Sephyrus
Cyprus Desert
9 Hours
It
was nearing midnight by the time the
swirling sands of Cyprus Desert came into view. It was a cloudless night, and
the moon was nearly full. Lilithmon stopped walking instantly, and looked up at
the sky.
“Soon…very soon, the first of my friends will be freed from
the Dark Area,” Lilithmon said. Her skin and clothes were still stained with
Irene’s blood, if one looked closely enough, though she didn’t seem to be
bothered by it.
“Forgive my ignorance, Mother, but how exactly are you going
to free anyone from the Dark Area?” Michalis asked. “They’re dead…dead, and
gone forever…”
“I was sent to the Dark Area, but I came back to you, my
son,” Lilithmon said patiently. “You know what a Horcrux is, don’t you?”
“Yeah…a little while ago, Sephyrus told me it holds a very
small portion of the soul of a Human or a Digimon.”
“Correct…as the one who created these Horcruxes, I am able
to use the Horcrux to call forth the Digimon in the Dark Area who has their
soul trapped within the Horcrux in question, but only once. Once I have brought
them back, the portion of their soul that lies resting in the Horcrux will join
with the remainder of the Digimon’s soul, leaving me unable to bring the
Digimon back again should he or she be killed — unless, of course, I make
another Horcrux for them. The little details are of no concern to you, dear
child…”
“Yes, ma’am…”
“Do you have any other questions before I begin?”
“…Just one…how come we had to come all the way to Cyprus
Desert to free this Digimon? Couldn’t
you have brought him back from anywhere?”
“Unfortunately, no…the Cyprus Desert was where
SkullCaliphmon was killed…that is why we must be here...though I was never sure
why that was a necessity for this spell. Now, if that is all the questions, I
would like to begin. If anyone attempts to intervene, stop them at all costs!”
“Understood, Milady,” I said.
“Yeah, sure,” Michalis said.
“Very good.” Lilithmon placed the necklace into the sands of
Cyprus and closed her eyes. She began speaking in a quiet, mumbling voice.
“What is she saying?” Michalis whispered to me.
“It’s an ancient language, one
from over 500 years ago, so it’s even older than I am,” I replied. “I’m afraid
I don’t know what it is she’s saying. I never took the time to learn it…”
Thomas Kasuto
“Oh, no…we’re too late! She’s already
started!” Apollomon said quietly. To my surprise, there were a few trees that
were a part of Lotisea Province nearby for us to hide behind. “We have to do
something…before she conjures up a Digimon from the Dark Area!”
“Well, then, let’s go and stop her!” I whispered back.
Apollomon nodded, and the two of us stepped out from behind the trees and over
to the evil Mega Digimon. Michalis and Sephyrus watched silently as we did.
“You are too late! Mother will summon forth all her friends
from the Dark Area…and there’s nothing you can do about it!” Michalis grabbed
his Digivice, and did the same as Sephyrus. “Bio Hybrid DNA Charge! Bio Hybrid
Digivolve to, BioBeelzemon!”
“Fools; you mean to
face the one and only Apollomon in combat?! Is it your aim to die?! Or have you
forgotten that I killed BioBlackWarGreymon all by myself?!” Apollomon asked.
“…He does have a point,” BioBeelzemon said.
“If you wish to back down, suit yourself,” BioPremenitmon
said. “I, however, fully intend to obey the orders given to me!”
Reluctantly, I jumped back out of the way and watched the
fight around me.
“Shadow Evolution; Aquarimon! Goddess Urn!” Aquarimon
summoned forth a huge eruption of water from her vase that doused the flames of
Apollomon’s attack.
“You…you dare mock me by turning into my friend?! The friend
that you murdered?! I’ll fucking kill you! Phoebus…” Apollomon raised his arm
and prepared to attack, but when he looked down, his arm began trembling, and
his fist unclenched itself.
“Apollomon…please…don’t h-hurt me,” Aquarimon said, tears
streaming down her face. “I’m sorry…please, don’t…hate me…for what I’ve done…”
“…I…Irene…” Apollomon’s raised arm fell limply to his side.
I, too, felt taken aback at the sight of the Digimon that greatly resembled
Irene.
“Darkness Claw!” BioBeelzemon rammed into the dumbstruck
Apollomon, knocking him down to the ground.
Apollomon tried to move, but BioBeelzemon slammed his boot on the side
of the Mega’s face. “You’re about to get what you deserve, Apollomon! Double—”
“—And now, the ritual is complete!” Lilithmon shouted from a
few feet away. “SkullCaliphmon, I call to you from the other side! Join us, and
put an end to the lives of the miserable wretches who murdered the eleven of
us!” The necklace began emitting a pale blue light, and the sands around it
began swirling madly in the air. Lilithmon began laughing maniacally as a black
hole formed under the necklace, and a skeletal arm reached up from the circle.
