Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Digimon: Apocalypse ❯ The Book of Shadows: Chapter 1 ( Chapter 20 )

Hello, how are you today? My name is Yuuko Makato…actually, that is my birth name. My name now is Yuuko Yagami. I am the mother of Taichi and Hikari, two of the Chosen Children. Their relationship to the Digital World has given me many sleepless nights, wondering if they were even still alive during their times in that mysterious world that only they were allowed to enter. Despite my worry, I could not be more proud of them. They have risked their lives so many times to save the millions of people living on this planet. I would never admit it to them, but I was always proud when I told my friends that my children were heroes.

Then Taichi and Hikari began to fight a young woman calling herself Chihi Miayag. I saw this young woman when she attacked the city. I saw her and could not believe my eyes, for when I looked at her, I saw my younger sister, Kumiko. She had moved to America many years ago, and we simply lost touch. I ran out to ask this young woman who she was, but her partner, I believe she called her, “Bastemon,’ attacked me and the world turned to darkness…

When I finally opened my eyes I was lying in the hospital; the news was on the television, and I saw that Taichi and Miayag were fighting again. I could not let him hurt her, so I ran out of the hospital to that battle. I asked her who she was, and she told me that her real name was Megumi Seisou, the daughter of my sister Kumiko, she was my niece, she was Taichi’s cousin.

She claimed to be the granddaughter of Yuushi, the leader of the First Chosen, and if her grandfather was Yuushi, that meant that Yuushi was my father! Unfortunately, I could not help Taichi or Hikari any longer. I had used up too my energy to leave the hospital and I fell into a coma again. And I am not sure how, but I know that my niece was injured in a battle with Cahiti, the Demon King, my son’s dark side. I pray that Taichi and all of his friends are safe. --------------------------------- The Book of Death: Chapter 3 -------------------------------------

The Digital World was dying. The Demon King Cahiti had used the power he stole from all eight Daughters of the First to cause the Digital Hazard: the water crashed into the earth, the sky turned pitch black as bolts of lightning cascaded across it. The trees uprooted, bringing minerals and solid rocks into the air. It was the ultimate disaster, it was the end of the world.

All across the planet, except for a small, one mile island called the Island of the Center. There stood the castle of the First Chosen, where the Digitalatri had once called home. However, they had been ejected, sent back to Earth, while the X-Chosen dealt with those that now occupied the island, the combined force of the Demon Lords and the Daughters of the First.

Outside of the castle, the remaining X-Chosen were ready to fight their battle against the leaders of the Chosen Council: the Security General, Victor von Schmidt, and the Secretary of the Council, Raven Osborn. They had allied themselves with the Demon Lords for promises of power and wealth.

Osborn hung onto Lilamon’s back as she hovered in the air. Floating before them were Hikari, Nefertimon X, Mimi, Lillymon X, and Yuri and Kuwagamon X. “Please,” Hikari said, “Give up, don’t make us hurt you…”

Osborn started to laugh. “Give up, ta’ ya criminals? I don’t think so.”

“We’re not criminals!” Mimi shouted, “You are!”

Osborn sneered. “Ya bitch!” she shouted, “I am the second-in-command of the Chosen Council, you are rebels!”

“Are you so blind?” Yuri asked, “It is you, and the Demon Lords, that are destroying everything that the entire Chosen population has striven to build!”

Osborn rolled her eyes. “Yeah, whatever…”

Hikari sighed deeply. “There’s no way to convince you otherwise, huh? All right, Nefertimon, take me down.”

The angelic digimon floated to the ground where Hikari leapt off of her back. The other X-Chosen followed in turn, and the Chosen stood on the ground while their partners floated into the air. At first no side wanted to make a move, but Lillymon X finally shot at Lilamon, swinging her fists into the other flower woman. Osborn’s partner caught both jabs in her fist and clenched them tightly before slamming her head into Lillymon X’s head as hard as she could. The dress-wearing flower woman clutched her injured nose and floated to the side. Nefertimon X began to fire a series of stones from her leg decorations. “Rosetta Stone!”

Lilamon fired a barrage of lasers from her fingers, striking each stone, turning them into dust. She fired another barrage of her Lila Shower, striking Nefertimon X multiple times along her side. The angelic digimon executed her Curse of Queen attack, this time hitting the flower woman in the head with two beams of red energy. She then shot forward, grabbing Nefertimon X by the tail and swinging her into the ground.

Kuwagamon X growled and swung his claws at the flower woman’s back. “Crunch Arm!”

Lilamon twisted out of the way and began to slap Kuwagamon X multiple times in the face. “Beauty Slap!”

The giant insect tried to flee, but Lilamon’s attack continued relentlessly. Kuwagamon X’s head twisted and turned until his eyes glossed over. His arms dropped to his side and he stood beside the flower woman.

“Kuwagamon?” Yuri shouted.

Osborn smirked. “Lilamon’s Beauty Slap attack makes her opponents fall in love with her. Now your partner is under her control.”

“Never!” the Russian man shouted.

Osborn turned to her partner. “Lilamon, I think they need a demonstration!”

Lilamon turned to Kuwagamon X and grinned seductively. “Tell ya what, cutie, if you kill that second-rate flower bitch, then I’ll give ya whatever ya want.”

“Yes, madam,” Kuwagamon X responded. He focused on Lillymon X, who was just rejoining the battle. She gasped slightly and braced herself as the insect swung his two claws at her from both sides. She had only enough time to through her arms up and block the giant pincers. The insect growled.

“Hold on big guy,” she said, struggling to keep the giant claws from closing in on her, “Come on, come back to us…”

“Kuwagamon!” Yuri shouted, “Do not fight Lillymon, she is your teammate!”

