolve one of my other Digimon into a Flamedramon from my trash!"
Guilmon hissed and looked up as a sudden wave of red binary code rained down on them, transforming it into Flamedramon.
Flamedramon (EX3-008)
Color: Red
Level: 4
DP: 5000
MEMORY
1-3
"Next, Flamedramon's effect now triggers, allowing both it and Shadramon to DNA digivolve into Paildramon!"
Shadramon and Flamedramon both glowed in their respective colors, taking off into the digital gate above them and returning as the fused Paildramon seconds later, slamming onto the ground, the impact blowing against the surrounding flames that continued to linger.
Paildramon (EX3-010)
Color: Red/Purple
Level: 5
DP: 8000
"A Paildramon…?" Cyrus's gaze narrowed into anxious curiosity. He expected as much hence why he made it a point to keep their board empty. It seemed to him though that despite his assumption, this individual had the means to get around his tactic.
"Oh wait, but there's more!" The assailant stated. "You claim to be immortal so you should appreciate this! Using Paildramon's effect, from its DNA Digivolution comes DinoBeemon resurrected from the trash!"
Cyrus braced himself for what was to come, as from the digital gate came the discarded DinoBeemon from turns prior. The mutant bug dragon tweaked and flexed its muscles, popping the veins on its arms.
DinoBeemon (EX3-061)
Color: Purple/Red
Level: 8000
"And now, my turn ends…"
Cyrus hesitated to draw, the creeping feeling that something else was coming.
The assailant smirked and snapped their fingers. "Should've known you wouldn't fall for that so easily. Very well then, Flamedramon's IE effect activates, DNA Digivolving my two level 5 Digimon into the obsidian meteor that will burn the world in crimson flames!"
Both Paildramon and DinoBeemon glowed, Paildramon red, while DinoBeemon purple. The flames around them rode up into the sky along with the pair, darkening the once bright battlefield, and bringing in an eerie chill around them. A bright flash exploded from the digital gate and out emerged the black Imperialdramon, clawing its way through before emerging completely, hovering above its tamer and roaring to incite fear into anyone in eyeshot.
Imperialdramon (EX3-063)
Color: Purple/Red
Level: 6
DP: 12,000
"Now then, choose one of your digimon to save."
"Excuse me?" Cyrus questioned.
"I said choose." The assailant reiterated. "One stays, the other is deleted, no exceptions."
Imperialdramon hummed, its hunger increasing the longer Cyrus remained idle.
"Jazardmon stays." Cyrus decided.
"Very well. Imperialdramon, you're up!"
Imperialdramon locked sights on Volcanicdramon and took off towards it. Volcanicdramon retaliated and clashed with the enemy dragon, their impact blowing out the windows around them. The pair took off into the skies once more and participated in a volley of flaming energy blasts that lit up the sky like a field of supernovas with each explosion that went off. Imperialdramon then aggressively pushed into Volcanicdramon's airspace and tackled it across the skyline, charging its positron laser point blank and blasting a hole trough Volcanicdramon. The dragon roared as it plummeted, however it dispersed before creating a crater in the asphalt. Imperialdramon roared in victory as it twisted in the dark sky and returned to its owner.
"One can only wonder what it is your planning…" The assailant said.
"Volcanicdramon was a target for your dragon."
"Volcanicdramon had a higher DP count." The assailant countered.
"Your Wormmon gives your digimon retaliation, does it not?"
The assailant grew quiet. "you've done your research…there's no possible way for you to have that knowledge."
"A deck centered around mutual destruction and resurrection tactics make it a viable conclusion. Besides, you admitting it only confirmed my theory."
The assailant scoffed, "you're sickening to listen to."
"And yet you struggle to silence me. What's holding you back?"
As Cyrus asked the question, Imperialdramon snatched Jazardmon from beside him and devoured the digimon.
He waited for his answer.
The assailant gritted his teeth as he pulled his arm back. "You haughty piece of crap…!"
