Chapter 80: Demon Beast

Zelda

Saias’s Villa

1 Day

 

“…And now, the Bio Hybrids have all ten Horcruxes,” I said. With Apollomon, Dianamon, and Pheragas gone, the living room felt empty, even with everyone else sitting around me, listening intently to my explanation of what has happened. “I…you can blame me if you’d like. Sephyrus tricked me; he turned into Gallantmon, and he…”

Thomas, sitting next to me, gently took my hand in his. “I have no intention of blaming you for any of this, Zelda,” he said, smiling at me. “It is the fault of Lilithmon and the Bio Hybrids, and we will stop them no matter how many Digimon they call forth from the Dark Area.”

“We should prepare for the worst, though,” BlackGaomon said, looking grimly at everyone in the room.

“We still have to deal with three other Digimon,” Statuedramon said, pacing the floor. “And then there’s also that DeathPhantomon, too.”

“Which means five of the twelve walk free,” Thomas said. “With this many, they’ll be more powerful than the others were.”

“And don’t forget, nobody knows what happened to Cherubimon,” BlackGaomon added. “For all we know, he could still be alive.”

“…Meaning half of them are alive, if Cherubimon is,” Luna pointed out. The others nodded in agreement with her observation.

“What should we do?” Statch asked, taking a bite of his cheeseburger.

“Without Apollomon, we can’t do anything,” BlackGaomon said gravely. “We must wait for him, Dianamon, and Pheragas to return, and hopefully, they’ll have Seraphimon with them.”

Sephyrus

Braig’s Lab

 

Over four weeks it’s been since IceDevimon froze this place over…and yet, the ice remains intact! The ice that incased the laboratory gleamed in the bright sunlight. Should I…go in? It can supposedly kill one with just a touch…I’d better not risk it, even if I am a Bio Hybrid.

Closing my eyes, I thrust Saias’s sword deep into the ice and began chanting the ancient words. The first thing I heard when I finished the incantation was the ice shattering. The sword fall from my hands and landed on the paved sidewalk. Machinedramon now stood before me, looking around in awe.

“…So many buildings,” Machinedramon said.

“Yes, a lot has changed since you’ve been here last,” I said. “What you knew to be a barren wasteland has developed into a thriving city.”

Machinedramon grunted. “I detest civilization; other beings must be living in fear of one supreme being…and that being…is me.”

I bowed my head slightly in deference to him. “And so it shall be, Machinedramon. But first…perhaps you ought to pay a visit to dear Lilithmon? She is expecting you, good sir.”

“Very well; lead me to her, then,” Machinedramon said.

“Lilithmon is currently residing within Mandala City, which, I’m afraid, has sunk to the bottom of the ocean,” I explained.

“Bottom of the ocean?! How do you expect me to get there?!” Machinedramon roared.

“…I know of a few…shortcuts,” I said. “Come with me; I shall take you to her, good sir.”

BlackGaomon

Saias’s Villa

 

“But…we can’t just sit here, doing nothing!” Statch exclaimed. “What if they haven’t released the other three yet? We should go out and stop them before that happens!”

“And what would happen if we actually ran into them?” I asked, turning to face Statch. “Without Apollomon…without Dianamon, or Pheragas, or even Seraphimon, we wouldn’t stand a chance against the remaining six Digimon. The other six you fought were nothing compared to the other half.”

“…Are they that powerful?” Thomas asked, looking surprised.

I nodded. “All twelve are powerful on their own, but these remaining six…they’re so powerful, they could lay waste to the entire continent in a matter of days,” I said. “Cherubimon is a Celestial Digimon, the same as Lilithmon used to be, and Seraphimon is, and you three,” I pointed to Statch, Zelda, and Thomas. “You three already know how powerful she is. And then, the Digimon Hydramon is practically immortal, with the ability to regenerate almost all of his eight heads except for his main one; add to that his clairvoyant abilities, and you’ve got a Digimon that will never let himself get killed.”

“He just hasn’t met the right opponent yet,” Statch boasted, puffing his chest out. “I’ll cut off every single head of that eight-headed freak!”

I sighed, growing impatient with the Rookie Digimon’s display of bravado.

“Please continue,” Thomas told me, and I nodded at the assassin.

“DeathPhantomon is next…he has the ability to lock his opponents in an eternal nightmare, never to awake again…furthermore, he can also turn them into spirits. As spirits, his opponents will not be able to hit him with their attacks, but he can hit them with his special scythe; the Scythe of Soul’s Harvest.”

“His scythe…can bring harm to ethereal beings?” Thomas asked.

I nodded. “I don’t know the logic behind it, but he can. It’s also the same with Lupinemon…She uses light-based attacks, and may appear to be an Exalted Beast, but in reality…she’s a Demon Beast. Her light can sear through ethereal beings as DeathPhantomon’s scythe can slice through them. And finally, there’s Machinedramon…an enormous Digimon designed for total annihilation. He won’t stop destroying until there’s nothing left to destroy…and even then, he might not stop.”

“BlackGaomon…how do you know all of this?” Luna asked, a puzzled expression crossing her face. “I thought you and Pheragas joined at the same time.”

