Chapter 49: When Knights Fall...

Thomas Kasuto

Mandala

 

“Well? Who would like to go next?” BioPremenitmon asked, turning from Gallantmon back to his lizard-like form.

“Try fighting me; see how long you last,” Flamedramon said.

“It would be an honor, Flamedramon.”

“Sephyrus, I order you to stand down,” a voice from behind the Bio Hybrid said.

“Yes, my lady,” BioPremenitmon laid down his ankh and turned his back to us, bowing down to one knee.

“…She’s coming,” Irene said in a quiet, shaky voice.

“Who?!” Statch asked.

“That voice…it was Lilithmon’s…” In a matter of seconds, the Mega Digimon Irene spoke of appeared before BioPremenitmon. She looked exactly as was described in ancient texts. An attractive woman clad in dark robes, with wings protruding from her back. Her right hand was golden, and hung limply at her side.

“So…at long last, we all meet,” Lilithmon said, a wry smile forming on her lips. “Thomas, the Assassin. Zelda, the Bishop. Statuedramon, the Fool…oh, and even Flamedramon decided to honor us with his presence!” Lilithmon looked over at Irene, and to my surprise, instead of glaring, she smiled at the small girl. “Irene…I’m glad you decided to come.”

“I’m sorry…Lilithmon,” Irene said, looking away from the Digimon.

“You don’t have to worry about your betrayal, Irene; this does not affect my decision of helping you find your mother,” Lilithmon said. “That is, I never planned on helping you.” Lilithmon began laughing to herself. “How is it possible…to find someone who’s dead, after all?!”

“…N—no…my mother?! No…no, she can’t be!”

“She can and she is! Slain by my hand!” Lilithmon held up her right hand, a golden claw. “You are so easy to fool, Irene; my Goddess, you’re lucky you’re so freaking adorable all the time! I killed your mother, Irene, because even at that young an age, I could sense a strong amount of quintessence from you…who would have ever thought so much could be packed away in such a tiny little body? I purposely never showed my real face to you…because I knew that, if you saw me murder your mother at that age, you’d have remembered my beautiful face…oh, if only you were a little younger at the time, I wouldn’t have had to be so careful all of the time…I decided to keep you close to me for when you got a little older…When that happened, I would harvest every last ounce of your quintessence, Irene!”

“Wait…that woman she was always speaking with…that was you?!” Irene asked.

“Of course; quintessence has all sorts of powers, you know. One of them is to fuse Humans and Digimon together to make Bio Hybrids…another use is to change someone’s appearance. That’s why I had to be so careful; I had to make sure I didn’t waste too much of my quintessence changing my appearance…and I also had to make sure you weren’t around when I killed your mother so that I could make you think she had gone missing, rather than to the Dark Area! That way, I could keep you close and have you do whatever I needed you to do.”

“No…my mother…”

“Don’t look so sad, Irene; it’s not as if your promise is the only one I’m breaking,” Lilithmon said. Irene broke down in tears, and I felt a familiar rage billow up within me. “I promised Adrian the Spirits of Legendary Warriors from long ago…as if some foolish old myth like that could ever be real! Michalis and Sephyrus here are the only two who are gracious enough to work with me without asking for anything in return. Oh, and speaking of Michalis…Thomas, it might interest you to know that Michalis was the one…who murdered Victoria.” My heart skipped a beat. I nearly dropped my sword upon hearing this.

“Michalis...? No…he couldn’t have,” I said. My head was spinning. Everything around me seemed to be a total blur. I could barely even think.

“But he did! Stabbed her over and over with a knife given to him by Sephyrus,” Lilithmon said, pointing at BioPremenitmon. “The same knife he killed his father with.” The Mega Digimon began laughing maniacally, but her twisted smile vanished when she caught a glimpse of my face. “Oh, come on; what’s wrong with you?! Show a little emotion, why don’t you!”

“Thomas…” Statuedramon looked over at me worriedly. I steadily looked down at the ground, ignoring my best friend. I listened in shock as the evil Digimon continued to prattle on.