"You don't have an answer."
"Shut up!" the assailant barked. "Look at your board state, its empty! What can you possibly do at this point that Imperialdramon won't tear through?!"
"You putting faith in that dragon of yours…" Cyrus drew, "Will be your downfall."
(Turn Change)
Turn 8: Cyrus
"Both the effect of my Hina's trigger giving me two additional Memory."
MEMORY
3-5
"What does that matter? You digivolve into something, it won't match Imperialmon in Level, nor strength. And your turn will end if you play anything."
"Lavogaritamon, Jazarichmon, Volcdramon, Greymon and Jazamon…" Cyrus revealed the five cards in his hand, drawing confusion from his opponent.
"…DIGI-XROS!"
In a forceful swipe, all five cards scanned and one by one the silhouettes of the five digimon materialized, catching his opponent off guard.
"What the…? What is this, what did you do?!"
"You claim the history Drasil authored isn't the factual history of Omnia, didn't you? Then if you truly believe your words, you know very well what this unique power is!"
The five silhouettes shot up into the digital gate, the gate itself erupting with red lightning that sparked wildly from the entrance.
"I call upon you, Draconic Warlord of the Ancient World: I play Dorbickmon!"
The lightning grew upon the declaration, erupting with a cluster of red flames that shot down like a meteor. The dark area was lit ablaze once again as the meteor crashed onto the field. From it, a titanic crimson-scaled dragonoid with claws lining its collarbone shoulders and gauntlets, along with several black horn protruding from its back, rose up its presence visibly shaking the assailant.
Dorbickmon (EX3-014)
Color: Red
Level: 6
DP: 12,000
MEMORY
5-2
"That's…impossible!"
"Nothing is impossible where I'm concerned." Cyrus stated defiantly. "With each material used in the Digi-Xros, Dorbickmon's play cost is reduced by 2. I used up to the maximum 5 different named digimon with "Dinosaur", "Ceratopsian" and "Dragon" in their traits, therefore reducing its cost by 10. And speaking of those materials, for each Digivolution Card in its sources, Dorbickmon's effect to delete one of your Digimon with 3000 DP or less is increased by 2000!"
"NO!" The assailant exclaimed.
"Start begging for hell you welp. Dorbickmon!"
Cyrus' roar lit a fire in Dorbickmon as it bent its knees and smirked. Imperialdramon, hissed, unafraid and charged its cannon. Firing the positron laser blast Dorbickmon backhanded the blast into the sky, with no effort, proving it null and void where it was concerned. It then pulled that very fist back, unfurled its claw, and dove forward, grabbing Imperialdramon and launching itself into the air along with it. Overwhelmed by Dorbickmon's strength, Imperialdramon thrashed for safety, unable to resist its impending demise. Dorbickmon with one hand threw Imperialdramon and lit itself ablaze, charging over it like a meteor before slamming it back down towards the earth. The impact resulted in an intense explosion that, when the smoke cleared, left nothing but destruction several blocks in both directions.
The assailant was laid flat on the ground, reeling from the pain shooting through their body. This wasn't happening. There's no way this was happening…!
"Get up!" Cyrus voice boomed, sending a chill through the assailant's body. They grit their teeth and looked up at Cyrus, who was still standing despite them both being in the center of impact.
"You're…you're not human!" they exclaimed, anger burning in their chest.
Cyrus rolled his neck and stared down at his unveiled opponent. An angry scowl drawn on a familiar face, Cyrus looked on with a disciplinary expression, forgoing the confusion that lingered.
"You may have his face, but you're no Cobalius…"
Kaden got onto his feet and roared, only for three of his Security to separate him from Cyrus.
"Lavogaritamon's IE effect grants me a memory from Imperialdramon's destruction, whereas Jazamon gives Dorbickmon 1000 DP and Jazarichmon and Volcdramon give my dragon Security Attack 1 respectively.