The insect ignored him and began to push even harder. The dress-wearing flower woman frowned. “S…sorry about this…” She kicked her leg up, striking the insect in the underside of the chin. He pulled the pincers back and Lillymon X was able to fly to safety. But not for too long, as Kuwagamon X shot after her.

“Come on,” the dress-wearing flower woman said, “You’ve got to snap out of it!

Lilamon chuckled. “Talk all you want, you’ll never free him.” She glanced to her right and saw Nefertimon X flying towards her. She readied herself to execute her Lila Shower, but the X-Digimon attacked with her Curse of Queen, striking the flower woman in the chest. “Your Beauty Slap attack won’t work on me!”

Lilamon began to fire beams of lasers from her finger tips that struck the angel across her body. She was forced back, but managed to remain in position. She fired another round of her Rosetta Stone, but the flower woman countered once again with her Lila Shower, destroying the stone projectiles, creating a cloud of dust that permeated the air. This gave Nefertimon X the perfect cover to slam her head into the flower woman’s stomach, causing her to lurch over. The angelic digimon then twisted her wings around and smashed them into Lilamon’s head. She finished her combo by firing her Curse of Queen technique.

Osborn blinked. “L..Lilamon?”

Her partner growled and held up her flowered hands. “I’m going to enjoy killing you!”

“Crunch Arm!”

She twisted her head in time to watch Kuwagamon X slam his enlarged pincer into her head, throwing her into a flip. After she recovered she stared at Kuwagamon X and saw a wreath of flowers attached around his body. Lillymon X was hovering beside him. The dress-wearing flower woman grinned. “What do you know, it looks like my Necklace of Flowers countered your Beauty Slap attack.”

Lilamon growled and held out her hands to attack with her Lila Shower technique, but Kuwagamon X slammed his pincer claws into Lilamon’s face, throwing her around. Lillymon X executed her Flower Cannon, blasting the ball of energy into her, throwing her into the ground.

Nefertimon X hovered in the air and prepared her Curse of Queen attack, but Osborn had run to her partner’s side. Hikari tried to warn her partner, but it was already too late, Nefertimon X’s attack fired from her headdress and pierced Osborn’s back and continued through her chest before it slammed into Lilamon. The digimon scattered into data and the human fell to the earth, lifeless.

Hikari stared at Osborn’s lifeless body, she thought of the deleted Lilamon. Her body began to shake slightly as she felt fierce emotions well up behind her eyes. She felt a hand on her shoulder, and when she turned to see Mimi standing beside her, she embraced the older woman in a tight hug. “Oh Mimi!” she cried.

“Yeah, I know,” she answered, “I know…”

Only a few feet away, another major battle was occurring. Michael and Megaseadramon X, along with Jyou and Anomalocarimon X, and Dingo and Gesomon X stared down Victor von Schmidt and his Machgaogaomon partner.

The Security General of the Chosen Council crossed his arms and grinned. “So, I do not suppose there is any chance of you surrendering?”

“Us surrendering?” Michael exclaimed, “We’ll fight to the very end! You’re the one that should be surrendering!”

Schmidt sneered. “I am the leader of the Chosen Council, I will not give in to traitors and rebels!”

“Traitors?!” Dingo shouted, “You’re the one that make a deal with demons jus’ so you could get more power! You’re scum!”

“They’re right,” Jyou added, “The Chosen Council was created so that the Digital World had a governing body. It was supposed to be a place where everyone in the Digital World had a voice, but you turned it into a stepping stone for you own power-mongering!”

Machgaogamon growled. “Power-mongering? The only reason we’re in control is because none of you wanted the job! None of you were willing to take it, so why are you now attack our leadership style?”

“Because you’re greedy and corrupt!” Dingo shouted.

Michael sighed and shook his head. “Why the hell are we even talking? Let’s take him down quickly and go help Taichi and Yamato!”

“I agree,” Megaseadramon X said, slithering forward. Anomalocarimon X and Gesomon X soon joined him. Machgaogamon stepped forward and cracked his knuckles. He dropped his arms to his side and stood motionless for a moment before shooting forward, slamming his fists into Megaseadramon X’s face. The serpent coiled backwards and the wolf-man grabbed his body and pulled as hard as he could, making his snake-form tight. He then slammed his knee into Megaseadramon X’s underside. The serpent whipped his tail around, striking Machgaogamon in the side of the head. He released the serpent and stumbled back.

Gesomon X swung his white tentacles around, grabbing Machgaogamon by his ankles and pulling back with all of his might. The wolf fell forward and smashed his face into the ground. He growled in displeasure and grabbed Gesomon X’s tentacles, pulling him forward. He flexed his muscles and began to attack the large squid with a flurry of punches and kicks. “Gaoga Tornado!”

He continued to assault him until he kicked Gesomon X in the underside with such force that he was sent flying into the air. Machgaogamon shot into the sky above him, placed both of his hands together and slammed him with all of his might, sending him smashing into the ground.

“Tail Blade!”

The wolf easily shot out of the way before Anomalocarimon X’s attack would have harmed him. He gently landed back on the ground and stared at the large crustacean. “I guess it’s your turn now, huh?” He opened his mouth and spewed out a blast of light at Jyou’s partner. “Howling Cannon!”

Anomalocarimon X was flipped in the air as a result of the attack, but managed to right himself with only seconds to spare before Machgaogamon began his attack. He pulled his fist back, then sent it into the crustacean’s face. “Winning Knuckle!”

Anomalocarimon X was sent skidding backwards, but Machgaogamon flew after him, pulling his fist back to attack once again. The crustacean crossed his large pincers and fired a beam of twin energy. “Tail Blade!”