“Oh, well, perhaps you’d be interested to know that she was pregnant!” Lilithmon went on to say. My fingers gently clenched around the hilt of my sword. I breathed in and sighed, trying to keep a level head. “Michalis told me that Victoria told him she was right before he murdered her! So, not only did he murder that sweet, innocent woman, he murdered the unborn child in her belly!”

“…She needs to die,” Flamedramon said to himself, shaking his head in disgust at Lilithmon. Lilithmon, however, continued to glare at me.

“…You are so fucking boring, you know that?! Would it kill you to show a little emotion?! C’mon; you should be trying to rip my throat out for having ordered Michalis to do that! Hate me, damn it! Just show some fucking emotion, you bastard!”

“I’ve had enough,” Statuedramon said. “I’m killing this bitch!”

“Statuedramon, don’t,” I said. “You don’t stand a chance—”

“Sword of Dragon’s Soul!”

“Darkness Love!” Lilithmon blew the attacking Statuedramon a kiss, which formed a black heart in front of her that unleashed a devastating beam of dark energy at the Rookie Digimon.

“Statuedramon!”  The Rookie flew backward through the air, screaming in pain until he landed unconscious on the floor in a puddle of his own blood.

“All right, I’ve had enough of her!” Flamedramon said.

“Sephyrus, if you’d be so kind as to deal with him,” Lilithmon said.

“It shall be as you wish, my lady,” BioPremenitmon said. “Shadow Evolution! Splashmon!”

Apollomon

Yew

 

“Solblaster!”

“Terra Destroyer!” Our two fireballs collided in the air once more; my attack, however, tore through BioBlackWarGreymon’s, making it dissipate into nothingness as my attack hit its mark, enveloping the Bio Hybrid in its flames. BioBlackWarGreymon yelled as the flames seared him, burned through what was left of his pitch-black armor. He fell to the ground, landing on his back in the middle of the raging inferno. The form of BlackWarGreymon disappeared, leaving Saias’s body behind. His eyes stared deep into mine, unblinking and lifeless. Saias had died.

I’ve  done it…I’ve killed him…I should be used to killing by now…but this…This isn’t right…he fought with everything he had for what he believed in, and I did the same. Saias…the last time, when I thought you dead, there was still a chance you’d still live, but now…You’re not coming back. The flames around us had died down a considerable amount since our fierce battle concluded. Slowly, I walked through the flames, picked up Saias’s lifeless body, and carried him out of the burning building, one step at a time. “You really did a number on me, buddy…if I had attacked just a split second later…it’d have been you walking out alive…and not me…”

“You there…halt!” A heavily armored knight was approaching me as I reached the exit of the knight’s base. “Oh…Apollomon…” I recognized the knight’s voice at once.

“Lector. It’s…been a while…”

“What happened here?” Lector asked, looking up at the blazing building I walked out of. “Hey, are you okay?!”

“Just a fire…nothing more…”

“…Who is that? In your arms, who is that?!” I sighed and laid Saias’s moderately burnt corpse at Lector’s feet. “…Saias…Who did this to him? Who killed him?!”

“…Lector. I murdered Saias.” This was the last moment I remember saying before blacking out. Lector, in a fit of rage, had taken his spear and shoved it deep into the side of my stomach.

Dianamon

 

“Apollomon! Apollomon, where are you?!” I screamed desperately. The night sky was gradually fading into one of day. The clouds had long since parted, revealing the dim, starry sky. I could see smoke in the distance. Before too long, I finally came to the knight’s base I heard the city folk speak of…the one in flames. The one Apollomon was in. “APOLLOMON!” I ran up to the military base, where I saw Apollomon lying in a pool of blood just outside the burning building. A large knight standing in front of him turned to face me.

“Dianamon…you are too late,” Lector said. In his hands was a lance, whose tip was stuck inside Apollomon.

“Lector?! How could you?!” I shouted. “Crescent Harken!”

