Chapter 19: Bandit Raid

Sephyrus

Cyclamen City

 

The inside of the church was calm, tranquil, and cool. Outside, the screams of people filled the air. I sat alone in the church’s nave atop the altar as the front doors swung open. “Reportin’ in, sir,” a bandit walked up to me and saluted. “The third squad jus’ finished killin’ off everyone in dis miserable city.”

“Very good,” I said. “Nobody’s left alive, correct?”

“Well, a few small Digimon could have escaped without our notice, but we made sure to kill all da big ones, like ya said,” the bandit said.

“That shouldn’t be a problem,” I said. “The smaller ones generally don’t have enough of what I’m looking for. You did a good job.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Devimon…Abigail just had to go and murder you, didn’t she?! Well, no matter; there are other ways of acquiring what we all need.

“Oh, one other thing, sir,” the bandit said. “We found dis little girl hidin’ in a back room.” The bandit opened a door behind him, and in walked a small girl with blue hair.

“…Larraine…”

“Mr. Sephyrus…I’m scared…” The child looked absolutely traumatized; her eyes were wide and her face was stained with tears.

“What should we do with her, sir?” the bandit asked.

“Do not kill this one!” I said quickly. “Just…toss her out into the desert. She’ll be a nice little snack for a SkullScorpiomon or something.”

“Will do, sir,” the bandit said, giving Larraine a revolting grin. “You sure are an okay guy for a priestly guy, you know dat? I wouldn’t mind bowin’ my head at your church!” I laughed.

“Feel free to worship me all you like,” I said. “Regardless, I will have to take my leave of this…disgusting town now. You and your group may do whatever you like with it.”

“Oh, man, this’ll be great! This is just what bandits like us need; an entire city for us to call our own!” I quietly left the room, ignoring Larraine’s cries of protest and the annoying begging for her life that escaped from her mouth as she was carried out of the room by the bandit.

Thomas Kasuto

Yew

1 Hour

 

“Damn it, where is SlashAngemon?!” Statuedramon griped. “Apollomon didn’t even tell us where he and Irene would be waiting for us!”

“Maybe we’re in the wrong part of the city? It’s quite large, after all,” Zelda suggested.

“Yeah, I know…I just want to get out of here as soon as possible!” I looked over at Ienzo; he looked quite nervous, and his face was all pale and sweaty.

“Nobody is going to discover your identity; I promise,” I said.

“…Yeah…” Ienzo looked around Valencia nervously, giving everyone, Human and Digimon, a suspicious look as they passed by.

“Damn it, where is Irene hiding?!” Statuedramon asked. “This damn city is too damn BIG! We may never find her! Apollomon should’ve told us where she is!”

“That shouldn’t be necessary,” I said. “Irene is our scout, after all; finding things is her specialty. Besides, she’s been here more than anyone else in Lachesis with SlashAngemon. She should be finding us right about—”

“Now,” Irene said from behind me. Statch yelled and jumped when she spoke.

“Your tracking skills are as good as ever, Irene,” I said, turning around. “Where’s SlashAngemon?”

“He’s…on his way back to the castle,” Irene said. “He saw you coming…and he decided to head back…”

“My God…!” Ienzo stared intently at Irene. “You! You…So…beautiful! Surely I’ve been graced with a vision of heaven itself!” Irene’s face turned a deep red as she stepped behind me and Zelda. “And not just one, but I’ve been blessed with the presence of two celestial — nay, divine beauties…Oh, has the loving and beautiful Goddess Arcadia forgiven me for my previously erroneous ways?” At this point, Irene had completely buried her face against my arm.

“Hey, they’re a little young for you, don’t you think, old man?!” Statuedramon asked.

“Hmm…yes, I suppose you are correct,” Ienzo said. “And I’ll thank you not to call me ‘old man,’ Statuedramon; I am only thirty years old! Why, I’m sure that you’re even older than everyone here put together!” Ienzo looked at both Zelda and Irene. “Well, whatever; I’m a patient man; I can wait a few years…”

“Thomas, remind me why we’re trying to save this guy’s life again?” Statch asked.

“We’re protecting him because that was the job we were given,” I said. “Irene, where is it we need to go?”

“We’re taking him to…a town called Paeonia…east of here…near the Cyprus Desert…in Elphierr Territory…” Irene had taken her face away from my arm long enough to speak, though she did so quietly. “If we don’t want to cut through Yew…we’ll have to go through the Cyprus Desert…around the Adonis River…”

“I thought there was a bridge above the river near Mandrake Town,” Ienzo said.

“It’s been destroyed,” I said. “If you don’t want to be here any longer than you have to, then we have to go through the desert.”

“…I understand,” Ienzo said. “As long as we don’t have to be here any longer, I’m fine with it.”

Cyprus Desert

20 Minutes

 

“Haven’t been here in a while,” Statuedramon said.

“Yeah…the last time we were here was when we were leaving Cyclamen City…hopefully for the last time,” I said. Please, don’t make it necessary for me go back there again…

“And there it is, over there!” Statuedramon pointed at the dreaded city. I groaned. It was less than a mile away, and the outline of the buildings could easily be seen through the sand-filled wind.

“Thomas, there’s a Digimon approaching,” Irene said, looking over at Cyclamen as the form of a small Digimon got closer and closer. “Let’s see…it looks like a Poyomon…” The Digimon floated up to us, a frightened look on its face.

“How could you see it from that far away?” Ienzo asked.

“She’s our scout, remember? She’s got superb tracking skills, and she has the best eyesight of anyone around,” I said.

“What’s wrong?” Irene asked, holding out her small hands for the Poyomon to land in.

“Bandits…bandits came and they…they killed everyone!” Poyomon whimpered, and looked as though he was on the verge of tears. Hearing that that place was as rundown as Poyomon said it was filled me with an odd feeling of relief that I soon decided to ignore.  “I think they’re from Thanatos…I only just managed to escape, but not before everyone else was…”  

“There, there, little one; please don’t cry,” Irene whispered gently, placing her hand over the Poyomon’s head. “You’re safe with us, now.”

“Did he say Thanatos?” Ienzo asked. “As in…the strongest, most destructive group of bandits in all of Arcadia?! THAT Thanatos?!”

“How many other Thanatos do you know?!” Statuedramon asked. “…Thanatoses? ...Thanatie? Hmm….”

“We have to get out of here!” Ienzo said. “Before they notice us!”

“What should we do, Thomas?” Irene asked as the Poyomon flew out of her hands.

“Well, Statuedramon and I can go into the city and slit the throats of all those bandits if you and Ienzo are afraid of passing by Cyclamen unnoticed,” I said. “If we leave them be, it’s pretty likely that some of their own scouts would notice us passing by…and then come after us when we least expect them.”

“But if you went in, they’d notice you for sure!” Ienzo stated.

“It’s really not a big deal; Thomas and I have been fighting bandits like this for over five years,” Statuedramon said. “If you don’t feel safe walking past that city, we’ll make you feel safe.” I looked down at him as he spoke, and I smiled briefly. I knew he was smart and brave, but those traits were always overshadowed by his constant hunger and clumsiness.

Statuedramon…really is the best partner Digimon anyone could ever ask for.

Irene

Cyclamen City

10 Minutes

 

“Holy shit…this place is really run down!” Statuedramon said as the two of us entered the outskirts of the city first, followed quickly by Ienzo, Zelda, and Irene. “Are you sure you want to come with me? I know how much you hate this place…”

“I’ll be fine,” Thomas said. “The reason I didn’t want to come here was because…well, you remember that man that spoke to us? Everyone here was exactly like him…including my parents…” Statch nodded. “Well, they aren’t here now,” I pointed out. “No people, no problem.”