Machgaogamon blasted a beam of light from his mouth. “Howling Cannon!” The wolf’s beam sliced through the crustacean’s beam, pounding him in the face. However, the now multi-pieced attack of Anomalocarimon X was still able to fly through the air and slice Machgaogamon in numerous places across his arms and torso.

“Deadly Shade!”

Machgaogamon’s vision was suddenly eliminated as Gesomon X’s ink splattered across his face. The trio of sea digimon began to cheer, but their jubilation quickly dropped when they saw that the wolf simply removed his sunglasses, allowing him to see once more.

“A good strategy,” he remarked, “But not good enough!” He pulled his fist back again, “Winning Knuckle!”

Before he could punch Gesomon X, Megaseadramon X came flying from the side, his large horn poised for action. “King Javelin!” His enlarged horn sliced through the wolf’s arm, causing it to fall to the ground.

Schmidt gasped in horror, while Machgoagamon roared in pain. “Get him!” Michael shouted, “Hurry before he recovers!”

Gesomon X chuckled as he slithered forward. He began to pound Machgaogamon with his tentacles. “Devil Bashing!”

“Get outta the way!” Anomalocarimon X shouted, “It’s my turn! Twin Blade!”

His attack struck the wolf directly in the chest, causing even more pain to shoot through his body.

“We’ve got him!” Michael shouted, “Quick, Megaseadramon, finish him off!”

Her serpentine partner lunged forward with his horn glowing brightly. “King Javelin!” His giant horn skewered the wolf digimon. Machgaogamon refused to scream as his data was deleted.

Michael turned to Schmidt. “There, you’ve lost.”

The leader of the Chosen Council stared at the space where his partner had been only moments before. He turned to look at the others. He suddenly shook his head. “No, no I will never be your prisoner!” He turned to run and charged from the battlefield as fast as he could. He was running so fast that he did not notice that he had come to the edge of the island and fell tumbling down a sloped, rocky cliff. The X-Chosen ran to the edge and peered over but saw nothing but roaring water.

“Think he survived?” Dingo asked.

“I doubt it,” Jyou said, “I mean, one of us probably could have, but I doubt he or his partner spent much time in the water.”

“I guess that’s the end of the Chosen Council,” Michael added. He glanced up and saw the dark maelstrom eating away at the rest of the Digital World, “Not that it matter now.”

“What are we waiting for?” Dingo shouted, “Taichi and Yamato probably need our help!”

Jyou and Michael nodded and ran to join their partners. They, along with those that had battled Osborn and Lilamon, were given the shock of their lives as the castle of the First Chosen, simply collapsed.

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Cahiti only shrugged. “Very well. Why don’t we get started, then, huh?” He raised his right arm, which contained the energy-siphoning Soul Catcher. The eight crystals on the ancient device began to glow brightly, and they sent a wave of energy down the Demon King’s arm and surrounding him and Lucemon both. Bolts of energy began to crackle around the whirlwind of multicolored light, building in intensity until the light exploded, revealing the newly created fused being. He resembled Cahiti, except with Lucemon’s angelic and demonic wings and his black and white outfit. The Soul Catcher vanished.

Taichi and Yamato stepped forward, their partners right behind them. “This is it!” Yamato shouted.

Taichi nodded, “Yeah, I only hope we’re ready.”

“Of course you are!” Catherine grinned, placing a hand on Yamato’s shoulder.

“She’s right,” Sora said, placing her hand on Taichi’s shoulder, “But maybe you might need a little…more…” Her smile faded. “Now I’m giving you the power that I should have at the beginning.”

Catherine nodded as she stared at Yamato. “Me as well.”

Both young women closed their eyes, and the powers they held, that of Fire and Light, flowed into their respective warriors. The Katana of Hidokoro glowed brightly in Taichi’s hand, while the Airguns of Lucien glowed in Yamato’s hands. Both weapons soon exploded in light, enveloping the X-Chosen and their digimon partners.

“Agumon X warp evolve to…”

The light from Sora erupted from the Katana of Hidokoro flowed around Taichi, silhouetting him within a deep shade of red. Agumon X charged towards him and the light from the blade struck the orange dinosaur, turning him into beams of glowing light. The light struck Taichi’s body, transforming him into a muscular dinosaur man covered with orange skin, sharp and jagged armor. The Katana of Hidokoro had changed to a long metal blade and attached to his right metal gauntlet.

“Wargreymon X!”

“Gabumon X warp evolve to…”

The light from Catherine erupted from the Airgun of Lucien flowed around Yamato, silhouetting him within a bright shade of white. Gabumon X charged towards him and the light from the gun struck the blue dog-digimon, turning him into beams of glowing light. The light struck Yamato’s body, transforming him into a muscular canine man covered with blue metallic skin, and multiple firearms. The Airgun of Lucien had changed to a long metal shotgun and attached to his left metal gauntlet.

“Metalgarurumon X!”

The two Mega digimon hovered in the air before Cahiti/Lucemon. Metalgarurumon X glanced to his partner and spoke in a fusion of Yamato and Gabumon X’s voice. “You ready?”

Wargreymon X laughed and answered in a mixture of Taichi and Agumon X’s voice. “Oh yeah! Let’s kick some ass!”

Down below, the Daughters of the First, together for the first time, stared in wonder at the two Mega digimon. “Wow,” Catherine said, staring at Metalgarurumon X, “I…I was able to do zat?”

“It’s amazing, isn’t it?” Sora asked, staring at Wargreymon X, “My power did that…”

“And they combined,” Piyomon pointed out, “Yamato is with Gabumon, and Taichi is with Agumon.”