“Saias…I’ll join you soon,” Lector said with a smile just before I tore him to pieces with my weapon. As Lector fell to the ground, his lance fell out of Apollomon’s stomach.

“Apollomon! Apollomon, please, wake up! Don’t die on me, Apollomon! Speak to me, damn it! Apollomon!” I flung myself to the ground next to his unmoving body, and shook him desperately. I loudly called out his name several times, I even slapped him, all just to try to get him to move. His blood had stained my white armor. He didn’t move an inch.

Chapter 48: On Behalf of All Life

Thomas Kasuto

Mandala

 

BioBeelzemon grinned down at us. The tall Bio Hybrid was easily the tallest among us, and had his shotgun aimed right at me. I glanced behind; Irene was nowhere in sight. It was just Zelda, Statuedramon, Flamedramon, and me.

Against a monster like this…Well, I’m just glad Irene won’t get caught up in all of it. But now, to keep Zelda out of it…and safe from all harm…

“Now, which of you wants to die first?” BioBeelzemon asked.

“Hey, wait for me! I’m not letting you keep all the fun of killing these losers for yourself!” a voice from behind the Bio Hybrid wheezed.

“…Adrian, if you don’t want to be left behind, then you should walk faster!” BioBeelzemon snapped.

“Don’t order me around, mama’s boy! You’re still a newbie, after all!” Adrian retorted. “Bio Hybrid DNA Charge! Bio Hybrid Digivolve to, BioArbormon!”

“…Well? Aren’t you going to join in the fight, Sephyrus?” BioBeelzemon asked.

“No. It is not yet time for me to reveal my true form,” Sephyrus said. He was standing far away from the rest of us, quietly observing. “Trust me; you’ll know when it’s time.”

“Whatever you say, old man; Double Impact!”

“Blockade Seed!”

“Everyone, get behind me!” Statuedramon yelled, holding up his shield. Flamedramon crouched behind the shorter Rookie, and I backed up a few steps to join them after protectively grabbing Zelda to shield me behind both Statuedramon and myself. “Dimensional Shield!”

“All right; get him, Adrian!” BioBeelzemon said. Neither Digimon attacked.

“What?!” Statch gasped.

“We knew you would do that, lizard! Roundhouse Punt!” BioArbormon’s legs detached themselves as he kicked Statuedramon’s arms. The Rookie Digimon’s sword and shield flew out of his hands, far out of his reach. “With your sword and shield gone, you’re useless! You aren’t going to kill us the way you almost did Magnus!”

“Fire Rocket!” Flamedramon leapt through the air and charged into BioArbormon. The attack had taken the Bio Hybrid by surprise and had knocked him unconscious. The body of Arbormon vanished, leaving Adrian’s behind. “Well, that wasn’t very difficult.”

“Yeah, defeating Adrian usually isn’t,” BioBeelzemon admitted. Taking his shotgun in hand, he aimed them at Flamedramon.

“Come forth, Leomon!”

“Fist of the Beast King!” Leomon unleashed a flaming lion’s head from his fist, which struck BioBeelzemon on the side of the head.

“Is there anything you’d like to say to me now that my back isn’t turned?!” BioBeelzemon asked.

“Beast Sword!” Leomon ran up to the Bio Hybrid and slashed him across the chest with his sword. Blood came spilling out of the wound the Digimon Spirit inflicted on the Bio Hybrid as he tried steadying himself.

“No…damn it…how could I have lost?! And to a Champion level…”

“You are not as powerful as you think. To have power is not to be strong. Your power was given to you, and as long as you seek your power within others, instead of yourself, then you will never be strong,” Leomon said.

“You don’t know anything! Darkness Claw!” As BioBeelzemon fell to the ground, tightly clutching his bleeding chest, he thrust his free claw into Leomon’s stomach before the Bio Hybrid fell the rest of the way to the floor. Beelzemon’s body vanished, leaving Michalis’s body behind, unconscious, but alive.

Interesting…his clothes are soaked in blood, and yet…he doesn’t seem to be bleeding anymore…and it seems as though he’s still alive, too…

“Leomon, are you okay?!” Zelda asked.