“Ah, yes. Say no more,” Statch said. “Well, we’ve been here for like, five minutes; how come none of those bandits have spotted us?!”

“They might all be in the same place,” Thomas said. “Don’t worry, Ienzo; I’ll make sure you and everyone else here remains unharmed.”

“…Thank you, Thomas,” Ienzo said. We continued to walk through Cyclamen, past the destroyed houses and building, past all the mutilated corpses, many of them missing their limbs of their heads, several of them jumbled together in a pile and the rest scattered here and there, rendered bloodied and unrecognizable by the various cuts and slashes from the bandits weapons, until we finally came to the large clearing at the center of town, which was filled with bandits, both Human and Digimon.

“Shall we?” Statch whispered. Thomas nodded. The two of them readied their swords and ran quietly toward the town’s center. They were instantly noticed, and two of the brigands, both Humans, ran at them, though all it accomplished was getting swords lodged deep into their stomachs. They screamed in pain as Thomas and Statuedramon hastily removed their weapons from inside their bodies, alerting the other Thanatos Bandits to our presence. More and more bandits rushed them, though they all suffered the same fate as the first two.

“All of you, ignore dem two!” one of the bandit Humans, who was most likely the leader of this relatively small group, said. “Go fer’ dem purdy ladies over dare!” The man pointed at Zelda and me.

“Damn you, if you so much as touch them, you’re dead!” Thomas yelled. The bandits, however, ignored him, and a small group of them ran in our direction.

“I sure hope this works,” Zelda said, pulling a talisman out of her satchel. “Come forth, Vajramon!” To my surprise, the talisman lit up as the luminous form of Vajramon appeared in front of Zelda, facing her.

“You require assistance, Milady?” Vajramon asked.

“Out of the way, cow! We don’t want your beef! We want that girl that called you up!” The same bandit that had spoken earlier pulled out a knife. “Each one of us here’s gonna enjoy her sweet, pleasurable company before we watch the blood come pouring from her neck!” At the words of their leader, most of the bandits began laughing, though some of them looked away in disgust. Vajramon’s ears twitched as their leader spoke, and, even from a slight distance, I could see his fists clench. The Ultimate Digimon then removed his two swords from their scabbards.

“Nobody...threatens...the lady!” Vajramon roared. He turned around quickly while swinging his two blades and fired a large energy beam that completely enveloped all the bandits in its light. When the attack faded, all the bandits lay on the ground, completely motionless. The Digimon had vanished from sight, and the Humans fell to the ground as charred corpses. Even though they had tried to harm me, seeing them all dead sent a chill down my spine. The smell of their burned flesh made my stomach churn violently, and I felt a nauseatingly sharp pain directly behind my navel that I had never felt before. Vajramon turned back around to face Zelda. “My dear lady, I do hope you remain unharmed. Those vile individuals have done nothing to harm you, have they?”

“No, we’re all okay,” Zelda smiled. “Thank you for coming, Vajramon.” The Ultimate Digimon smiled back at her.

“After that speech you gave me when I belonged to my previous Summoner, how could I refuse anything for you?” Vajramon asked. “If that is all, I will be taking my leave for now. Do not hesitate to contact me if there is anything else you need.” Vajramon became enveloped in light and disappeared.

“Zelda, that was incredible!” I said. My amazement at what Zelda was able to do had made all of my pain vanish in an instant. “I’ve never actually seen anyone do that before; I’m glad I had a chance to!”

“Thank you, Irene,” Zelda smiled at me as she returned Vajramon’s talisman to her satchel. “I’m glad I was able to help you.”

“This is the loudest I’ve ever heard you talk, Irene,” Statuedramon said. My face became red and flushed, and I looked down at the ground immediately.

“I….I’m sorry….” This embarrassment, on the other hand, was something that I was very much used to feeling.

“I think that was all of them,” Thomas said. “We were pretty loud, and no one else has shown up.”

“It’s getting late; we should continue onwards for now,” Statch said. He and Thomas took off, followed by Ienzo and Zelda. I, however, remained behind.

“…Thomas…Statuedramon…the two of you have gotten so powerful since I met you all those years ago,” I whispered sadly. Beside me, one of the bandits stirred, and suddenly jumped up. As soon as he noticed me, he ran toward me, brandishing a knife. The area instantly became illuminated by a bright light. When it vanished, the bandit lay still on his back with an arrow protruding from his chest. “However…I fear your journey has only just begun.” After a small sigh, I ran after my friends.

Chapter 18: Flames of Vengeance

Thomas Kasuto

Lachesis HQ

4 Hours

 

“We got back here just in time,” Statuedramon said, glancing up at the dark orange sky. He looked in vain for the sun, which was out of sight, hidden by the trees. “It’s a shame Adrian wouldn’t come back with us,” he said. The three of us walked through the fort’s entrance. “I just hope Chrysania doesn’t cry…”

“She seems so happy all the time; I didn’t know she could,” Zelda said.

“Yeah, I don’t blame you,” I said. “She’s always smiling, infectiously so, in spite of all the terrible things that have happened to her. She does cry, but she only does it when she thinks she’s alone.” After that, we all remained silent as we walked through the long corridor, soon reaching the lounge room.

“I see Apollomon in there,” Statch said. “Good; that’ll save us the trouble of having to look for him or wait for him to get back from a job.” As we entered the room, Apollomon turned his head and smiled at us while waving for us to go over to him.

“Our honored guests have returned,” Apollomon said, motioning his hand at the three people who stood next to him.

“Oh, great…they’re back…” Statch moaned disappointedly when he noticed Saias and Lector. Standing behind them was a short old man with a hideously swollen face, as if he had been punched one too many times. When he saw us, he grinned widely, showing that he was missing a few teeth. As soon as he smiled, I noticed Zelda instantly hid behind me, which was when I noticed the old man had been staring at her. I felt the sudden urge to punch the old man, and knock out the rest of his teeth. However, I could not tell where this sudden feeling came from.

“We apologize for the inconvenience, Sir Statuedramon, but our visit is an urgent one,” Lector said.

“Aren’t you going to introduce us to your…friend there?” Statuedramon asked, giving the old man a strange, slightly repulsed look. The old man, however, continued to smile.

“Oh, yes, forgive my rudeness; this man here is named Braig,” Saias looked down at the old man. “He works with us at the military. I guess you could can say he’s…been hired by our superiors as a replacement for Ienzo.”

“Ienzo?! But he—” I quickly grabbed Statuedramon’s snout and held it tightly shut to keep him from talking.  I glanced up at the still-smiling Braig, and Statch quit squirming.

If he’s doing Ienzo’s work…and he’s smiling like that…I shook my head. This man…cannot be trusted.

“May I ask what business it was that brought you here?” I asked, hoping my voice sounded calm.

“Do you perchance remember the Digimon we told you about the last time we were here?” Saias asked.

“The one that can kill Mega Digimon and make it look easy?” I asked. Saias nodded.

“His name is Flamedramon. We were told he was heading toward Nymphaea Province; at the time we told you about him, that was what we believed to be true. However, last night…one of our armories was destroyed. It appears to have been arson.”

“…And you think Flamedramon was behind this?” I asked.

“We have a few eyewitness reports of a Digimon matching Flamedramon’s description near the armory. All those in the building at the time of the arson were killed,” Lector said. “Naturally, our superiors and comrades thought it was you lot who burned the armory; either that, or they think Flamedramon is working for you at Lachesis, but the two of us know better than to think that.”