“They’ve become so strong,” Noriko gasped, “I can feel it!”

Cahiti/Lucemon was not impressed. He smirked. “So you evolved together and you think that makes you the superior one? While the other Demon Lords fused with their partners using only one element energy, I have used all eight! I am far stronger them you...Uff!”

He was abruptly cut off when Metalgarurumon X fired a few rounds from his wrist based guns, hitting him in the chest. It did not injury him as much as the metal wolf hoped, but it did silence him.

“Sorry about jumping ahead like that,” he said to Wargreymon X, “But I couldn’t stand listening to his mouth anymore.”

“Yeah, thanks,” the warrior dinosaur responded, “My ears were beginning to hurt.”

Cahiti/Lucemon growled and flexed his muscles. “All right, if that is how you want this to start, so be it, but just because you had the first shot, does not mean you will win.”

Before anyone could blink, the Demon Lord slammed his fist deep into Wargreymon X’s stomach, lurching him forward. He then pulled his fist back and grinned. “Paradise Lost!”

He executed his combo attack with furry and force, He started by pounding the dinosaur digimon in quick succession before kicking him with enough force to send him sailing into the air. Cahiti/Lucemon shot after him, grabbing his ankles and placed his heels into Wargreymon X’s armpits. He pushed down with all of his might and they crashed into the floor with such force that they continued through the wood and entered the room below. Metalgarurumon X shot after them, and the Daughters of the First cautiously crowded around the hole, peering inside.

The three combatants had arrived in a large cavern-like room, which gave them plenty of area to maneuver. Wargreymon X and Metalgarurumon X hovered before their enemy for only a moment before flying in to attack. Metalgarurumon X led the charge, pointing his rocket launcher at the fallen angel. “Garuru Tomahawk!”

Cahiti/Lucemon twisted out of the way, the giant missile narrowly missing him. Wargreymon X shot above him and used the razor-sharp blades on his gauntlet to slash across the angel’s face, drawing blood. The fallen angel twisted around so that he was now facing the dinosaur digimon. He made a maneuver with his hands and created a cross in the shape of ten small plants. “Grand Cross!”

Wargreymon X was propelled off of Cahiti/Lucemon, but he still managed to slice a large chunk out of the angel’s arm before he was thrown into the air. The fallen angel felt a sharp pain in his back as Metalgarurumon X slammed his fists into his back. Cahiti/Lucemon was motionless as Wargreymon X shot in from above, his bladed gauntlets ready for attack. He twisted out of the way at the last moment and both Megas crashed into one another.

Cahiti/Lucemon laughed as he hovered in the air. “It’s a good thing that you two are here to defeat me, the Digital World was really in trouble for a little while…”

“That bastard!” Metalgarurumon X growled, “He’s so cocky!”

“We’ve got to take him down,” Wargreymon X whispered, “You distract him, then I’ll come in from behind.”

The metal wolf nodded. He primed his weapons and shot forward, unleashing entire rounds of bullets from all of his weapons. Cahiti/Lucemon began to dodge all of the deadly projectiles with such focus that he did not notice Wargreymon X come from underneath. The dinosaur man held his blades before him and when he was in range he jabbed them deep into the fallen angel’s leg. He was thrown off balance and caught in the maelstrom of attacks from Metalgarurumon X. Bullets pierced his side, and he floated into the air to recover.

“What the hell was that?” Metalgarurumon X shouted, “Why did you hit his leg?”

“Give me a break!” Wargreymon X shouted, “I was aiming for his chest, but it’s kinda hard to move when I gotta dodge bullets!”

“You told me to distract him!”

“Him! Not me!”

Cahiti/Lucemon chuckled as he hovered above them. “I guess despite the years of growing you two have done, you’ll still always be the same bickering kids you were when you first met.”

“What’s that suppose to mean?” Wargreymon X shouted.

The fallen angel chuckled. “It means that you’ll never be the general you want to be, that the Chosen will never be the army you want them to be…you’re not heroes, you are nothing!”

Up above them, the Daughters of the First gasped at Cahiti/Lucemon’s statement. “Oh, come on, Taichi,” Maria said, “You’re everything that you want to be…”

Catherine placed her hands together. “Oh, I hope zat Yamato believes in himself as much as I believe in him.”

Noriko narrowed her eyes at her, but said nothing. Instead, she said, “Yamato you can do anything.”

Sora stared at Wargreymon X. “Taichi, please, you’ve got to win. I can’t lose you…”

Down below, the wolf and the dinosaur were staring at the fallen angel as he floated above them. “Why don’t we throw off the kid gloves, okay?” Let’s play Dead or Alive.”

He held out his arms, and a ball of light appeared in his right angelic palm with a ball of darkness appeared in his left demonic palm. “Get ready, here we go!” He flung the ball of light at the two mega digimon, enveloping them. Bolts of electricity began to course through them, sending waves of such intense pain that they were forced to remain in one position. Cahiti/Lucemon lifted up the orb of darkness and chuckled. “Let’s find out whether you live or die!”

He flung the ball of darkness into the ball of light, and both opposing forces exploded, sending waves of light and force throughout the room. Cahiti/Lucemon chuckled with laughter. “I guess you die, what a shame.”

“Sorry to disappoint you, but we’re very much alive!”

The fallen gasped in horror and disbelief. Floating before him was Metalgarurumon X and Wargreymon X, both had scratches and chinks in the metal armor, but otherwise were none the worse for wear. “That’s impossible!” Cahiti/Lucemon shouted, “No one can withstand my Dead or Alive attack!”