“I am fine; do not be concerned, my lady, for I am only a Spirit,” Leomon said.

“Quite an amazing display of fighting prowess,” Sephyrus said, slowly walking up to us. “There aren’t very many people who can stand up to Michalis and Adrian and defeat them this quickly. I’m honestly quite impressed.”

“Stay back…Zelda,” Leomon said, breathing heavily.

“But now…it is time for you to be destroyed…once and for all!” Sephyrus pulled a grey Bio Link Digivice from his priest’s robes and placed the palm of his hand over it. “Bio Hybrid DNA Charge! Bio Hybrid Digivolve to, BioPremenitmon!” The Digimon Sephyrus became looked at us, his eyes glowing an eerie bright yellow. 

So…this is what Saias fought the night we all thought he was killed…

“You may have defeated Adrian and Michalis with relative ease…but just know…I am the oldest and the most powerful of all the Bio Hybrids!” BioPremenitmon said. “And once you are all defeated…every last ounce of your quintessence will go straight to Lady Lilithmon!”

“Why?!” I suddenly blurted out. “Why are you searching for quintessence?!”

“…That’s a stupid question. Why wouldn’t we? If enough is gathered, it can make a person all-powerful, immortal even! We’d be fools to pass up an opportunity like that!”

“He’s gone mad,” Leomon said. “I’ll have to take care of him myself!”

“Wait, Leomon; don’t! You’re injured,” Zelda said.

“Do not fear for my safety, Zelda; Leomon is on the job!” Leomon said as he began to glow with the light of Digivolution. “Leomon Digivolve to, SaberLeomon!”

“So, it is you who wishes to be first in a line of fools? So be it,” BioPremenitmon said.

“Howling Crusher!” SaberLeomon pounced toward the lizard-like Digimon, his claws extended. BioPremenitmon, however, sighed, and before SaberLeomon landed on him, BioPremenitmon raised the golden ankh in his hand and flipped the large beast over onto his back.

“Unlike the other Bio Hybrids, I am not to be taken lightly,” BioPremenitmon said. “Golden Ankh!” BioPremenitmon’s ankh emitted a blinding ray of golden light from it on SaberLeomon; the enormous Mega roared in pain, and I could almost hear his fur sizzling under the intense light. “This light…if one basks in it for a long enough time, they will eventually come to leave this plane of existence…your soul will be pulled from your body, and you will eventually be reborn as another…Such is the miracle of life.”

“Twin Fang!” SaberLeomon quickly got back up to his paws and rammed his head down onto BioPremenitmon’s body; however, the smaller Digimon stopped the beast simply by holding his hand up.

“It seems you’d rather stay the way you are now. I understand,” BioPremenitmon said. “Claw of Phantasms!” Both of the Bio Hybrid’s hands seemed to turn invisible, but at the same time, they were as clearly visible as the rest of his body. BioPremenitmon raked his claws across SaberLeomon’s face. The beast immediately stopped trying to maul BioPremenitmon and instead began to look around the city, a confused expression spreading across his furry face.

“SaberLeomon, what’s wrong?” Zelda asked. SaberLeomon ignored her, and when a collapsed marble column came into his view, he immediately pounced on it, clawing and biting it with all of his might. “What did you do to him?!” she asked tearfully.

“My attack, in addition to inflicting physical damage, makes all those struck by it delirious; they see things that aren’t really there,” BioPremenitmon explained. “The more times one is hit with the attack, the more intense the illusions are, and the more dangerous and painful they can become, up until the point that the illusion kills them…in their minds, whatever they see kills them…In some cases, I’ve noticed this can lead to one’s actual, permanent death. Of course, SaberLeomon is only a Digimon Spirit, so nothing terribly bad will happen to him…”

“But…he can still feel pain,” Zelda said tearfully.

