Chapter 87: Linoan

Thomas Kasuto

Primrose Village

 

“…My name…it is Linoan…”

…She’s avoiding eye contact…And there’s something else about her that seems a bit…off…It seemed like she had to think about her answer for a moment…

“I know…about the three of you,” Linoan said, smiling shyly at us. “Thomas…Zelda…Statuedramon…The three of you…you are the ones, aren’t you? The ones who defeated Etemon in Linnea…you are the ones, right?”

“Who’s Etemon?” Statuedramon asked.

“A bandit leader…One of the bandit leaders of the Thanatos Bandits,” I said. “We killed him about a month ago, remember?”

“No, not really.”

Linoan laughed quietly. “Yes…with all that has been going on lately…even the bandits have been too afraid to do anything,” she said. “I suppose…that is one good thing about Lilithmon being back…”

“…There are people who already know about that?” Statch asked.

The young blonde nodded. “Though it has been little more than a day since they were freed, Lilithmon’s allies have been making life unbearable for everyone across the continent,” she said. “In fact…there is a Digimon in this very area who has been doing just that…”

“What?! One of those bastards is here?!” Statch yelled.  I continued looking into Linoan’s eyes. She herself did not seem worried, or nervous, or anything similar.

“…I…cannot say for sure if the Digimon is a friend of hers…More likely than not, the Digimon is little more than a bandit who is unaware of her return.”

“Well…if it is a bandit, then it is our job to deal with it,” I said.

Zelda nodded in agreement. “Do you know where this Digimon is, Linoan?” she asked. Linoan opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Statch.

“Wait, you two actually want to do this?!” Statuedramon asked.

“It is our job,” I said.

“We don’t have time to drive away a Digimon who has no connection to Lilithmon! We need to be focusing our efforts on defeating her and the other eleven Digimon from that group! And besides…” Statuedramon nervously looked over at Linoan and whispered in my ear, “You don’t…actually trust her, do you?”

“Statuedramon…that’s beside the point. Whether I trust Linoan or not doesn’t matter. That rarely has ever mattered. This is our job, in case you’ve forgotten,” I said. “You don’t have to come with us.”

“And you two don’t have to go with her! What if she’s leading you into a trap?! Have you thought about that?!” Statch asked. “This is valuable time you’ll be wasting that we should be using trying to put an end to Lilithmon’s schemes!”

“So, you’re just going to shut us down like that, without even considering how bad it might be for us? Come now, no need to be so cruel!” I glanced over at Linoan and saw a large, burly man walking up behind her. He wore a long black trench coat that covered his entire body. The coat had its hood up to conceal the man’s face. The only part of him that could be seen was his hands, which were an odd, pale blue color. “Now that, I consider absolutely heartbreaking!” The man clasped his hand around Linoan’s shoulder; a very sudden but very quick grimace that crossed her face caught my notice as he did so. “This young lady here…and the other residents of this humble little village — myself included — are in fear for their lives. Is it not too much to ask of thee?”

Statuedramon looked up at me. “Thomas…I don’t like this, but if it’s what you want…I’ll go with you,” he said.

“I am fully aware that it could be a trap,” I whispered to him. “But if it’s not…and we ignore it…then the blood spilt by whatever is here will be on our hands.”

“I’d rather we regret something we’ve done than regret not doing anything in the first place,” Zelda said. “Even if it is a trap, we’ll be fine.”

“…All right.” Statuedramon looked up at Linoan. “Take us to where this Digimon is…if there really is one.”

“Of course,” Linoan smiled. The man chuckled to himself and walked away. “He can be found…this way.” Statch and Zelda began to follow Linoan down the dirt road, and I was about to do the same when I noticed Linoan’s footprints.

Zelda and Statuedramon aren’t leaving any footprints behind…and neither am I…or that other man…and yet, here are Linoan’s, as clear as day…Upon closer examination, I noticed that the footprints were also rather deep. …She weighs more than her small build implies…meaning…she’s not a Human…Well, whatever she is, I’m glad I’m getting involved with whatever the hell’s going on here. I ran, catching up to my friends as they reached the end of the dirt road with Linoan. A lone rock sat atop a clear, grassy cliff which, as Zelda said earlier, overlooked the Cyprus Desert.

“This…is where the Digimon can usually be found,” Linoan said as she climbed on top of the rock.

“Where is—” I was interrupted by Linoan, who, ignoring me, began to play her flute once more.

“Well, that sure was rude,” Statuedramon said. “…Even if it is kind of a beautiful song…” Linoan continued to play her song, and after a few minutes, I felt the ground begin to tremble.

“…We’ve got to get out of here!” I said.

“Shut up, I’m trying to listen to—” The ground underneath Statuedramon opened up as he spoke, and all three of us fell through into what seemed to be an endless pitfall. Linoan’s smirk was the last thing I remember seeing before the three of us were swallowed up by the darkness.