The arm pulled its body the rest of the way out, and standing before us was a
rather tall, cloaked, skeletal Digimon holding an enormous, two-bladed sword,
the likes of which I have never seen.
“I am free!” the Digimon said.
“…Unbelievable…a Digimon from the Dark Area,” BioBeelzemon
said, his tone of voice giving away the fact that he was obviously impressed.
“Mother…you really are something else, conjuring a Digimon like this…”
“I’m not just any Digimon; I’m SkullCaliphmon, an ancient
king of the desert sands; lord of the desert breeze!” SkullCaliphmon said.
“‘Lord of the Desert Breeze?’ That doesn’t sound very
impressive…”
“Careful, now; even the gentlest breeze has the potential to
become a raging hurricane, capable of smashing through solid rock!”
“…Whatever you say, Your
Majesty,” BioBeelzemon smirked.
“SkullCaliphmon, it is wonderful to see you again,”
Lilithmon said. “That is, good to see you alive, and not in the Dark Area!”
“Oh, Lilithmon, I’m always dead! I’m a skeleton, remember?
By the way, I saw your…glorious
return from death…when you popped out of that rather cute Human girl. It was
kind of icky…a little too much blood and gore for my taste. I don’t really like icky and creepy things,” the skeleton
said. “Now, remember; the two of us are not as strong as you’d like for us to
be.”
“What do you mean?”
“Our power comes from the lives of all twelve of us. Our lives, Lilithmon, and nine of us are
still not alive. As we are now, even
a Human could kill us!” SkullCaliphmon laughed to himself. “As I am sure you are well aware…”
“…Right. I’ll have to remember that…”
“Now, who is that that your crony steps on?” SkullCaliphmon
pointed at BioBeelzemon.
“That’s Apollomon,” BioBeelzemon said.
“Really? The
Apollomon? The ruler of Lachesis? That Apollomon?” SkullCaliphmon looked down
at the struggling Mega. “You, BioBeelzemon, and you, BioPremenitmon!”
SkullCaliphmon looked at the two Bio Hybrids. “You two boneheads stand down! I
haven’t killed anyone in a few hundred years; I want to make sure I haven’t
lost my touch!”
“Yes, sir,” BioPremenitmon, still in the form of Aquarimon,
immediately turned back into Sephyrus. BioBeelzemon reverted back to his Human
form without another word. In an instant, Apollomon was back on his feet,
standing face-to-face with SkullCaliphmon.
“Don’t be too depressed if I defeat you; I used to be quite powerful,”
SkullCaliphmon said.
“I could say the same to you, except that I still am powerful,” Apollomon retorted.
SkullCaliphmon whistled, looking impressed.
“Bold words, o mighty one! Let’s see if you live up to your
reputation, then! If you lose, you’ll look like quite the bone-afied
blowhard!” SkullCaliphmon began laughing
to himself.
“…Your puns are terrible, as I’m certain your fighting skills
are,” Apollomon said. “Whatever; let’s get this over with!” Apollomon clenched
his fists, and SkullCaliphmon swung his blade effortlessly through the air.
Instinctively, I reached for mine, but I stopped myself.
Apollomon told me to
wait here…Apollomon ordered me to wait here while he dealt with them…But
there’s no way he can win! He still hasn’t fully recovered from when Lector
stabbed him in the hip.
“Arrow of Apollo!”
“Grave Danger!” SkullCaliphmon raised his hand, with his
palm upwards, and a giant tombstone emerged from the sand. Apollomon’s attack
hit the tombstone, which then crumbled back into sand. “Now, dance, my tombs!
Dance!” SkullCaliphmon began waving his enormous sword around in the air as if
it were a conductor’s baton; countless tombs popped out of the sand and begun
flying in the air around Apollomon. Every now and then, one of them would crash
into him, shattering into a few jagged stones that would cut through his skin,
and even his Phoebus Blow attack was strong enough to protect him. “Well? What
do you think, mighty one? Am I strong or what?!”
“Solblaster!” The sphere of flames on Apollomon’s back
spread itself out, enveloping all of the flying tombs in their flames and
making them melt. “You’ve picked the wrong Digimon to fight, SkullCaliphmon!”
“I was just thinking that of you, Apollomon! Crossfire
Hurricane!” SkullCaliphmon began swing his sword in a circle, and Apollomon’s
flames followed suit. They began to form a ring of fire around Apollomon,
leaving him in the middle of them. SkullCaliphmon then brought the blades of
his sword down into the sand, making the flames swirl around the sky as a
single stream of fire. The skeletal Digimon then pointed at Apollomon, and the
flames struck Apollomon directly in the chest. “So, now what do you think? That attack has absolute command over wind,
and it can even be used to manipulate flames like yours! If anything, you chose the wrong opponent!” Apollomon
didn’t reply; he was screaming in pain and agony as he was burned by his own
flames. The flames soon vanished, and Apollomon was left, brought down to one
knee and covered in minor burns with steam flying off his body. He glared up at
the opposing Mega level, and tore his bandages off from around his waist,
throwing them to the side.