“Yes, I suppose he can, can’t he?” BioPremenitmon asked. “Very well; I’ll end this. Shadow Evolution!” BioPremenitmon’s body became covered in shadows, and in a split second, his form changed into that of the Exalted Knight Gallantmon, the shadows nowhere to be seen. “Well, won’t this be ironic? Sent back to the plane of existence where Digimon Spirits dwell in by the very Digimon he replaced; Final Elysion!” SaberLeomon was completely shrouded in a beam of light coming from Gallantmon’s shield. Gallantmon’s attack finally ended, and SaberLeomon had vanished. “Who’s next?”

Apollomon

Yew

 

I slowly opened my eyes. I was still surrounded by thick, roaring, flames.

BioBlackWarGreymon…where is he?! I looked around and soon found the Bio Hybrid standing above me, breathing heavily.

“You…you are still alive,” he said. He looked as though he were on the verge of collapsing. “Why won’t you…stay dead?!”

“I’ve got something I’m fighting for,” I replied. “I fight…to keep my family, Lachesis, safe. That means out of prison…and away from a firing squad…Saias. You only fight for yourself…that is why you will not win.”

“You’re wrong…you’re wrong!” he shouted. “I fight…because the world needs to recognize what it has done for far too long to the Marked! Everyone needs to pay for what they’ve done to us!”

“…I see. At first, I thought you were just fighting for your own benefit when you said that…but now I understand. You fight on behalf of all Marked…like Zelda,” I said. “But what you are doing…is nothing more than senseless revenge…you’ve turned into Flamedramon, Saias.”

“I don’t care what everyone else thinks of me, so long as I can make the world a better place for the Marked…even if it means destroying everyone who isn’t Marked!”

“I can’t let you do that, Saias.”

“You can’t let me?! Who ever said I was asking for your permission?!”

“For all life on Arcadia…for Humans…for Digimon…and for the Marked…I will stop you! Solblaster!”

“Terra Destroyer!”

Chapter 47: Beneath the Surface

Thomas Kasuto

Mandala

 

“So, this is Mandala?” I asked. Irene nodded.

“Due to its isolation for about 500 years, it is virtually unchanged from the time whence it sank. …It’s beautiful, isn’t it? So…romantic…” It was nigh impossible to argue with her; from the overall design of the city, its ancient, white marble architecture and its layout, to the ocean that surrounded it, with all the various aquatic Digimon swimming around it, Mandala was absolutely breathtaking. The younger girl had insisted on holding on tightly to my hand as we walked through the city. I could tell she was frightened to be here, betraying Lilithmon, but I wasn’t going to let anything happen to her. “When you want to leave, just step on that blue tile over there,” Irene said. “That will warp you immediately back to the place you came here from. Since you’ve been here now, you can use these tiles to come and go from Mandala as you please.”

“…Will the other Bio Hybrids be here?”

“It’s possible. Abigail and I left, and Magnus is dead, meaning Adrian, Sephyrus, and Michalis will be here, with Saias still in Yew.”

“Wait, Saias?! Don’t tell me he’s a Bio Hybrid too!”

“I’m afraid he is; do you remember that night he fought something in the woods, and was carried off? It was Sephyrus he fought that night; he dragged Saias to Braig’s lab, where he was turned into a Bio Hybrid.”

“…Tell me, was it Braig who turned you into a Bio Hybrid?”

“Yes; Braig turned Adrian, Magnus, Saias, Michalis, and me into Bio Hybrids. I don’t know who turned Abigail and Sephyrus into one, though I doubt it was Ienzo. It was probably Lilithmon.”

“Lilithmon…that’s who all the Bio Hybrids work for?” Irene nodded.

“She promised me she would help me find my mother if I did everything she asked of me. I’m…sorry. I joined Lilithmon…before I joined Lachesis…”

“Don’t worry about it, Irene. Nobody’s going to be mad at you when you return.” I smiled down at the petite girl, who gave a small smile back.

“Whoa, this place is bitchin’!” a loud voiced echoed practically throughout the entire city.

“…Please tell me I didn’t just hear that,” I said.

“It sounded like Statuedramon,” Irene said.