“Looks like we did,” Metalgarurumon X responded, “And you know why? Because we’re stronger and more powerful then you!”

“That’s impossible!” he shouted, “My power stems from all eight Daughters…”

“But you stole them!” Wargreymon X shouted, “Our powers were given to us willingly. That’s why we are stronger then you!”

Cahiti/Lucemon shouted with rage. “You’re nothing compared to me, nothing! Paradise Lost!” He shot at Wargreymon X and began to assault him with a flurry of quick punches. He was not able to reach the second phase of his combo attack as Wargreymon X was able to slam his knee into Cahiti/Lucemon’s stomach. His fist attack slowly stopped as pain shot through his body. The dinosaur punched him as hard as he could, sending him twirling into a tailspin. He placed his gauntlets together above his head, his long metal blades sticking out.

“Great Tornado!”

He began to spin around in a quick tornado, slamming into Cahiti/Lucemon’s already injured chest. The attack tore apart the front of his white shirt and even drew blood from his chest. Wargreymon X finished the attack by punching him once again, sending him spinning to the ground.

Metalgarurumon X shot in front of Wargreymon X and fired a missile from his large carrier. “Garuru Tomahawk!” The deadly projectile shot through the air before striking the fallen angel directly in the chest, throwing him into the brick wall before the missile exploded. The entire castle shook and the walls began to crumble. This in turn led to the ceiling crumbling, which caused the upper room to shake, which led to the upper floors to creak. A domino effect had been started.

“Oops,” Metalgarurumon X said.

“Nice job!” Wargreymon X shouted, over the roar of the collapsing castle, “We’ve got to get out of here!”

“I’m not arguing!” the metal wolf shouted back.

Both mega digimon shot back through the large hole and entered the cathedral room. “Quick!” Wargreymon X shouted, “Climb on, we’ve got to get out of here!”

Sora, Maria, Anna, Keeya and their partners climbed over Wargreymon X while Catherine, Noriko, Lynna, Iduia and their partners rested in Metalgarurumon X’s arms. The two Mega digimon shot through the halls, heading in the direction that they hoped would bring them to safety. As the bricks and mortar that held the ceiling in place began to collapse, the Daughters of the First cried in fear, but Wargreymon X and Metalgarurumon X continued on their path, reaching the main entrance and escaping with only moments to spare. The entire front portion of the castle collapsed in a mighty roar of dust and debris.

The Daughters of the First fell from the Mega digimon’s arms and collapsed to the ground. Wargreymon X and Metalgarurumon X exploded in light, reverting to Taichi, Agumon X, Yamato and Gabumon X. All four collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

“Sora!” Mimi shouted, nearly tackling her to the ground. “Sora, you’re okay! Catherine, you’re here too!”

The Japanese woman and the French woman nearly suffocated as Mimi hugged both of them as tight as she could. “I was so worried about you! You have no idea!”

The other X-Chosen expressed their relief at seeing the two women alive. As Catherine began to tell the others about their imprisonment, Hikari approached Sora in secret. “You’re really happy about something, what is it?”

The redhead shrugged slightly. “I…it’s about your brother.”

The younger woman frowned. “Oh, what has he done now?”

“It’s nothing bad,” Sora grinned, “I…I think there might be…something between us…” She glanced over to Taichi, who was talking to Yamato and Michael.

Hikari was silent for a moment, then her face broke into a grin. “That’s great, Sora. You don’t know how lonely Taichi’s been since Daisuke died. I’m really happy that he’s friends with Yamato and the others again, but…that night at the bar, when you and he met each other again after years…I don’t think I ever saw him so happy.”

Sora began to blush. “S…stop it!”

The younger woman continued to speak. “I’m really happy for you.” Her smile faded, “But I’m really mad at Taichi right now, so don’t tell him I said that, okay?”

Sora blinked. “What’s wrong?”

Hikari waved her hand. “Well…our mother woke up from her coma and told him that Miayag was really our cousin, but now she’s back in her coma. He didn’t tell me any of that, I found out from Miayag herself.”

Sora placed her hand over her mouth. “Y..your mother’s in a coma?”

Hikari then remembered that Sora and Catherine had been captured before Miayag invaded Tokyo. “We’ve got a lot to talk about, but we’ll do that latter, okay?”

The redhead nodded. They rejoined the others, who were staring out of the island to the black storm occurring in the rest of the Digital World. Large sections of the earth floated to the sky and dissolved slowly into data. Great columns of water erupted into the sky, and even lava began to explode through the surface of the planet. Trees were uprooted as they floated into the atmosphere. The entire planet was crumbling.

“I thought that defeating Cahiti would have stopped this,” Taichi sighed, “I guess not.”

Jyou frowned. “I don’t know how long this island is going to remain safe, so maybe we’d better get back to Earth as soon as possible.”

“What about the Chosen that were here?” Hikari asked.

Dingo shrugged. “Let’s just hope that when all hell broke loose, they went back ta Earth.”

“That’s all we can do,” Jyou added.

They reluctantly agreed and walked to the nearest Digital Gate, a television set that had been erupted from the castle as it collapsed. They each went through in turn, until only Sora, Noriko, Yamato, Taichi, Agumon X and Gabumon X were left. Noriko grinned as she placed a hand on Sora’s shoulder. “Come on, let’s go back home.”

The redhead glanced over her shoulder at Taichi. “Don’t worry,” the young man said, “I’m right behind you.”

The two young women stepped towards the gate when a loud roar echoed through the island. Everyone twisted their heads to the rubble of the castle. A large pile of fallen debris exploded into dust as a familiar figure shot into the air, Cahiti/Lucemon, floating in the air and panting heavily. Yamato and Taichi stood their ground, while their partners leapt in front of them.