“We’re here because we want you to go find Ienzo for us,” Saias said. “Find him and bring him back with you. Knock him unconscious if you must, but do not leave without him. It seems a vast majority of the deaths caused by Flamedramon are related to the Valencian Military, so it is possible Flamedramon knows of Ienzo’s involvement with the Valencian military, and it is urgent that we place Ienzo under our protection as soon as possible.”

“We would’ve gone ourselves, but we had a feeling some of the other knights could’ve found this place; some of them think it was you who burned that armory, so there’s no telling what they would do if they found this place,” Lector said.

“So, you’re here to protect us?” Zelda asked.

“We shall do our utmost best, Milady,” Saias said.

“Since this is an emergency, I’ve told them they wouldn’t have to worry about payment,” Apollomon said. “And I would like for the three of you to do this job.”

“Is he insane?!” Statuedramon whispered through his clamped snout. “But I want money….”

“When you find Ienzo, go to Yew and find Irene and SlashAngemon,” Apollomon said. “I’ve told her the location of a hiding spot for us to hide Ienzo; these two will be going there when you come back,” Apollomon looked at Saias and Lector.

“We’ll see to it that he’s safe,” Saias said.

“You three had best leave before Flamedramon finds him,” Apollomon said. “Remember, if he burned an armory in Yew, then he’s very close by, and there’s no telling what will happen when you find him.”

“We’ll be careful, Sir,” I said as the three of us hastily left the fort once again.

Lotisea

1 Hour

 

“His house was around here somewhere, wasn’t it?” I asked, looking around the forest.

“Thomas, I think I see it!” Statuedramon pointed into the trees. “Right over between those two thick trees, covered in flames…wait, flames?! I don’t think those were there last time…”

“That must’ve been Flamedramon,” I said. “I’m going in; you two, wait here!” I ran up to the house, noticing the door had been forcibly removed from its hinges. I looked into the house’s one room, and through the smoke and fire, I could see Ienzo sitting calmly at his table, casually taking a sip from a cup of coffee. “Ienzo, what the hell are you doing?! Get out of here!”

“Oh…hey, Thomas…So, you came back…” Ienzo smiled when he saw me. “I’m fine; you don’t have to worry about me. This is…what I wanted, remember? A way to end my suffering…” I ran into the house and grabbed Ienzo’s arm just as he fell out of his chair.

“Sorry, but you aren’t dying that easily!” I yanked him out the front door of his house. All of his limbs were completely limp, and he had a half-awake gaze in his eyes. He walked with me, and didn’t try to fight against me, but it was almost as though I had to drag him out of his burning house.

“Are you two okay?!” Statuedramon yelled. He began to cough violently as he ran up to the burning house, receiving a faceful of thick, black smoke in the process.

“Yeah…we’ll be fine…” I continued to drag Ienzo farther and farther away from his house, tightly gripping his arm in case he decided to run back in. “Can you believe this guy?! His house is on fire, and he just sits at his table drinking a cup of fucking coffee!”

“You know, they say you aren’t supposed to be in a house when there’s a blazing inferno inside, but it wasn’t actually that bad,” Ienzo sighed.

“Come on, we’re taking you back to Yew,” I said.

“WHAT?! No! No, I’m NOT going back there!” Ienzo struggled against my grip, but when he couldn’t break free, he stopped.

“And when we get you to Yew, our comrade is going to take you far away from both the military and Flamedramon,” Statuedramon said.

“So, where am I going, if not Yew?” Ienzo’s voice sounded calmer.

“We haven’t been told; it was Saias’s and Lector’s idea, so you can relax; nobody’s going to make you go back,” Zelda said, giving the worried man a reassuring smile.

“Ienzo, you coward! You told me you wanted to die, and yet here I find you, running away!” the three of us looked around, trying to find who had just spoken.

“Sorry, this wasn’t my idea,” Ienzo said. “If these guys hadn’t come, I really would have stayed in that fire! Honest!”

“So you say…instead of burning down your house, hoping you’ll die, how about I actually kill you this time?!”

“No, please! I…I don’t want to die anymore!” Ienzo shouted. The man cringed and cowered behind me.

“…You sicken me, Ienzo. Doing what you did…And now, after all of your indulgence in self-pity, you dare beg for mercy?!”

“Who’s there?!” Statuedramon yelled. “Show yourself!!!”

“We’ve been ordered to keep this man safe and alive; we won’t allow harm to come to him!” I drew my sword from its scabbard.

“You mean to face me? I’d like to see how long you last!” A Digimon leapt from the trees of Lotisea’s jungle and landed in front of us.

“By Goddess Arcadia…It’s him!” Statuedramon said quietly. “Flamedramon!”   

“So, you’ve heard of me,” Flamedramon said. “I’m so FLATTERED!” Flamedramon raised his claws and released streams of flames from the palms of his claws, surrounding us in a ring of fire. “For you, there is no escape; there will only be death.”

“Why?! What have we done to you to deserve death?!” Statuedramon asked. “We’ve never even met before!”

“…I’ve been long rejected by this world, and even killed for it once. Even so, someone or something was gracious enough to allow me to live on in this form,” Flamedramon said. “If I am going to be rejected by others, then I shall reject them; by destroying every living being on Arcadia!”

“That doesn’t give you the right to murder every living thing that you meet!” I yelled. “You’re just lashing it out against total strangers because something didn’t go your way!”

“Shut up! You don’t know anything! Flame Fist!”

“Dimensional Shield!” As Flamedramon shot a large fireball from his hands, Statuedramon leapt in front of me, sending Flamedramon’s attack into the mouth of his shield. “Sword of Dragon’s Soul!” Statch swung his sword, releasing a fiery projection from it at Flamedramon. However, the Dragon Man Digimon leapt up and out of the way of the attack and landed behind Statuedramon. “Damn it, stay still!” As Statch prepared to turn around and swing his sword, Flamedramon kicked him in the back, knocking him over.

“You will be the first to go!” Flamedramon formed another fireball in his hands, aiming it at Statuedramon. I ran over to Flamedramon, my sword brandished, but before I could make it, Flamedramon leaped away as a large axe flew past, landing blade-first on the ground.

“Sorry, but I ain’t about to let ya’ kill anyone here,” Garret walked over to and picked up his axe, pointing it at Flamedramon.

“Garret, you jackass, you nearly hit me!” Statuedramon yelled.

“Sorry ‘bout that, but at least I got this bastard away from you.” Garret glared at Flamedramon.

“So…another Human wishes to test his strength against me,” Flamedramon said. “Go on; bring on as many Humans and Digimon as you’d like; none of them will be sufficient enough to best me in combat!”

“Oh, you’re quite right; ordinary Humans and Digimon don’t stand a chance against you, Flamedramon,” Garret said. The man grinned. “Ordinary people don’t.”

“Why are you here, Garret? Did Apollomon send you?” I asked. And what does he mean by ordinary? Is it just his ego talking?

“Yeah, he wanted me to make sure this bastard didn’t interfere with anything,” Garret pointed at Flamedramon.

“Where…is MetalEtemon?” Statuedramon asked. Garret sighed happily.

“…You know that man that was with the two knights? Braig?” Nobody answered, so Garret turned around to face us, grinning sardonically at us. “That man…he can do some pretty amazing things; why, with just one tiny, insignificant sacrifice, he made me the most powerful being in existence!” Garret reached into the pocket of his coat and pulled something out. “Do you know what this is?” Again, nobody answered. “This is called…a Digivice. That man Braig invented them; there are a lot of different kinds of them, too, each with their own different and unique powers! This one in particular is called a Bio Link Digivice; it allows a Human to turn into a Digimon.”