Dorbickmon: 12,000-13,000 DP
"Triple Break, Dorbickmon!"
Dorbickmon's fist shattered each of the security. A second Imperialdramon emerged in the chaos, but was subdued easily by Dorbickmon, who was taking pleasure in this. Following that was a Guilmon and Flame Memory Boost.
Kaden
Security: 3-0
"To end, I play Volcanicdramon. Since you don't have a Digimon to delete, Volcanicdramon's secondary effect blocks the play of any digimon from you with a DP of 5000 or less."
MEMORY
3-9 (Turn Change)
"Kaden's" eyes went wide, the grim realization that his deck was completely locked out for the turn, despite the near-maxing of the Memory Counter. "There's no way…"
"It's your move…"
Turn 9: Kaden
Kaden hesitated. Whether it was anger, or fear, they were synonymous in that moment. He shook as his mind raced. His plans, fallen apart, his frustrations only grew. "I'll…I'll kill you…!"
Cyrus crossed his arms.
"I'll kill you…I'll Kill you… I'LL KILL YOU ALL!" Kaden roared, his anger exploding. Red and purple binary suddenly erupted at his feet as he howled, catching Cyrus off guard.
Instinct told him to think fast.
"Volcanicdramon, Direct Attack!"
Sensing the urgency, Volcanicdramon unleashed a fiery torrent towards "Kaden" in which the latter was completely engulfed. A wall of flames extended towards each end of the street as the roar of the flames eventually snuffed Kaden's own cries out. Cyrus halted the attack, and his dragon ceased firing. Cyrus then went about summoning Metallicdramon to blow the flames away, the dragon using its mechanical energy wings to do just that.
Cyrus wasn't surprised to discover nothing was left, not even traces of a body. His gaze narrowed as he was tempted to approach the site where Kaden took a step forward, and immediately staggered to one knee, his body internally collapsing on him.
"Sir!" Marsmon's voice boomed as the chauffeur volleyed over the top of debris to make it to him.
Cyrus turned to his driver as the burly man came to a halt. "It's over... for now at least."
Cyrus tried to stand but crumbled as his energy plummetted. Marsmon caught him to keep him steady. "Can you walk? Captain Garretson and the others are stationed not far from here."
Cyrus scoffed, "This Shell... has run its course. Dorbickmon's attack likely did it in."
"Dorbickmon…?" Marsmon questioned as they slowly trekked onto the sidewalk. It then dawned on him the massive explosion that took place before, and the piece began to fall in place. "You resorted to using Digi-Xros…"
"Ancient threats require... ancient solutions…" Cyrus coughed voice becoming raspy and staticy. "Besides... it was enough for him to second guess coming after me..."
"Did you discover why he was after you?"
"It wasn't to get to Drasil... that's for sure…" Cyrus pulled away and leaned up against a wall. Reaching behind his ear, he pressed against the small space and out from the side of his temple ejected a memory stick. "Have this Shell disposed of... Afterward, give this to Garretson... and have AEGIS look this footage over...I'll be in touch..." He yanked it out, causing his body to jolt and tense briefly. Eyes growing heavy, he handed it to Marsmon, the latter sliding the memory drive in his pocket.
"What will you do in the meantime?"
The Shell slid against the wall as Cyrus slowly began to lose consciousness. "That's…a problem for tomorrow…"
The Shell powered down, leaving Marsmon to sigh. In hindsight he should've known that living on this side of reality wasn't going to be as peaceful as he once imagined.
Once you're South, everything follows it seemed…
"Well, can't say I didn't see this coming…" Maxine reacted, listening to the news that both her two friends were subsequently punished for sneaking to City Hall.
After their sentencing, both boys reached out to Maxine and hopped into a Voice Call. While Terry was excited to explain in detail what it was like to battle Bianca and Justin, Daniel on the other hand was more reserved, letting the former rant about his experience.