“Taichi!” Sora shouted.

The two young men turned around and realized that Noriko and Sora were still there, behind them, the Digital Gate was still flickering with light and energy. They pushed both of them into the column of glowing light, despite their protests.

“Yamato!” Noriko shouted as the Digital Gate enveloped her, “Yamato!”

“Taichi, I’m not leaving you!” Sora shouted as Taichi pushed her closer.

“Go!” he shouted, “And I..l…just go!” With a final shove, she was sent tumbling into the Digital Gate.

Taichi and Yamato turned their attention back to Cahiti/Lucemon, who was panting so heavily that his entire shoulders were shaking. He threw his arms into the air and screamed. “Hear me, my Demon Lords! Hear the voice of your master! Give me you might, give me your energy so that I may destroy our enemies!”

The two X-Chosen and their partners stared in wonder and awed terror as small comets of light appeared out of nothingness. A bright purple one shot past Taichi’s head. He blinked. “Shiokuro?”

Yamato was about to respond, when a ball of yellow light shot passed his face. “Karetu?” He spied a dark blue ball further in front of them. “Seiduka!”

Agumon X pointed to a ball of red light. “Asro.”

All four turned their eyes back to Cahiti/Lucemon. All six balls of light merged with the Demon King, and his body began to glow brightly, twisting and changing in shape. When the rainbow of light faded, instead of the fused human/angle digimon floating in the air, there was a massive black dragon holding within his arms a sphere of pure darkness. The dragon laughed in a deep voice, “Lucemon Satan Mode!”

Taichi stared in horror. “Oh shit!”

Lucemon Satan Mode roared loudly, flapping his giant wings with such force that Taichi, Yamato and their partners were flung through the air and passed through the perimeter of the island. They landed on a piece of the land that had become jarred loose and was now floating through the roaring sea. Giant bolts of lightning crackled across the sky, the wind roared and rain poured from the heavens. The black dragon was now flying towards them.

“Quick!” Taichi shouted, “We’ve got to evolve!”

“Agumon X evolve to Wargreymon X!”

“Gabumon X evolve to Metalgarurumon X!”

Taichi and Yamato fused with their partners, transforming into the powerful Mega digimon. They both floated into the air and watched as Lucemon Satan Mode came closer and closer. “All right,” Wargreymon X said, “You wanna start?”

“Sure, why not.” The metal wolf stared at the black dragon as it slowed to a stop a few feet before them. He whipped out his guns and pointed them at his enemy. But before he was able to call out his attack, Lucemon Satan Mode growled loudly and spoke in a deep voice dripping with hate.

“Purgatorial Flame!”

The dragon opened his mouth and fired a blast of pure, intense black flame that enveloped Metalgarurumon X and sent him crashing to the small island. Lucemon Satan Mode continued to poor out streams of flame, not allowing the wolf a chance to flee. Wargreymon X shot up to the dragon’s head and with a fully swing of his arm, sent his bladed gauntlets into the side of his head. He pulled his other arm around to do the same, but before he could, one of Lucemon Satan Mode’s wings smacked into him, sending him floating away. Before he could recover, the dragon’s tail whipped around, smashing him in the head and sending him spiraling to the ground. He was expecting to crash into the small island, but was surprised when he shot into water. After twisting himself around he shot through the water’s surface and glanced around. What he saw caused him to gasp in horror. There was no land mass left, only a few small fragments, as well as massive collections of data that was slowly vanishing into the air.

“Oh shit!” Wargreymon X shouted, staring at the vanishing planet, “We need to get out of here!”

“Two problems with that,” Metalgarurumon X said, “One, we’ve got to find a Digital Gate, and two…” He glanced over to Lucemon Satan Mode, where flames were starting to appear around his mouth, “…I don’t think he’s gonna let us leave!”

“Cahiti!” Wargreymon X shouted, “We need to leave! If the Digital World disappears, what’s gonna happen to us!”

The dragon pulled his head back and spewed out another stream of fire.“Purgatorial Flame!”

“He’s gone completely over the edge!” Metalgarurumon X shouted, “There’s nothing left to reason with!”

Lucemon Satan Mode’s intense flame attack once again propelled through the air. Both Mega digimon shot to the side and Lucemon Satan Mode’s attack struck the ocean below them, sending steam billowing into the air. Metalgarurumon X flew alongside the massive dragon and began to unleash countless rounds of bullets, but each and every one either did no damage, or simply bounced off.

On the other side, Wargreymon X used his bladed gauntlets to slash and tear, but to no avail. He eventually gave up and decided to attack more directly. He pulled his blade back then slammed it into the dragon’s thick hide as hard as he could. He was shocked when Lucemon Satan Mode gave no indication of being harmed. The dragon began to flap his wings rapidly as both Mega digimon were propelled away. Only a quick, forced twist of their bodies kept them from splashing into the water.

“This isn’t working,” Metalgarurumon X panted.

“I know,” Wargreymon X added, “We’ve got to kick it a notch!”

Lucemon Satan Mode roared as he began to flap his wings again. “All right,” Wargreymon X said, “Let’s go!”

Metalgarurumon X shot into the air, while Wargreymon X held up his palms and began to gather water into a giant ball above his head. The wolf digimon spread out his limbs and opened all of his missile chambers. “Garuru Burst!”

All of his missiles fired at once, spinning and twisting through the air before impacting Lucemon Satan Mode on all sides. Giant welts ripped across his scaly black skin.

Wargreymon X now held a massive ball of water above his head. He pulled his hands back, then threw the ball forward with all of his might. “Poseidon Force!”