“A Human…turning into a Digimon?” Flamedramon asked. “What kind of sorcery does that Human possess?!”

“Just watch and I’ll show you! Bio-Hybrid D.N.A. Charge!” Garret slammed the palm of his hand over the top of his Digivice, and instantly, he became enveloped in a bright light.

“That’s…the light of Digivolution!” I gasped.

“What the hell is going on?!” Statuedramon asked.

“Bio-Hybrid Digivolve to, BioMetalEtemon!” Just as if he had Digivolved, where Garret stood was now a Digimon. All of us, even Flamedramon, stared blankly at what had just happened. “Oh yeah, now this is power! That Braig is a miracle worker!”

“You can…turn into MetalEtemon?” I asked. “How? How did you do that?!”

“Oh, it was simple, really; all I had to do was kill MetalEtemon; after that, Braig took his data and injected it into my blood!” BioMetalEtemon began laughing maniacally; cracking his knuckles, he turned to face Flamedramon. “This Bio Link thingy allows me to use the data he injected into me to become MetalEtemon! Isn’t that neat?!”

“You…killed your own Digimon partner?!” Zelda yelled tearfully.

“How could you do that?! He was your friend! He was your only…friend!” Statuedramon yelled.

“So what? Friends are only stepping stones to true power,” BioMetalEtemon walked over to the still stunned Flamedramon. “Oh, I’m going to make you scream, you little bastard! Metal Punch!” Flamedramon ducked out of the way of BioMetalEtemon’s fist and jabbed his claw into the Digimon’s face, releasing a stream of flames through the back of his head. BioMetalEtemon fell backward, becoming once again enveloped in the light of Digivolution. BioMetalEtemon disappeared, leaving Garret’s still, lifeless body behind, with a gaping, bloody hole where his face should have been was seeping with blood being the only thing I could notice.

That’s the power…this is the kind of power Flamedramon possesses?!

“Fool; I see now that the man you speak of is no miracle worker,” Flamedramon walked through Garret’s blood and approached us. “He takes life and twists it into an unfathomable and demented creation of his. Is that a feat which you people see as something miraculous?!”

No…there’s no way…Garret can’t be dead! Flamedramon walked closer and closer to us, a small flame twisting around his left claw, which he raised slowly into the air.

“My flames consume all there is to consume; there is no hope for escape.” Flamedramon began enveloping himself in flames while running toward us. “And soon, the entire world shall go down in flames!”

“Double Backhand!” Out of nowhere, BlackGaomon jumped and punched the side of Flamedramon’s head, knocking him over.

“Ah you all okay?” Pheragas ran over to us, though stopped when he saw Garret’s body. “…Vut…Flamedramon…did you do dis to our comrade?!”

“And if I did?” Flamedramon stood back up.

“Thomas, go now!” Pheragas shouted, BlackGaomon standing beside him. “Take Ienzo and go to Yew; vind Irene as soon as you can!”

“But, Pheragas, what about you?!” Statch asked.

“You really think you two will distract me long enough for the others to escape?” Flamedramon asked.

“Do not underestimate me; I may be little more dan a Human to you, but I’m strong enough to hold my own against my guild’s leader, Apollomon,” Pheragas brandished his enormous axe and swung it through the air.

“Really? So, there really are Humans as strong as Digimon like that,” Flamedramon said, sounding almost interested.

“You’d better believe he’s that strong; I’ve seen him uproot a tree with nothing but his bare hands!” Statuedramon said.

“Statuedramon, dat vas a tweeg,” Pheragas said. “I vas picking it up off of de floor so Chrysania vould not trip over it.”

“Oh…well…he is strong enough to uproot a tree with his bare hands!” Statch said vehemently.

“I may not look like much, either, murderer,” BlackGaomon said spitefully. “But I’m the fastest Digimon you may ever encounter!”

“Come on, we should go, like he said,” I grabbed Zelda’s and Ienzo’s hands and ran in north, toward Yew.

“Pheragas!” Statuedramon shouted.

“Just go! I’ll be vine, little vun!” Pheragas shouted, and reluctantly, Statch began running after me.

Pheragas

 

“Very noble of you to send those four away,” Flamedramon said. “Rest assured, once I have finished with the two of you, I will track those four down, and I will slaughter all of them!”

“Only if you make it past the two of us; Rolling Upper!”

“Fire Rocket!” BlackGaomon and Flamedramon’s attacks collided; BlackGaomon was sent flying backwards from the force of Flamedramon’s attack, colliding into my torso, knocking me over. “Show me! Show me the true extent of your power, Human!”

“Trust me, that isn’t something you want to see!” BlackGaomon said as he climbed off of me. I got back up to my feet and picked up my enormous axe.

“If you believe yourselves to be truly capable of defeating me, then prove it!” Flamedramon shouted. “Otherwise, quit wasting my time! Fire Rocket!” Flamedramon, while covered in flames, launched himself at me, and when he was within striking range, I swung my axe. My strike eliminated the flames covering his body and sent the Digimon flying across the air before he hit the ground.

“Nicely done; you got him!” BlackGaomon cheered.

“No; not yet,” I said. “‘e lives still; in vact, I barely ‘it ‘im. Do you see any blood on de ground?” BlackGaomon looked at the ground, noticing that the only blood was leaking from Garret’s face.

“Not…bad…” Flamedramon stood up, his hand pressed against his right arm. “If you had hit…my head…or my body…I would have died…”

“See?! I told you there was nobody stronger than Pheragas!” BlackGaomon boasted.

“However…I cannot stop…until the entire world goes down in flames!”

“Vhy do you do dis, Flamedramon?” I asked. “Surely, you must have a reason for vanting to kill everybody.”

“My reasons…are no concern of yours! Flame Fist!” Flamedramon launched a fireball at BlackGaomon.

“Hah; you think that scares me?!” BlackGaomon boldly asked. “I’ve been hit by more powerful fire attacks from—”

“BlackGaomon, vatch out!” Just before my partner was hit, I jumped in front of him, getting hit by the fireball in the chest. The pain was intense, and the attack was much more powerful than any I had ever felt from any Digimon, even Apollomon.

“Pheragas, are you okay?!” BlackGaomon asked as I collapsed to my knees, clutching my burnt chest in pain.

“Be careful…BlackGaomon,” I gasped. “Dis vun is…almost as strong as Apollomon…maybe even stronger…”

“Now, perish, inferiors! Flame—”

“Arrow of Artemis!” As Flamedramon prepared to attack the two of us, a storm of arrows rained down around Flamedramon. Unfortunately, he was somehow able to dodge them all, but he halted his attack to look for who had attacked him. “Flamedramon…what you say is completely illogical,” Dianamon said as she walked up to the shorter Digimon. “Wishing to destroy every living being for a reason you refuse to disclose leads one to believe that you have no reason.”

“How dare you?! I have been rejected my entire life, so now I reject everyone else!” Flamedramon shouted.

“So you go around the continent murdering everyone?” Dianamon asked.

“Shut up! I was murdered a long time ago by them, but I have been graciously given another chance at life! I don’t know who would have done that for me, or why I was given another chance, but I understand that I must eradicate all life on Arcadia before mankind makes any more mistakes!”