“That’s exactly what I was afraid of…”

“Oh, hey! Thomas! What’s up, buddy?!” Statuedramon came running up to me, with Zelda and Flamedramon right behind him, but stopped when he noticed Irene. “Oh…you’re here, too…”

“Statuedramon…I know I don’t deserve any forgiveness…for what I did to SlashAngemon…but I would like to apologize,” Irene said.

“There…is nothing for you to apologize for,” Statuedramon said. “I am not mad at you, Irene…You did what you had to do…”

“Statuedramon…I’m so…sorry…”

“Please, don’t cry, Irene,” Zelda said.

I looked nervously at Zelda and Statch, and then quietly asked, “So, what are you two doing here?”

“Duh, we’re your friends! We didn’t want Lilithmon to kill you!” Statuedramon said.

“That’s exactly why I didn’t tell you two I was coming here; I didn’t want to see her do the same to you.”

“I don’t want to see any more of my friends get killed either, which is exactly why I’m fine with Flamedramon being here!” Statch said.

“…Gee…thanks a lot, Statch,” Flamedramon said sarcastically.

“You’re welcome.”

“Say…have any of you seen Abigail? She was right behind me…”

“…Didn’t she come with us?” Zelda asked.

“If Auntie Abigail isn’t here now, she’s not coming,” Irene said. “This is the place where all the Bio Hybrids meet; I guess she just didn’t want to be noticed…”

“Statuedramon, what’s wrong?” I asked. My Digimon had been looking around nervously for a few seconds.

“Guys…we aren’t alone…Everyone, get down!” The five of us ducked down just as two shots were fired, missing all of us.

“Aw, now look at what you’ve done, lizard. You’ve gone and spoiled my surprise entrance!” A tall Digimon leapt down from a tall, marble column and landed in front of us.

“BioBeelzemon,” Flamedramon said.

“That’s right; now, which of you wants to die first?”

Apollomon

 

“Apollomon, your luck has just run out!” BioBlackWarGreymon said. “Terra Destroyer!”

“Solblaster!” Our two fire attacks collided, resulting in a huge explosion that overtook the entire building in its flames. “Damn it…where is he?!” The flames were large, and the smoke was thick, making it nearly impossible to see.

“Black Tornado!” BioBlackWarGreymon tore through the flames while spinning, crashing into my chest.

“Phoebus Blow!”

“Dramon Destroyer!” My fists collided over and over with the claws of his gauntlets. My knuckles were bleeding like crazy, and yet I didn’t let up my attacks. After a while, I managed to successfully strike BioBlackWarGreymon in the face with my left fist, momentarily catching him off guard.

“Arrow of Apollo!” The jewel on my right hand fired numerous arrows from it at his torso, but after a few hits, he clawed at my face. My attack stopped, and the part of my face his claws struck bled heavily into the fire. A few of the flames flickered where my blood landed, and some died down ever so slightly.

“Terra Destroyer!” BioBlackWarGreymon hurled another fireball at me, hurling me backwards into the flames. I was completely surrounded by them. “Mega Destroyer!”

“Solblaster!” BioBlackWarGreymon charged through the flames once more just as I readied my strongest attack. He took the Solblaster face-first, knocking him back. “Phoebus Blow!” I began once more punching the Bio Hybrid over and over in the face, and though he was unable to block, with each punch I threw, my knuckles bled harder and harder. “How could you, Saias?! How could you betray us like this?! What the fuck is the matter with you?!”

“In order for me to get what I want…no, what I need…I must do what Lilithmon asks of me, and if that means murdering former friends of mine, then so be it! Terra Destroyer!”

“Phoebus Blow!” My fist collided with BioBlackWarGreymon’s attack just as he launched it. The fireball dissipated, though its flames rained down on the blazing inferno covering the large room we were in.

“Is this all you’ve got, Apollomon?!” BioBlackWarGreymon yelled. “It’s not nearly enough! If you aim to defeat me, you’ll have to try better than that! Hit me with everything you’ve got!”