The attack struck the dragon directly in the side, causing another giant welt to appear. Both digimon were about to cheer, when to their horror, they watched as Lucemon Satan Mode’s welts vanished and his skin was completely healed.

“Oh shit!” Metalgarurumon X gasped.

Wargreymon X growled. “All right, fine, I’ll just try something even stronger!” He flew to one of the floating fragments of land and landed in the center. He raised his hand and began to draw streams of lava from the rest of the remaining land masses, collecting them into a large ball of flame above his head. “Gaia Force!”

He flung the ball of flame at the dragon’s side, where it exploded upon impact. When the smoke cleared, a giant hole was visible. However, only moments later, the skin reformed and the dragon’s injury vanished.

“Damn it…” the dinosaur growled.

Lucemon Satan Mode began to flap his wings and seven circles of light appeared on his back. “What’s he doing now?” Metalgarurumon X asked.

“I don’t think we’re gonna want to know…” Wargreymon X answered.

The circles of light on the dragon’s back exploded, sending columns of light into the air, where they began to spread out quickly, encircling the two Mega digimon. As soon as the sphere of light was complete, both Mega digimon felt pain like nothing they had ever felt before shot through their bodies. They both screamed as loud as they possibly could, and soon the sphere of light turned to one of darkness….

-----------------------

The day was beautiful, the sky was a prefect blue, the sun was shining brightly, casting its rays down on the church below. Clouds were absent, birds were chirping, the trees were a multitude of green. It was a beautiful day.

Standing before the door, Taichi fingered at the tie around his neck. A hand slapped his away. “Stop that!”

He growled at Yamato. The blond man sighed. “You’re going to look pretty stupid standing there with a mess-up tie!”

“I hate these things,” he said.

“I thought you wore those all the time?” he asked.

“Just for meetings,” he replied.

A young man with curly hair ran over to them. He was dressed in a similar suit as Yamato and Taichi. “What are you two doing? Come on, the others are waiting!”

“What are you talking about?” Taichi asked.

Daisuke slapped him hard on the back. “How could you forget man? Let’s go!”

Yamato and Taichi shrugged and followed the younger man around to the side of the church building, where a large group of Chosen and their digimon partners were waiting. His mother was busy talking to his father, while Hikari. Catherine, Maria and Noriko were busy chatting to Miyako. Noriko’s skin was completely whole, Catherine’s hair was flowing in blond locks past her shoulders, and Maria had both of her legs and was standing proudly.

“You should see how she looks!” the purple-haired woman gasped, “That dress is so beautiful!”

Hikari giggled. “I can’t wait until my wedding day.” She glanced slightly over to where Takeru was standing next to Koushiro, Jyou, Iori and Ken. The blond man gave her an embarrassed wave before he looked over his shoulder.

“You guys made it,” he grinned.

Taichi turned to where Takeru was looking and saw another group of Chosen walking towards them. He recognized Yuri and Anna-who still had the bluest eyes he had ever seen, Dingo and Lynna, who was throwing both of her arms into the air, Keeya, who was waving with her right hand, and Iduia, who was grinning and breathing in the warm afternoon air.

“This is great,” the Brazilian Chosen said, “I don’t think there is a more beautiful day for this.”

“Thanks,” Taichi grinned.

“You look really handsome too,” Maria added, smiling.

He shrugged. “Yeah, well…”

“Don’t sell yourself short, man!” Dingo grinned, slamming his hand into his back, “This is gonna be the best day of your life!”

He grinned. “Yeah, yeah I guess it is.”

Koushiro walked over to him. “I am really happy for you.”

Taichi placed a hand on his shoulder. “Thanks man. You know, I don’t say this enough, but I’m really happy to have you as a friend.”

The redheaded man smiled and nodded. “Well, I only wonder how long you want to stay here.”

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“This place is perfect, it’s what you always wanted, but can you really leave everyone else behind? What about everyone that’s still counting on you? A perfect world…”

“But it isn’t real,” Taichi finished. He stared at the scene before him and frowned. “This isn’t real…”

---------------------------

Wargreymon X’s vision slowly returned as the howl of the wind shot past him. As he fully opened his eyes he realized that he and Metalgarurumon X were floating within a giant black void. He could see the dark and stormy sky above them, but he soon realized with horror what should have been where he was. “Oh no!” he gasped, “The Digital World…it’s gone! The land and water is completely gone!”

It was true. All that was left was a few floating fragments of land and collections of water. Puddles of magma were floating about as well.

There was a loud roar from overhead. He twisted his head around and saw Lucemon Satan Mode hovering above them. The giant dragon roared deeply once again, flapping his wings. Flames began to appear around his mouth once again.

“Purgatorial Flame!”

Lucemon Satan Mode’s attack shot towards Metalgarurumon X. Wargreymon X did not even think as he flew to his friend’s side, pushing him out of the way. The dinosaur would have been injured if he had not twisted out of the way at the last moment. The dragon’s attack flowed past him and shot into the void where it vanished.

“Oh that can’t be good,” he gasped.

“Oh man, my head…”

The dinosaur twisted around and saw Metalgarurumon X floating towards him, rubbing the back of his head. “What’s up man?” Wargreymon X nodded.

“Not much,” he said, “I see the land and sea are gone.”

“Yeah,” the dinosaur sighed, “We’ve got to get out of here as fast as we can.”

The dragon roared again and began to fly towards them. “As soon as we take care of this guy!” he shouted. Both Mega digimon shot out of the way seconds before Lucemon Satan Mode’s tail would have sliced them in half.

“Any ideas?” Metalgarurumon X asked.

“Just one,” he responded, “You see that ball he’s holding?”

“Yeah?”