"So there I was, springing WarGreymon out of nowhere to take out her DarkKnightmon!" on his camera, Terrence flailed his arms around dramatically as he does. "It was so cool, watching their powers clash with one another. But then, just when I thought I took her digimon out, she's all like 'blah-blah-blah, DarkKnightmon's effect, blah-blah-blah, my card's broken! And then she beat me in three turns."
"Fascinating," Maxine said, turning her focus to Daniel, whose camera was off. "What about you?"
Daniel, on his end, was lost staring at the Plutomon card to hear Maxine initially.
"Earth to Danny!" Maxine's voice came through stronger.
"What? Sorry, I zoned out."
"I was asking how your match went."
"Oh…I lost."
"Well, no duh, I want details." She specified.
"…Yeah, sorry. My parents were blowing up my phone the whole time so I wasn't focused. Besides, the battle was one-sided."
"No, it wasn't!" Terrence argued. "You lasted way longer than me."
"Justin's deck was solid as it was strong," Daniel continued. "He didn't give me any breathing room to set up. Even my attempts to push back were met with resistance."
Daniel turned his camera on for them and flashed Plutomon.
"Yo, what's that?!" Terrence jumped from his chair and leaned in.
"Where'd you get that card?" Maxine asked.
"Mayor Negri handed it to me; said it works well with my deck's strategy. It actually got me thinking…"
"About what?" Terrence grew curious.
"Are we really taking these Starter Decks into the tournament?"
"…Not if we want to win, right?" Maxine noted.
"The tournament starts in two weeks. We haven't talked strategy yet, have we?"
"We've only just got into the game last weekend. And amongst all of us, we've only each just had some experience battling against someone outside our circle." Maxine replied.
"That's my point." Daniel stated. "Aside from learning how to play, we haven't done much of anything."
"So what's your point?" Terrence asked. "Are we gonna try and build our own decks?"
"We don't have a choice if we want to have a shot at this."
"But you two are grounded right? Are your parents even going to let you battle in the tournament?"
Terrence crossed his arms proudly. "My dad pulled some strings with Danny's folks."
"Actually, his dad helped Mayor Negri to reach out and explained the situation. My folks are peeved but are willing to overlook this instance for now."
"Wait so are you grounded or not?"
"I have to come straight home after school. The time I could spend practicing for the tournament will now be regulated for test prep."
"That sounds surprisingly lienent." Terrence noted.
"Not when you can't practice for the tournament." Maxine replied. "What good is going if you're not prepared?"
"My parents see this as a distraction anyway. Honestly, it's better than not being able to hang out with you guys at all. Besides," he flashed the newly acquired D-Streamer. "It'll give me time to practice on Babylon."
"Oh yeah! I forgot about that!" Terrence darted from his computer to grab his. With a toothy grin he flashed it onto the screen.
"You got those for free?!" Maxine exclaimed. "That's not fair!"
"Should've came with us then!" Terrence stuck his tongue out."
"Ugh, whatever." Maxine pouted. She looked over to the clock and saw that bedtime was approaching. "I'm going to bed before my parents start yelling."
"Same here." Daniel agreed.
"Me three!"
"I'll see you two tomorrow at school then." Maxine said.
"Later."
"Night!"
Maxine closed out the window and sighed. After a minute she reached for her phone and pulled up her text chats, scrolling for Kaden's name.
"Hey, are you working tomorrow? I wanna build a new deck and need help."
…
Sorry, I'm scheduled to be off. Have to take care of some stuff after school.
Sierra's still in the hospital, but Brandon should be there, so maybe ask him.
…
K. How is Ms. Levan doing? Is it okay if I go visit?
…
Should be fine. Want me to go with after I'm done?
Maxine hesitated and thought hard on what to write back.
…
I'll ask my mom to come with. Don't worry about it.
…
Gotcha. TTYL then.
…
Same. Night, Cuz.