“It is as I said,” Dianamon sighed. “You are a completely irrational being; allowing you to survive would be disastrous to everyone. Crescent Harken!” Dianamon swung her hook at Flamedramon, but before she hit him, he jumped away and into the trees, out of sight. “Damn it, he’s gone…”

“Do not despair…ve ‘ave not seen de last of ‘im,” I coughed.

“Pheragas, are you okay?!” Dianamon ran to my side.

“I shall be fine…just how many of us did Apollomon send after dose kids?” I asked.

“You know he doesn’t like taking chances,” Dianamon said. “Can you stand?”

“He was hit pretty hard by one of Flamedramon’s fireballs,” BlackGaomon said. Dianamon grabbed my arm and hoisted me off the ground.

“That burn looks pretty bad,” Dianamon said, looking at my burnt chest and shirt. “I don’t know if Luna will be able to do anything for you…”

“Do not vorry about dat,” I said. “Let us go back to de fort. Thomas and de oders are searching for Irene in Yew as ve speak.”

Vajramon

 

 

A blue armored Vajramon. A Digimon Spirit whose Talisman was previously in the hands of a greedy and selfish bandit, Vajramon now serves Zelda.

 

Theme: Truth, Despair, and Hope

Adrian

 

 

 

 hair color: black
 eye color: black
 age: 29
 height: 6'00"
 weight: 186
 likes: abigail
 dislikes: being screwed over
 theme: Binding Vow
 bio
 Once upon a time, Adrian was a member of Lachesis, where he was good friends with Garret. One night, he was dragged away by Valencian Knights, and taken to an undisclosed location.

Abigail

 

 

 hair color: blonde
 eye color: red
 age: 30
 height: 5'08"
 weight: 132
 likes: cold weather
 dislikes: warm weather
 theme: Who's There?
 bio
 A young woman with beauty on par with Luna, Abigail was first encountered by Thomas in their hometown of Cyclamen.

Chapter 17: Grim Reunion

Zelda

Mandrake Town

Celosia Province

 

“Come forth, Vajramon!” the man held his talisman up to the sky just as I had done, and the form of Vajramon appeared before him. This Vajramon, as opposed to others of his species, wore blue armor instead of the usual red armor. “Do be so kind as to eliminate these…pests.” Vajramon looked down at the astral form of Renamon standing in front of me. Her bushy tail twitched anxiously, and the soft, golden fur that coated it stood up on ends.

“This girl…is she also a Summoner?” Vajramon asked.

“Yes, she is; is there a problem?!” Vajramon’s owner asked. The large Ultimate shook his head. “Good; now, they’d better not be here when I get back!” The bandit walked off without taking another look back.

“It is the duty of us that are summoned to obey the orders of those who summon us, no matter who they might be…” Vajramon removed his two giant swords from their sheaths.

“I couldn’t agree more,” Renamon said. “Now if only Gallantmon thought the same way…” Renamon briefly glanced at me over her shoulder. Vajramon suddenly gasped.

“You…Are you perchance the young lady I’ve heard of? You are the owner of Gallantmon’s talisman?” Vajramon asked.

“Why does it matter?!” Statuedramon asked, stepping between Vajramon and me and raising his shield.

“Gallantmon…is one of the most powerful species of Digimon in existence,” Vajramon said. “For one such as him to have died is inconceivable, and yet his lust for battle and destruction has allowed him to live on, so to speak, as nothing more than a spirit, ready to be summoned by whoever is fortunate enough to have stumbled upon his Digimon Talisman.”

“I wouldn’t exactly call her situation ‘fortunate,’” Renamon snorted.

“Yes…I am well aware of Gallantmon’s volatile behavior. In the realm where Digimon Spirits like Renamon and I reside, there has been much talk about his utterly disgraceful behavior, and many Digimon Spirits, including me, have come to truly pity this sad state of affairs you seem to have landed yourself in. They’ve heard stories of your kindness and your gentle demeanor, and they eagerly await the day their talismans fall into your hands so as to make up for Gallantmon.”

“…I…see…I…I had no idea any other Spirits had heard of me,” I whispered. I felt my face become ablush with slight embarrassment, but also a warm joy that filled my heart. I looked up at Vajramon and smiled at him. “But Vajramon, you have to know that I don’t consider myself unlucky or anything similar because Gallantmon won’t listen to me; I consider him a dear and invaluable friend, just as I do Renamon, and Thomas and Statuedramon, and everyone at Lachesis where I work.”

“You…actually consider him a friend?” Vajramon asked. “But…it is the duty of Spirits like me to do whatever is ordered of us by those who summoned us; Gallantmon refuses!”

“I am aware, Vajramon; even so, if anything bad happened to him…if he were to disappear and I were never to see him again…I can’t even bear the thought of it…”

“Vajramon, you keep saying it is the duty of Spirits like you and me to do whatever is asked of us,” Renamon said. “Yet, in spite of this, you have yet to do so; your master ordered you to attack, and all you’ve done is talk.” Vajramon sadly looked toward the ground as he slowly crossed his two giant blades.

“Yes…Please…forgive me,” Vajramon whispered. “Deva Blade!” Vajramon crossed his blades and fired an x-shaped energy beam at Renamon, who engulfed her fist in blue flames and punched through Vajramon’s attack, making it disperse and shatter.

“You’ll have to do better than that if you wish to stop me; I AM a spirit, just like you, after all. We’re built stronger than other Digimon of our species,” Renamon said.

“I’m well aware of that,” Vajramon said, placing his swords back into their sheaths. “I fully intend to use every ounce of my strength to fight for my master…Such is the fate of us spirits…”

“You don’t sound all that happy about it,” I said. “I don’t blame you; your owner isn’t a good person. Back when you used to be alive, you must’ve detested such people.”

“…You are correct. I dedicated my entire to life fighting such people, and was killed by a man almost exactly like my owner…and the fact that my soul belongs to such an inhumane son of a—”

“If you’re unhappy with your situation, why don’t you leave your ‘master?’” Renamon asked. “It’s not as if we spirits have a contract with whoever summons us; we just do whatever is asked of us by whoever summons us out of obligation, similar to genies being called from a magic lamp.”

“But…my owner, he’s…there’s no way my talisman could ever be taken from him…” Vajramon said. “And you!” Vajramon pointed at me “Why do you consider us Spirits to be your friends?! Spirits aren’t alive! We’re just tools for Humans and Digimon to use whenever they want; we’re weapons! No soldier would ever take time to talk to his or her weapon, would they?!”

“That’s a ridiculous question,” I said. “I don’t consider you or Renamon to be weapons. Sure, you all may have died, and you may feel obligated to do what is ordered of you, but Digimon Spirits all have memories of when they were alive…they have feelings, and they each have their own personalities. In a way, there’s really no difference between Spirit Digimon and living Digimon.”

“…136 years I’ve had my soul trapped in a talisman…not once, even when I was still alive, have I ever met anybody like you,” Vajramon said. “Even though I risked my life protecting people from bandits like my current owner, I still detested those who I protected because I knew that there was not a single living being that was not, to some degree, selfish.” Vajramon looked over in the direction his owner had walked. “But you…even though we’ve been long deceased, you still continue to treat us as if we were still alive.” Vajramon looked back at Renamon and me. “What…should I do? I can’t…fight you…it is my master that needs to be vanquished, not someone kind and truly selfless like you.”

“It’s like I said earlier,” Renamon said. “We spirits are not under any contract with whomever summons us; it’s more like we’re obliged to do so out of appreciation for having been summoned. We are not, under any circumstances, forced to do whatever those who summon us order.” Vajramon began steadily looking down at the ground.