“I bet he could pound us to within an inch of our lives if he could use his hands and feet, so why’s he soon determined to keep that ball there?”

The wolf nodded. “All right, what’s the plan?”

“We’ve got to gat a look inside there. I’m gonna distract him, you see if you can see anything.”

Metalgarurumon X nodded. “Right.”

Wargreymon X nodded in reply and shot into the air. He flew directly in front of the dragon’s face and jabbed him with his bladed gauntlet. He roared and attempted to bat him out of the way with his head, but the dinosaur kept twisting and turning to keep out of his reach. Meanwhile, Metalgarurumon X was able to fly to the dark ball and peer inside. He could only see a black swirl of darkness. He peered even deeper and did indeed see something floating inside; it resembled a cocoon-like creature with a sharp stinger at the end and a set of gold wings.

He pointed his arm weapon at the strange creature and fired. “Garuru Tomahawk!” The missile shot into the ball, impacting the creature and ejecting it out the other side.

“What the hell was that?” Wargreymon X shouted. Metalgarurumon X attempted to shout to him, but the dinosaur did not hear as Lucemon Satan Mode began to roar loudly. The ball crumbled and collapsed, revealing a large hole within the dragon’s chest; even more strange, there was nothing within the creature itself.

Yet, without the ball to hold, the dragon roared and thrashed his arms about in rage. “I think he lost what little mind he had left!” Metalgarurumon X shouted.

“I’ll handle it,” Wargreymon grinned. He once again raised his hands into the air and began to gather energy. This time, however, chucks of the land, the remaining water, the floating lava, even portions of the air gathered within a massive ball in his palms. He focused on the hole within the dragon and flung the ball forward.

“Take this! Gaia Force ZERO!”

The ball of elements and energy shot through the empty chest and impacted on the rear side. The dragon’s body exploded into data.

“Oh shit,” Metalgarurumon X sighed, “That had to be the hardest battle we…Look out!”

Wargreymon X spun around and saw the winged-larva form of Lucemon flying towards him, the stinger pointing forward. “Die!” it shouted.

The dinosaur had little time to react. He twisted his right arm around and pierced the larva’s entire body. Lucemon’s Larva form was stuck on the dinosaur’s blade, but he continued to twist, trying to impact his stinger into the warrior digimon’s chest. Wargreymon X pulled his left arm around, and with a quick slice of his second bladed gauntlet, cut the digimon in half. With a final scream, Cahiti and his Lucemon partner, in all of their forms, were gone.

They did not have time to celebrate, however, as the atmosphere began to vanish before their eyes. To their horror, they were able to see slivers of Digital Space pouring through. “I think this is it!” Metalgarurumon X shouted.

Wargreymon X grabbed his hand in a backwards handshake. “I want you to know there’s no one else I’d rather be with right now!”

“Likewise!” the wolf shouted.

Both Mega digimon held tightly to one another’s hand as the world disappeared around them.

---------------------------’

On Earth, the X-Chosen and the Daughters of the First nervously paced in front of the desktop in Jyou’s apartment. When they fled from the collapsing Digital World, they had all arrived there, and they were praying and hoping that their friends would return safely.

Sora and Maria sat on the couch, as neither one had their appropriate equipment to replace their missing lower limbs: Sora’s crutch and Maria’s wheelchair. The younger woman could clearly see that the redheaded woman was shaking. “It’s okay,” she smiled, “Taichi will be okay, he always is.”

Sora nodded slightly. “Yeah…yeah…”

Noriko was worried as well, and she had walked the same path on the carpet so many times, she had driven a steep rut into it. “Come on, Yamato, come on…”

The desktop screen began to flicker with light. Everyone held their breaths in anticipation, but as the desktop screen dimmed once again, everyone could guess what had happened.

“The Digital World’s gone, isn’t it?” Palmon X asked.

“I think so,” Iduia’s Kokuwamon responded.

Sora gasped, “Then…Taichi and Yamato are…”

The desktop computer suddenly exploded with light as four figure were ejected forcefully through the screen. Agumon X and Gabumon X skidded into the wall, while Taichi smashed into Jyou, and Yamato knocked Michael to the ground.

The entire apartment exploded in cheers and claps. Jyou and Yuri helped Taichi to his feet, while Michael and Dingo lifted Yamato to his feet. However, the blond man was thrown back to the floor when Noriko tackled him. Jyou and Yuri lifted carried Taichi to the couch and dropped him beside Sora.

“Taichi!” she cried, wrapping her arms around his neck.

Noriko’s Plotmon and Sora’s Piyomon were busy congratulating the two digimon partners as well. Plotmon was rubbing her head up against Gabumon X’s chest, while Piyomon was hugging Agumon X tightly.

“You were great!” she laughed. Agumon X could not respond, as his tongue was hanging out of his mouth and his eyes were swirling vortexes.

“I…I’m so tired,” Taichi said, his eyes struggling to stay open.

“It’s fine,” Sora laughed, tears starting to appear in her eyes, “You’re safe now.”

---------------------

Somewhere in a place surrounded by darkness, a mysterious being laughed. He raised his hands to the air. “So much destruction, so much pain. I can taste it, it is soothing to me.”

He smiled. “So, Cahiti, my most loyal pawn, you have been destroyed. But it matters not, you have already completed your mission, and I will soon have my freedom!”

The Book of Death hath ended, the Book of Shadows now begins.

Author’s note: Okay, this chapter didn’t take nearly as long as I thought it was going to. This ends not only the arc with the Demon Lords as the main villains, but the end of the Demon Lords as well. But this tale is not yet over.

And I thank you for all of the reviews. See ya next time.