Apollomon…I’m sorry,
but it looks like I’m going to have to disobey your orders again!
“I’m not…finished yet,” Apollomon said between labored
breaths, as if he had read my mind.
“Well, then, by all mean; show me what else you’re capable
of!” SkullCaliphmon cackled.
“Phoebus Blow!”
“Sirocco Sword!” Apollomon stood up, but he was forced back
down once again when SkullCaliphmon swung his sword, striking him multiple
times across the face, chest, and stomach. “Even a fire Digimon like yourself
can’t help but scream in pain when struck with this sword, which strikes as
painfully and sharply as the scorching sirocco wind, capable of reaching speeds
as fast as a hurricane!” Apollomon raised a trembling arm and clenched his
fist, preparing an Arrow of Apollo attack. “Sirocco Sword!” SkullCaliphmon
swung his sword in the air once again, and Apollomon was knocked over onto his
back by an unseen force. “See? I don’t even have to make contact, and this
sword can still kick some major bony ass!”
“Excellent job, SkullCaliphmon,” Lilithmon said.
“What are you talking about? I’m not even finished with him yet! Sirocco Sword!”
SkullCaliphmon brought his enormous sword downward towards Apollomon’s neck. I
ran as fast as I could up to the skeletal Digimon, and sighed with relief when
I saw that SkullCaliphmon’s sword made contact with mine, rather than Apollomon.
“You…I remember you…You were in Mandala when Lilithmon was killed for the
second time! I saw you get killed, meatbag! What are you doing still walking
around?” SkullCaliphmon asked.
“He was wearing the necklace,” Lilithmon replied. “Your Horcrux.”
“My Horcrux…The Immortal Necklace…Well, I suppose that makes
sense…Horcruxes infused with the soul of a Digimon gives whoever is in
possession of that Horcrux any special abilities they have…I am immortal during
special circumstances. I wonder if those circumstances apply to whoever wears
the necklace.”
“…You said you were weak enough for a Human to kill you,” I
said.
“Yes; the only reason Apollomon wasn’t able to do so was
because I was able to perfectly counter his attacks,” SkullCaliphmon said. “I am weaker without all twelve of us here,
and perhaps even you could easily
kill me, Human.”
“Don’t be ridiculous! There’s no way this…kid could defeat you!” Lilithmon said.
“…We shall see,” SkullCaliphmon said. The opposing Mega
Digimon raised his sword and swung it at my head, barely missing it by a few
inches. “Huh…this bonehead’s pretty fast. I like that! Makes the hunt that much more enticing! Keep running,
being of flesh; make this game of cat and mouse as enjoyable as possible!”
“If it truly does take a Human to kill someone like you,
then I shall do everything in my power to do so!” SkullCaliphmon threw his
blade, narrowly missing my head once again. His sword kept flying through the
air until it found its way into a tree of Lotisea Province several feet away.
“Damn it! Now my…frickin’ sword’s…stuck! This is why I hate
frickin’ forests!”
Perfect!
Hopefully…this will kill him! I ran up to the Mega Digimon and stabbed him
in the side of his skull.
“…You…boner…”
SkullCaliphmon brought his hand to the side of his head where my sword had
struck, and several cracks had begun to form on his head. In a matter of
seconds, his skeletal body dissolved and crumbled into dust, leaving his crown,
cloak, and sword behind as his dust mixed into the sands of Cyprus Desert. Lilithmon
stared, pale-faced and wide-eyed as I wiped the remnants of SkullCaliphmon off
my blade.
“You…what…WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU JUST DO?!”
Lilithmon shrieked.
“You can keep trying to bring your friends back from the
Dark Area all you like; you will never prevail,” I said.
“That was…a job well done, Thomas,” Apollomon said as I
helped the Mega Digimon stand up.
“DAMN YOU BOTH!” Lilithmon ran toward us, her right claw
extended.
“Solblaster!” Apollomon threw a scorching orb that hit
Lilithmon in the middle of her stomach, burning through her shirt and searing
her skin.
“Milady, we must retreat for now,” Sephyrus said, bending
down to pick up the partially buried necklace. “You cannot waste any more
energy dealing with these fools.”
“…Fine. We must hurry and find the next Horcrux!” Lilithmon,
protectively placing her left hand over her belly to cover the relatively minor
burn, turned and ran off, with Michalis and Sephyrus close behind.
“Should we go after them, sir?” I asked.
“No…you would be unable to defeat
all three of them by yourself, and I would be of no help to you as I am now,”
Apollomon said. “Let’s return to the villa…I’m sure the others are wondering
where we are, and I’m certain Zelda misses you. When we get back…I’ll tell you
everything.”
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