Linoan

2 Hours

 

The sun had set a while ago, and now the moon began its rise. The sky was filled with stars, and the moon was full. I did not need to look up to know this; no matter how small, I was able to feel the light from each of the stars in the sky…and with each full moon, I felt a huge surge in power and energy…this did not sit well with me. I’ve always felt like I should get stronger on my own, without the use of some unique ability. My sadness, my resentment…even my boredom…every emotion I felt at the moment was reflected in my flute’s music…a lamentful elegy…

“Ah, this ghastly, beautiful sound, nearly identical to that of a wolf’s howl...it must be none other than the flute of thee...my beauteous Linoan!” I quit playing, but did not turn around to look at my guest. It was the man that had joined me earlier. I did not know who he was, but he gave off the same air of unease as someone else I knew. “To see someone as beautiful as thyself, all alone in a place like this, bathed in the moon's light...why, it’s enough to make someone like me cry at the sheer beauty of it all!”

“…What do you want?” I asked, starting to feel annoyed by his  presence, the way he spoke; just everything about him made me want to tear out his eyes.

“…You know…you really know how to transform into the most beautiful of Human women,” the man said.

“Oh, stop it!” I snapped, rising to my bare feet from the rock I sat on. “It makes me sick enough that I’m able to turn into one of these repulsive creatures without YOU of all people reminding me of it!”

“Without…me of all people? Why, whatever could you mean by that? We’ve just met, haven’t we? What could I have possibly done to you, dear Linoan?”

“I just…cannot abide Humans…It makes me sick to my stomach that I look like this right now!”

“Well...I'm afraid I've nothing to cure the pains of thy belly, my dear,” the man said, walking up to me. Leaning down slightly, he whispered into my ear, “But…I have every means necessary to cure the pains of thy heart. Would you like for me to...help thee with that?” I felt my skin crawl as he began caressing my thigh with his right hand whilst gently stroking my belly button with his left index finger. His light blue skin felt clammy and sweaty, and his unnecessarily sharp fingernail was finding its way deeper into my navel. My stomach lurched in agony and a chill ran down my spine as he continued to stand close to me. I could practically hear his grin widening as he moved his mouth closer to my ear. “Well? Would that be something you would enjoy?” As his hand inched higher and higher up my thigh, I suddenly elbowed him in the ribs, causing him to fall over. In an instant, in place of my human form there now stood a beautiful, golden wolf. Where I stood now was my original form of Lupinemon.

“How could I not have realized when you showed up to help me? Curse the dulled senses of those damned Humans!” I growled. “I should’ve realized it was you earlier...DeathPhantomon!” The man began to laugh, and suddenly disappeared, and where he stood was now a gruesome, robed creature hovering in the air.

“Nya ha ha! You’ve got that right, Linoan! At least the, ‘should’ve realized it was you earlier’ part!” DeathPhantomon laughed eerily.

“DeathPhantomon. What…do…you…WANT?! Why the fuck are you even here?!”

“Verily hath I come to offer my assistance, milady!”

“In what regard?” I asked dully. DeathPhantomon’s only visible eye narrowed in anger. Well, now…that’s sure an uncommon sight.

“The Digimon known as Statuedramon…he initially voiced his protests about following thee, did he not?” I stared at the hovering Digimon. “I know thou better than you know thyself, Lupinemon. Thou art impatient…If Statuedramon had continued his protests, then surely thou would have left him behind…leaving those two Humans to fall into the trap.”

“Yeah? And so what if I would have?” I growled.

“Lilithmon…All of us…need them all to be dealt with. Not some of them; all of them.”

“Yeah, whatever…” A scythe materialized in DeathPhantomon’s hand, and he swung it at me, narrowly missing the top of my head. “What the hell, DeathPhantomon?!”

“Listen up, Lupinemon. I, like the rest of our group, desire freedom, and I wish to keep said freedom. I might be more lenient than Myotismon or Machinedramon, so I shall give thee a fair warning. If I ever hear about or observe you doing something like that ever again…next time, I will not miss. Do I make myself clear…Lupinemon?”

“…Crystal.”

“Very good. I’m glad we had this little chat, beautiful.” DeathPhantomon’s skull-tipped scythe disappeared. “So…where did those three go?”

“That hole you see beneath you sent them falling to a path that will lead them to another of our group,” I said. I looked out at the vast desert. “SkullCaliphmon…that’s one favor I’ve done for you. How shall you reciprocate, I wonder?”

“Well, without further ado, I shall take my leave of thee, Linoan. We shall…meet again.” In the blink of an eye, DeathPhantomon vanished.

“…Fair warning. Ha.” I looked up at the moon. I sighed. “Some allies I’ve got…giving me warning that next time they’ll try to clobber me…”