“No…After Apollomon, Dianamon, and SlashAngemon, who obviously knew all of this information, formed this group…I was the first to join them, around one-hundred years ago. As the first to join, they gave me some of the information they had. About twenty years ago, Pheragas joined after he was sick of his father pushing him to join the Valencian Knights. He didn’t like the way they did things, and he still doesn’t.”

“Why didn’t Apollomon tell me?” Luna asked. “Chrysania and I were next to join, just before Garret and MetalEtemon…”

“It wasn’t something we were trying to keep a secret from you guys,” I said. “It’s just…kind of difficult to work in to a casual conversation, you know? It’s also a bit of a touchy subject for him; according to Dianamon, he had lost a past lover to one of those twelve, and I’d be willing to bet it was Cherubimon who killed her.”

“Why him?” Chrysania asked from behind Luna’s skirt. The poor child hadn’t left her mother’s side since her terrible ordeal in the Black Rose Mountains the day before.

“Cherubimon was the member of that group Apollomon went after, remember? Though, he wasn’t successful, and that’s why I have a feeling that Cherubimon’s still alive today.”

“All the more reason why we should go!” Statch exclaimed, jumping up. “If one of those evil bastards hurt our boss, then it’s up to us, his employees and friends, to kick his ass in retribution!”

“Sit down!” I ordered. “As long as Dianamon and Apollomon are away, I am in charge. Got it?” The taller Rookie, clearly surprised by my tone of voice, sat back down next to Thomas. “For now…we will just sit…and wait. That, dear comrades…is an order.”

“BlackGaomon…forgive my impertinence, but I think that’s a really terrible idea,” Thomas said. “I’ll go along with it as you’ve ordered…but I think it’s only fair that I let you know where I stand on this.”

“I agree with Thomas,” Luna said. “We can’t just sit and wait for those Digimon to come back…I’ll follow along, but only because Apollomon clearly trusts you enough to leave you in charge.”

“I think it’s a fucking awful idea!” Statch shouted. “I don’t care if Apollomon left you in charge, BlackGaomon; you are not Apollomon! Apollomon would never make us sit and wait for them to come to us!” Statuedramon leapt off the couch and ran upstairs.

Sephyrus

Mandala City

 

“Welcome home,” I said to Machinedramon as we were teleported to the underwater city.

“…This place is in ruins,” Machinedramon said, looking around at the fallen buildings and piles of rubble. “A job well done; nearly everything is in shambles. Do you know the identity of the one who did this?”

“I believe this happened during a fight between Neptunemon and Belphemon. There have been several other fights here since then, though, so perhaps the credit should not go to them alone…”

“…Really well done,” Machinedramon commented. “This destruction…it may have been accidental, but it really is quite artistic!”

“I see you haven’t changed a bit, Machinedramon,” said a lilting female voice.

“Lilithmon, where are you?!” Machinedramon asked, having forgotten about the beauteous destruction immediately upon hearing Lilithmon’s voice.

“I’m right here, silly.” Machinedramon looked down and saw the beautiful Mega level Digimon standing right in front of him. “How’ve you been, Machinedramon?”

“HOW HAVE I BEEN?! I was locked up two-hundred years longer than I should have been, and you’re asking me how I am?!”

“Yes.”

Machinedramon knelt down as best he could to look Lilithmon in the face. “Don’t get cute with me; you may be the strongest of the twelve of us, but don’t think I won’t hesitate to attack you. Don’t antagonize me.”

“Antagonize you? Don’t be ridiculous, Machinedramon; I wouldn’t dare dream of doing that,” Lilithmon said coyly. “Now, Sephyrus, you did well, finding the Sword and bringing Machinedramon back. Did you find the Flute or the Mirror?”

“Both of them,” I said. “I have already freed Hydramon from his prison; has he not yet arrived?”

“I’m here,” Hydramon suddenly said, walking up to our group, shaking the ground with each step he took.

“Good to see you again, Hydramon,” Lilithmon smirked.

“It seems as though I’m not needed here,” I said to myself. “I’ll be on my way to the Savage Prairie so I can free Lupinemon, then…”

10 Minutes

 

The Savage Prairie was the same as ever; an endless sea of tall grass, with nary a tree in sight.

“I suppose this is as good a place as any…” I placed the Flute on a nearby rock and began reciting the ancient words. A golden light illuminated the area, and soon, a golden, wolf-like Digimon stood before me.

“You certainly took your time,” Lupinemon growled, baring her sharp fangs. “Care to explain why I was the last one to be freed?!”

“Forgive my tardiness, my fair lady; based on how the release spell works, it was simply easiest to free you last,” I said.

“Whatever; now, where’s Lilithmon?!” she demanded impatiently.

“Fret not, milady; in a few moment’s time, I’ll have brought you to her whereabouts.”

10 Minutes

 

“I have returned,” I said.

“How did it go? There weren’t any interruptions, were there?” Lilithmon asked.

I shook my head and announced, “Lupinemon is with me.”

The glimmering Demon Beast walked up to Lilithmon and bared her fangs. “You could not even be bothered to be there when I was released, so you send your Bio Hybrid flunky to free me instead,” Lupinemon growled.

“Yes, Lilithmon; why have you been here this entire time instead of freeing us?” Hydramon asked in a snide voice.

“I don’t care about that!” Lupinemon snapped. “There’s only one thing I wish to discuss with Lilithmon!”

“Yes? What is it?”

“Your punishment.”