Maxine let out a hard sigh as she returned her focus onto her computer. She opened her browser and continued onto her search for information, this time, the current thread post on screen discussing the events of the recent storm and the grainy footage of some of the scenes. The electrical interference distorted some security footage and phone recordings, resulting in distorted blobs and static, and yet some online have managed to get something presentable for people to dissect.
She, Kaden and Anastasia all left just before the storm got intense. The storm was so bad that Kaden stayed at their apartment before her parents felt it safe for him to leave.
So then why did it feel as if this, and the other stuff she discovered were connected somehow?
She attempted to go through more threads, and soon came across a breaking news story. Curiosity got to her and she clicked, discovering clear footage of the chaos in midtown.
Her hand shook over her mouse as she tried to make sense of the scene, the draconic digimon trading blows back and forth, and adding to the destruction around them. If she wasn't privy to the things she learned, she'd would've assumed these were special effects for a movie, as hologram technology in recent years allow for ultra realistic sets.
That said, there was no mistaking the face of Vermillion Pharmaceutical's CEO, Cyrus Asghar, a man whose face crops up in almost every medical office's magazine rack in the five boroughs.
He was surrounded by Digimon, as was the mysterious figure standing across from him.
Though the clip was only a few seconds long, it was breakthrough in her investigation. She contemplated going to Kaden, but what's to say he wouldn't deny knowing anything? Her options were limited; after all who would believe her?
Maybe she could tell Daniel and Terrence? Not that she'd want them to know that she's more invested in Digimon than Terrence is, she'd never hear the end of it. Still, whatever she stumbled upon was giving off dangerous vibes. And she was scared.
What could she do in this situation? What was the answer she needed?
Who could she turn to…?
Bianca, Justin and Mayor Negri found themselves in Bianca's Netspace, awaiting the final member to join them. Between the time Daniel and Terrence left up until the stroke of midnight they watched as the battle between Cyrus and the mysterious assailant erupted in the center of Manhattan's west side. Since his meeting with Garretson, Mayor Negri was especially curious to see what exactly would come out if given the chance to meet this particular individual.
Karas materialized within the space suddenly, lugged on his back was the assailant who he knocked out prior to his capture. Cyrus' insticts weren't misplaced, as Karas also sense the potential danger and stepped in when he did.
Tossing the figure onto the floor was enough for them to grunt and awaken. "Ugh, where...where am I?"
"Somewhere safe, depending on how you answer our questions." Karas remarked.
Despite wearing Kaden's face, the assailant's attitude didn't exactly match their personality, as the threat made them jump upright.
"Ew," Bianca remarked sharply, drawing their attention.
The assailant looked over and lunged for the girl, only for Karas and Justin to pin them to the ground in blinding speed.
"Get off me!" Kaden hissed. "She'll pay for her hand in this mess...!"
Bianca narrowed her gaze and widened her eyes, the purple flash making contact with him, to which he calmed down and slumped. "Ugh...that trick won't work on me, brat..."
Bianca was taken aback. She looked to Mayor Negri for assistance, the latter chuckling to himself.
"That confirms it, does it?" He motioned to the two and they pulled the assailant up.
The assailant weakly looked up to Mayor Negri and stared daggers into him. "You're no human..."
"And neither are you." Mayor Negri replied. "You reek of Drasil, after all."
The assailant scoffed. "So what if I do?"
"Nothing. As a matter of fact when I became aware of your presence I grew very curious. After all, we share common interests."
The assailant grinned at the sound of that, "Do we?"
"Of course I'm referring to the one who sent you, originally. And that begs the question of how exactly did an Alter find themselves on side of reality, hm?"
Mayor Negri looked to the pair and the released Kaden, the latter landing on his feet. Once more the streams of binary wrapped around him and before their eyes, he transformed into Shadramon, wings buzzing to keep it Aerial.
"Just who are you...?" Shadramon snarled.
Mayor Negri grinned at their curiousity.
"Just the humble mayor of this fine city..."