“Are these assholes still here?!” Vajramon’s summoner asked, walking out from an alleyway riddled with debris.

“Forgive me, but…I am unable to bring myself to harm either this girl or her Digimon Spirit,” Vajramon said.

“You can’t bring yourself to do it?! How would you know?! You’re dead! You don’t have feelings! Just do what I tell you!” the bandit yelled. Vajramon stood staring at his summoner. “Fine, I get it; don’t like hitting girls, eh? No problem; I’ll dispose of them, you get the other two.” The bandit jerked his thumb over at Thomas and Statuedramon.

“They are…friends of yours?” Vajramon asked me.

“Yes, they are,” I said. “They were the first friends I made that weren’t spirits…and they’re my….best…friends…” I whispered the last part in a shaky voice.

“…I see.” Vajramon once again removed a sword from its sheath and pointed it at his summoner.

“What is this?!” he asked. “You turning on me?!”

“I can no longer allow myself to follow the orders of one like you!” Vajramon said. “When I was alive, I dedicated my life to eradicating Arcadia of scum like you!”

“Fine; then get your worthless ass back in here!” Vajramon’s summoner held up his talisman, which began to shine a bright light on Vajramon, who suddenly disappeared. “You worthless piece of crap!” the man tossed Vajramon’s talisman over his shoulder. “I can handle you three all by myself!” The man cracked his knuckles and raised an arm, ready to attack, when his arm was unexpectedly grabbed from behind by another person and painfully restrained behind his back. The bandit fell to his knees, revealing that the person who had restrained him was a man roughly the same size as him, though he was wearing a shirt and had short, black hair. I could hear Thomas and Statuedramon gasp when they saw the man’s face.

Thomas Kasuto

 

“Adrian?! Is that you, Adrian?!” Statuedramon gasped. The man looked over in the Rookie’s direction, smiling when he saw him and Thomas.

“It’s been a while, you two; how’ve you been?” he asked.

“How have we been?! You’re gone for about four years, and that’s the first thing you have to say to us?!” Statuedramon yelled.

“Yeah…I’m sorry I made you worry,” Adrian laughed nervously.

“Let go of me, damn it!” the bandit yelled weakly, struggling against Adrian’s grip.

“How did you escape? Garret said the last time he saw you, the Valencian Knights were dragging your blood-drenched body off into a forest,” I said. “We…never thought we’d see you again…”

“Come on, kid; you underestimate me,” Adrian laughed. “I’m a master of hand-to-hand combat! Anyway, how is everyone else doing? What’s Garret been up to? Is he being a total dickass as usual?”

“You expected otherwise?” Statuedramon asked. Adrian laughed.

“No, I guess not…”

“I think my arm is broken…” the bandit moaned. He had continued to make attempts to stand up, but he found that he could not.

“And you…you must be new to Lachesis,” Adrian looked over at Zelda and Renamon.

“Yes; my name is Zelda. I’m pleased to finally meet you,” Zelda said. “I…Yesterday, Thomas told me about what happened to you…”

“Well, personally, I’m just as surprised that I’m still alive as all of you are; pleased, but surprised nonetheless,” Adrian said, completely ignoring the squirming bandit. “And you must be Zelda’s partner Digimon, right? No, wait…you look a little different than Statch…” Adrian looked back over at Zelda. “Are you a Summoner?”

“…How could you tell?” Zelda asked.

“Well, for starters, Renamon here looks to be more transparent than Statch, and it almost it looks as though she’s glowing; it’s not easy to see, however,” Adrian said. “I’ve met a couple of Summoners in the past, so I can tell if a Digimon is a Spirit or not just by looking.”

“I haven’t been with Lachesis very long; just a few days,” Zelda said. “I’ve been looking for my sister for a while, and when I met Thomas and Statuedramon while they were doing a job, they were kind enough to allow me to join them.”

“We wouldn’t be standing here if it weren’t for Zelda; she and her Summoning ability have saved our lives on many occasions,” I said.

“A Summoner, huh? That’s just amazing…so Lachesis finally has somebody with a talent as rare as yours,” Adrian said breathlessly as he looked over at Zelda.

“I think I’m dying…” the bandit moaned, having stopped attempting to struggle against Adrian’s grip.

“Nobody cares!” Statuedramon yelled.

“Everyone…everybody there believed you were alive this whole time — even Garret,” I said. “Now, you can come back with us and prove them all right…” 

“Well…I’m afraid I can’t…” Adrian said. “As much as I’d love to see everyone again — especially Luna, if you know what I mean — I’m afraid I can’t go back with you; at least, not yet. I, uh, have…a few things I need to take care of. When I’m done, though, I’ll make sure to come running over as fast as I can.”

“What is it you need to do? Is there anything we can do to help you so you can come back sooner?” Statuedramon asked.

“I’m afraid I can’t tell you, little buddy,” Adrian said. “It’s kind of a top-secret thing.”

“Don’t call me little; only Chrysania is allowed to call me that,” Statch said defensively. “After all, BlackGaomon and I are the only ones there who are shorter than her…”

“Ah, Chrysania…I’ve missed seeing that cute smiling face every day,” Adrian said. “Well, give everyone my best, and tell them I’ll be back soon.” Adrian looked down at the bandit he was still holding tightly onto. “Don’t worry about this guy; I’ll make sure that he’s…properly taken care of.” With a final look over his shoulder, Adrian waved goodbye as he walked off, unceremoniously dragging the protesting bandit through the dirt behind him.

“We’ll meet again…Adrian…” As our friend vanished from sight, we too prepared to leave the town. “…With the bandit gone, there’s nothing left to do here. We should start heading back home.”

“Wait!” Zelda said, running into an alleyway. “I just need to get something…” After looking down at the cluttered pavement of the alley, she knelt down and picked something up.

“Is that…Vajramon’s talisman?” Statuedramon asked.

“Yes…I just wanted to give him a good home; I hope I’ll do.” Zelda placed Vajramon’s talisman into her satchel. “I’m sorry I made you two wait; let’s go.”

Adrian

Yew

3 Hours

 

I sighed with exhaustion as I opened the door of an ordinary-looking building and walked inside to see that the ordinary-looking bar hadn’t changed in the slightest since my last visit a few months ago. To my relief, the interior of the bar was completely devoid of any other people, save for a woman sitting at the bar’s counter that I immediately recognized; she had long blond hair and was garbed in a black cape.

“I’m back, Abby,” I said. The woman turned around, smiling as she saw me. “You miss me, pretty lady?”

“WAY too familiar there, Adrian,” the woman said. Her smile vanished and was replaced with a stern glare. “And call me by my entire name, if you don’t mind.”

“Fine, fine; apologies, Abigail,” I sat down at the bar next to her.

“So, how was the trip?” Abigail asked. “Did you discover anything intriguing?”

“Well, apparently, there’s a new girl at Lachesis; a Summoner,” I said. “Kinda cute, too; looked like she could be your younger sister, Abby—er, Abigail.”

“So, she’s joined up with them, has she?” Abigail stretched her arms up above her head and yawned. “Shouldn’t be THAT big of a deal…though, I did hear a conversation or two between her and that bastard she’s always with; about how Digimon notice something different about her…like they do with us.”

“Like they do with us…you thinking she might be—”

“I doubt it,” Abigail quickly interrupted me. “At least, if she is, she’s not aware of it, and being one of us is kind of difficult not to notice. She’s probably just…something else entirely…no cause for alarm…” Abigail leaned back on her stool, resting her back on the bar’s counter behind her with her hands folded neatly and resting on top of her belly. “So, did you make any more…enlightening discoveries?” Abigail whispered the last part in a seductive manner.