“Solblaster!” I held onto my fireball for a few moments, allowing it to increase in size before I hurled it at the Bio Hybrid. As I did, the flames rose higher and higher, and I couldn’t see anything else. Their roar was so powerful, I couldn’t even hear if my attack hit its target or not. “Damn it…all this smoke…getting hard to breathe…”

“Dramon Destroyer!” BioBlackWarGreymon leapt through the flames, his armor badly singed. He landed on top of me, pinning me to the ground. His hand was clasped around my neck, the claws of his gauntlets just barely missing my face as they were jammed into the ground. I raised my arms and wrapped my hands around his neck, but I couldn’t get him to let go, and soon, it all went dark around me.

Dianamon

 

Apollomon…where are you?! I ran hurriedly through the darkened and wet streets of Yew, frantically looking around for the Mega Digimon. I shouldn’t have let you go alone! What was I thinking when I didn’t go with you?! What if it’s too late?!

“Hey, did you hear about that fire downtown?” said a voice on the street. I immediately stopped running so I could listen to the conversation between the two passersby.

“Yeah, it’s at the old military base, isn’t it? Just like last time, when their armory burned down.”

Oh, no…that’s where Apollomon is!

“It just started a few minutes ago, I heard. I wonder how long it’ll last this time.”

Apollomon! I began running once again, hoping I would find Apollomon in time. Apollomon, don’t you fucking dare die on me, damn it!

Chapter 46: The Golden Digivice

Abigail

 

Our journey to Yew had not taken very long. It was close to midnight, but the moon could not be seen. The sky was covered in dark clouds, and it was raining just a little bit. By this time, we had entered a tavern in the city of Yew, and looked down at a square, blue tile.

“Wow…so, you guys had portals to go to your secret hideout even right here in Yew?” Statuedramon asked.

“Not just here; we have them all over the continent,” I said. The last time I was here…it was with Adrian…back when we thought Flamedramon would kill me if he discovered I was following him…And now, here he is, the reincarnation of the person I’ve been trying to bring back from the other side…

“It looks kind of…ordinary,” Statuedramon said. He stared at the small, square tile of the bar we stood in; aside from the fact that it was emitting a blue light, he was right; the tile did look ordinary.

“Well, we didn’t want it to stick out too much,” I said. “They react to the presence of Bio Hybrids like me; that’s why it’s glowing blue. If an ordinary person steps on it, no big deal, but if you’ve got one of us with you…”

“We’ll instantly be taken to Mandala?” Zelda asked.

“Correct. And, after you have been there once, you can use the tiles to take yourselves there as many times as you wish. Are you all ready to go?” I asked.

“Yeah; let’s go help Thomas kill that evil bitch!” Statuedramon ran onto the tile, and in a split second, he vanished. Zelda followed soon after him, and she too vanished.

“Are you coming?” Flamedramon asked.

“After you.” Flamedramon gave me an odd look before he stepped on the tile and vanished. “…I’m sorry, Flamedramon. I’m never going back to Mandala ever again.” I turned away from the tile and walked out of the bar. If she ever sees me again…then not even you could protect me…

Thomas Kasuto

 

“So, this is what you’ve been using,” I mused, observing the small, glowing tile that lay before me in what looked like a tavern in the city of Yew.

“Yes; though I am able to get to Mandala without these on my own because of my Digimon form, these are usually what I use to get there when I’m with the others,” Irene said.

“…How do they work?”

“Oh, it’s very easy; all you have to do is step on them, and they’ll immediately take you to Mandala, but only if there’s a Bio Hybrid like me close by. That’s to keep unwanted guests out of our hideout,” Irene said. “Look, I’ll show you…just in case you still don’t trust me…”

“Irene, I never said I didn’t trust you,” I said. Irene, however, had already stepped on the tile, and instantly, she vanished, to my surprise. I sighed, slipping my hands into the pockets of my coat, which Irene had given back to me a while ago. Unexpectedly, I found something hidden deep at the bottom of my pocket. Pulling it out, I found it was the necklace Zelda had given me when Apollomon had allowed her to join our guild. This necklace…it’s been in my coat pocket all this time so nothing would happen to it… I slowly ran my thumb over the gem in the middle of the necklace.