“Not much…well, I did find a rather strong bandit while I was in Mandrake Town; I brought him back with me and immediately took him to Braig.” Abigail shot back up and glared at me.

“You took an outsider to Braig without the master’s consent?!” she hissed at me. “How could you be so stupid, Adrian?! What if he escapes?! Our entire operation could be ruined!”

“Come on, you of all people should know that we need as many pawns as we can get our claws on. Besides, I’d beaten the man to a pulp before taking him to Braig; there’s no way anything could possibly go wrong,” I protested. “And, if Braig succeeds, then we shall have our sixth pawn…”

“…And if Braig were to fail?” Abigail asked, a smile forming on her beautiful red lips.

“Well, if he fails, then Andy will be getting a new friend,” I laughed.

“Andy…? Oh, him…Adrian, you really need to start calling people by their real names,” Abigail said.

“What do you expect? I can’t remember Andy’s entire name! It’s too long!” I protested. Abigail laughed. “I also heard a few more rumors about our fiery friend,” I said cryptically.

“Flamedramon?”

“The one and only,” I replied. “Well, technically, there are more than one Flamedramon in Arcadia, but you know what I mean.”

“What did you hear about him?” Abigail’s voice sounded impatient.

“I’ve heard rumors that he’s headed to the north,” I said. “A few surviving eyewitnesses said they saw him heading up to Nymphaea.”

“To Nymphaea Province? Why would Flamedramon go there? It’s completely covered in ice; nothing that would interest a murderer like him!”

“Does it matter why he’s going there?” I asked. “The important thing is that he’s out of the way — at least, for now, he is. He’ll undoubtedly be coming back, which is something that I’m not exactly looking forward to. I really am getting sick of all this laying low and sneaking around so he won’t find us…”

“I agree,” Abigail had once more leaned back and rested against the bar’s counter. “We cannot allow someone like him to get his hands on those members of Lachesis; we need them alive.”

“We need them alive,” I repeated. “In order for us to fulfill our desires, right? Or rather, our ‘lady’s’ desires.”

“Dearest Adrian, you wouldn’t happen to be mocking our fair lady, would you?” Abigail asked.

“I really don’t think she’d give a shit, so long as we do what she wants,” I sighed. “And as long as we get what we want, I have no problem doing what she wants.”

“Then you won’t mind going back to keep an eye on those friends of yours, then?”

“What?! Again?! Surely, it must be someone else’s turn by now! Where the hell is Magnus?!” I fumed.

“Oh, you know him; that lecherous and greedy fool is presumably off with pleasurable company,” Abigail climbed down off the stool and began dusting off the back of her cape. “It’s what our dear lady wishes of you, Adrian; I’m certain you wouldn’t mind doing anything for her…would you?”

“Fine…fine, I’ll do it.” I, too, climbed off my stool.

“As for me, I’ve been ordered to head over to Braig’s place and give him yet another of our lady’s countless requests.” Abigail sighed. “Why is it always me that gets sent to that old man’s place? He can’t keep his eyes off my chest for a second! I don’t mind when it’s you, or Magnus, or passing-by strangers, but that old man is seriously creepy; he thinks his staring turns me on or something!”

“Not that I blame him for staring or anything,” I interrupted. “But, weren’t you the one who scolded me into taking pride in our fair lady’s demands?” Abigail laughed quietly.

“Yes, you’re right.” Abigail turned to look at me. “After stopping at Braig’s place, I’ve also been ordered to follow Flamedramon; you said he was heading north, right?” I nodded. “How charming; I simply adore the subzero temperature of Nymphaea…However, with this assignment, I’ll not be seeing you for a while, Adrian. I’m following Flamedramon…so if he finds me, we may never meet again…”

“Are you nervous?” I asked.

“On the contrary, I’m quite enthralled! You know I love living dangerously more than anything!” Abigail stared at me, her once lovely smile twisting into a more psychotic one. “Chasing Flamedramon into a place as frigid as Nymphaea on top of the fact that if Flamedramon finds me…it’ll be all over for me!”

“You love danger a lot more than I remember,” I said. “Idiot; do you want to die?!”

“Oh, of course not! I want to live!” Abigail snapped. “It’s the chance I could die that makes me feel so…excited! Living dangerously like this…doing the things we do…those who cause death are surrounded by it every day! Work like this, where we risk our very lives in order for us to receive that which we all desire, is the only beautiful work there is…very desirable, wouldn’t you say, Adrian? Nothing turns me on more than this!”

“Uh, yeah…sure…” Abigail’s voice was becoming more and more deranged with each word that passed her lips, as did the look on her face. “Look, just make sure you don’t do anything stupid like…I don’t know, intentionally getting discovered by Flamedramon, or sleeping naked in the snow, or something, okay?”

“Of course not; there’s no thrill in purposely ending my life. If I died, I wouldn’t be able to accomplish my goal,” Abigail said. “Oh, this is all so enticing, my heart could just burst!” Abigail turned to look at me once more, a much less insane expression on her face. It looked almost…sad. “…As I said, with a job like this, I may not see you for a while, if I get the chance to at all.”

“You won’t die,” I said firmly. “You care too much about achieving your goal to give up on life, just as I care about mine, and Magnus his, selfish though his and my goals may be.”

“Yes…you’re right, Adrian…” Abigail said calmly, closing her eyes. “I’ll take my leave of you…for now.” Abigail opened her eyes and gave me an intent look. “I will come back, Adrian.”

“I believe you,” I whispered back as Abigail disappeared in a wisp of smoke as she always did. I smiled as the last traces of the smoke vanished, and I then left the empty building, firmly closing the old door behind me.

Chapter 16: Another Caller of Spirits

Thomas Kasuto

Lachesis Fortress

 

It has now been two days since Saias and Lector left, and it was easy to see that most of the other members of Lachesis were relieved that they were no longer in the same building as a knight, even after so much time had passed. Everyone was smiling and seemed more at ease; I even caught Irene smiling once or twice, if only for a brief moment each time.

“I sure am glad all of that crap is over with,” Statuedramon said. “I never want to see another knight again as long as I live!” The two of us were sitting at a table in the fort’s lounge, eating lunch. Luna, Chrysania, and SlashAngemon, who were sitting at the table with us, nodded their heads in agreement.

“I still can’t believe the three of you actually did that job,” Luna said.

“It’s what we do, is it not?” I asked. “Protect the innocent and all that?”

“It just seems rather…contradictory,” SlashAngemon said. “Our guild exists to correct the mistakes the knights have made, not to help them make a bigger one.”

“Who says they’re making a mess of things right now? What if they simply wish to protect this man?”

“Yeah? Well, what if he’s, like, a serial killer or something, and they’re helping him hide?” Statch asked. “If they are helping him hide, then we’d be helping them hide some anthrax-infested serial rapist from the future! Ever think of that?!”

“…From the future?” SlashAngemon stared at the Rookie Digimon.

“Quite an imagination you’ve got there, love,” Luna said. The young sorceress slowly moved her tongue across her red lips. “I like!”

“But it could happen!”

“Perhaps, but such reasoning is arbitrary; they had a job for us to do, so it was done. Nothing else matters,” I said.

“Look, Thomas, I understand what you’re saying; really, I do,” SlashAngemon said. “I just don’t think it was a good idea, helping them out. Do you realize the three of you could have potentially been killed that night?”

“Do you think it was an easy decision for me to help them out? Do you think it was easy for me to help the kind of people who hurt my mother?!”