I’d like you to have this necklace; it was given to me by my sister, Hannah. All this time I’ve spent away from her, I've let myself believe that it protected me from harm, just as she used to do. Now, I would like to believe that it could protect you, too… Zelda’s words echoed in my mind.

“Well…what have I got to lose?” I slipped the necklace around my neck, and with a final look at the pendant, I stepped onto the tile. In an instant, I was transported out of the small house Irene had led me to and taken to the entrance of a colossal city.

Apollomon

Yew

 

Almost there…the center of Yew, where the military base for the knights is…that is where Saias will be…if he’s really still alive…There. That’s it. I looked out of the alleyway I hid in and gazed at a huge, ornate building, covered with the knight’s flags. Yeah, this is it. Now, I just have to make sure nobody sees me…Oh, screw it; who the hell cares if they do?! I marched out of the alley and up to the military base. Several nearby knights noticed me; some of them even ordered me to stop. I, however, ignored them, and continued on my way into the base.

“You there; what do you think you’re doing?!” one knight asked.

“I am looking for the office belonging to Knight Commander Saias,” I said.

“Uh…it’s down this hallway, last door to your right,” the knight said.

“Thank you, sir,” I replied before hurrying off.

“Wait, where are you—”

“Forgive me…Phoebus Blow!” I clenched my fist and rammed it into the knight’s stomach. He immediately fell to the floor, unconscious.

“Attention, all personnel!” a voice said over the intercom system. “This is Knight Commander Saias. There is an intruder in our building. The intruder is one of the wanted Digimon. His name is Apollomon. I order everyone to leave immediately, and return to your homes and lodgings. If you see him, do not approach him; do not engage him in combat. Avoid him at all costs, and continue on your way. I repeat, avoid the Digimon Apollomon at all costs. Over.”

“So, that’s how you want it? You’re making this easier for me, my friend, aren’t you?” I asked, smirking. I soon found the door the now unconscious knight had spoken of; carefully, I walked in, quietly closing the door behind me. There, sitting behind his desk, was Saias. “Why am I not surprised you wanted the glory of killing me all to yourself?”

“I don’t know what you mean, friend,” Saias said. “I simply wished for the others to leave so they wouldn’t get caught up in our raging battle.”

“Saias, what the hell is going on?!” I asked.

“…I’ve changed, Apollomon. For the better. Before, I was nothing more than a simple subhuman, with a simple, subhuman dream…all that changed when I met her…Lilithmon.”

“She turned you into a Bio Hybrid?!”

“Yes…yes, she did. The only thing I wanted in return…what Lilithmon promised me in return for everything I’ve done, and will do, for her…was for her to erase my identity as one of the Marked.”

“The Marked? Then…you have it? Just like Zelda?”

“…So, she really does have it, after all. I had my suspicions when I first met her, but I didn’t want to make a big deal about it. Anyway, Lilithmon promised that, once I’ve done everything she asks of me, she’ll make it so the Marked are never ridiculed, insulted, murdered, or anything else terrible that’s happened to them! No longer will people think of me as nothing more than a mistake, or a crime against our beloved Goddess Arcadia! When people hear the name of Knight Commander Saias, they will tremble in fear, they will respect me! Never again…will I be treated like trash!”

“Saias…I—”

“Shut up; it’s too late to talk your way out of this! I’m doing this for the benefit of ALL my Marked brothers and sisters!” Saias pulled a gold-colored Digivice from his armor and slammed the palm of his hand over it. The device emitted a blinding, bright light that filled the entire room. “Bio Hybrid DNA Charge! Bio Hybrid Digivolve to, BioBlackWarGreymon!”

Oh, no…not that Digimon! I had heard stories of just how powerful a BlackWarGreymon could be…and now, I was actually about to fight one.

“Apollomon! Your luck…has just run out!” A flaming sphere materialized in the Bio Hybrid’s hand.