“If the knights hurt someone important to you, why did you aid those two?” Luna asked.

“Because that is what makes us different from them! We help those in need, while the knights laugh in their faces, and condemn the victims of bandit raids for bringing such tragedies upon themselves when they had nothing to do with it! We prevent such tragedies from occurring in the first place. Those two that I helped…they weren’t like the other knights all of us have encountered at some point in our lives. They were honest, hardworking individuals who truly cared about protecting the innocent. Do you think Apollomon would have wanted any of us to help them if they really were like the other knights?!”

“Thomas is correct.” SlashAngemon looked over his shoulder and saw Pheragas towering over him. “Apollomon vould not ‘ave agreed to ‘elp dem had dey been like oder knights. Or ah you ‘aving doubts toward our leader?”

“Well…I suppose if you…put it that way…” SlashAngemon nervously looked away from the large man.

“Thomas, Apollomon vants to speak vith you and Statuedramon,” Pheragas said. “‘e’s in ‘is room.”

“Very well; thank you, Pheragas.” Statuedramon and I left the table and made our way to Apollomon’s room, where we found him and Zelda waiting patiently for us.

“I found another job for the three of you while I was in Yew yesterday,” Apollomon said. “It’s from someone who used to live in a small town known as Mandrake.” Apollomon was holding a map of Arcadia for us to look at. “It’s just south of Yew — not even a mile — so in order to get there as fast as possible, you will need to go through that city,” he said. “The Ambrosia River separates our fort from this town, but according to Irene and SlashAngemon, the bridge closest to us has been destroyed — presumably by bandits — leaving the quickest way to be through Yew, unfortunately. It’s somewhat of a trek, but you should all make it back here before sundown.”

“So, what’s going on there?” I asked.

“Everyone from the town has been evacuated to Yew on account of a single Human,” Apollomon said. “This man is the only one left in the town, and the people of Mandrake Town wish him gone so they can return to their homes. Now, I don’t know what this Human is capable of, but if he was able to force the entire population of a single town, including all of the Digimon, to leave, then he must be extremely dangerous, so the three of you best be careful, understood? Regardless, do what you must so that he is no longer in Mandrake.”

“Usual procedure, then?” Statuedramon asked. Apollomon nodded.

“What’s the usual procedure?” Zelda asked.

“If we are able to…we sneak up behind and kill him from behind. Just a typical assassination,” I replied.

Outskirts of Mandrake Town

Valencia Territory

4 Hours

 

Mandrake Town was an easy find after leaving Yew. As Apollomon said, it was less than a mile away, so it only took a few minutes for us to find it. It was a very small town; the entire settlement could be seen from the hill we stood atop, overlooking the town. The sun had fallen past its highest point in the sky, making several of the houses and buildings of Mandrake Town cast their shadows in our direction.

How fortunate we are, I thought. These shadows should make it somewhat easier to maneuver. Perhaps we ought to wait a little longer before we advance?

“Why would anybody want to live in a place like this?!” Statuedramon whispered. “This place is a dump!”

“It’s pretty close to the Ambrosia River; plenty of fish and fresh water for him or her to live off of,” I said. “I guess whoever’s here just didn’t want to share it; in that regard, they could very well be a bandit.”

“But there’s only one of him; most bandits are part of a group, not independent,” Zelda said.

“Well, we’ll all find out when we kick that guy’s ass out of this town!” Statuedramon shouted rather loudly.

“Wait; we ought to wait just a little bit longer. In about thirty minutes, the shadows cast by these buildings will be large enough for us…to…” Statuedramon, of course, had ignored me, and began running out from the cover provided by the shadows. “He is going to get us killed one of these days, Zelda…”

Zelda laughed to herself as she and I began to run quietly after Statuedramon. Every now and then, I would see her looking off and away, and I knew that she was looking for her sister. We soon caught up to him, and I reached down and grabbed his arm, halting his run.

“What the hell did you do that for?!” Statuedramon yelped. “I thought we needed to get rid of this bastard as soon as possible!”

“Think about the situation, for a moment; we don’t know anything about our target, but it is logical to assume that if he was able to force out an entire town of Humans and Digimon, then he would be incredibly strong.” Statuedramon shut his mouth at this point.

“So…what do you suggest we do?” he asked.

“I’m not sure, but…we need to go about this as quietly as possible,” I said. “Since we don’t know how strong he is, we need to avoid separating.” I looked around the town for a moment, thinking. “In towns like these all across Arcadia, the focal point is usually in the center of the area, usually so as to be protected by the rest of the area, and such a focal point is usually where the town’s official or leader’s building can be found; that’s probably where we’ll find him.”

“Why would he be found there?” Statuedramon asked.

“Being in a place like a mayor’s office or something would give him a feeling of power, which is — psychologically speaking — what bandits thrive off of. That’s why they do what they do; so they can feel like they’re the ones in charge. It’s no different than being a schoolyard bully — other than the murdering, torching, and raping, of course.”

“Wow…Thomas, you’re so smart!” Zelda said, eyes shining brightly.

“Bandits are weird,” Statuedramon muttered as he and Zelda began following me once more, toward the center of Mandrake Town. “So, this guy was strong enough to scare even the Digimon of this town away?”

“Mandrake isn’t a very large town; I can’t imagine there being too many, if any at all, large, powerful Digimon; probably nothing past the Champion level,” Zelda said.

“Yeah, you’re probably right…” Statuedramon suddenly stopped walking to read a sign that bore the words “Mayor’s Office” in front of a rather large house. “Okay, I think this might be the Mayor’s Office, guys.”

“Be on your guard, everyone,” I said, reaching for the doorknob of the house’s front door just as it opened, and out walked a large man. Shirtless and heavily muscular, with spiked-up orange hair, he was quite a daunting sight to behold.

“…the hell’re you?” the man asked.

“Are you the one who forced out everyone in this town?!” Statuedramon asked.

“And what if I am?” the man asked, crossing his arms over his broad chest. “This is a damn good place to live; what the hell is so wrong with wanting it all for myself?! It’s not like I killed anybody to get what I wanted, right?”

“What a weird bandit,” Statuedramon whispered.

“…He’s been completely consumed by his own greed…” I said to myself.

“And just what the hell is so wrong with a lone bandit being so greedy?! I don’t like other people, so I took it upon myself to force everyone else out!”

“…I don’t suppose there’s any way we could convince you to leave Mandrake Town?” I asked.

“Oh, please, why the hell would I want to leave?!” the man asked. “Tell me why I should, you little shit!”

“Forget it; all you need to know is what my blade feels like inside your chest.” The man had begun to walk away, though he stopped as he heard the sound of my sword being removed from its scabbard as Statch removed his from his shield’s dimension.

“We were ordered to force you out of this town any way possible,” Statuedramon said. “We cannot and will not hesitate to kill you if you refuse to do so.”

“And how d’you plan on doin’ that, by talkin’ me to death?!”

“Zelda, you should find somewhere to hide,” I said.

“…Oh…Well…At least let me help you!” Zelda said timidly. “Come forth, Renamon!” Zelda held one of her talismans up to the sky as the form of Renamon appeared before her.

“Ooh, you’ve got a Summoner with you, do you? Well, I’ve got a surprise for you.” The man reached into the pockets of his black pants and pulled out what appeared to be a talisman. “Come forth, Vajramon!” The bandit held his talisman up to the sky just as Zelda did, and the form of the Ultimate level Digimon Vajramon appeared before him. “Do be so kind as to eliminate these pests.”