Chapter Text
“Tamers all over Odaiba and Japan as a whole have been shocked by the news of Tai Kamiya’s accident. 11 years old, Taichi Kamiya, was struck by a car yesterday and now rests at Aiiku hospital.” A news anchor looked at the camera.
“Already, many letters have been sent to the self-proclaimed ‘V-Tamer’...I don’t see why. We shouldn’t celebrate somebody who plays such a violent-”
“Not this crap again.” The two news anchors argued.
“Tai is not going to like the attention.” Neo turned off the tv.
“Alright. We should head out.” Hideto got up from the couch.
“Yup yup!” Mari shook with anticipation.
Izzy, Sora, and Sigma looked at their devices and nodded.
“Here we go.” They all walked upstairs.
“Good luck, guys!” Rei waved to them. “And I’m off to the hospital. That’s going to be a long journey.”
The children stood in front of the Holy Angel Castle defenders.
MagnaAngemon looked down at each of them. “So you’re going to the Demon Lord’s lair?”
“Yeah. Six of us, five of them. We should be able to win.” Neo said confidently.
“Very well. Be careful. Daemon chose each of the Demon Lords himself. I wouldn’t doubt that they are more powerful than they are letting on. You must also capture or destroy the Digimental as soon as you can.” MagnaAngemon nodded at the children.
“Right. We’re ready for anything.” Hideto looked at his devices.
An Angemon ran in hurriedly. “Sir! Viruses are coming towards us!” He reported.
“What?” Leo drew his sword and followed him. The others ran out and saw the threat.
Another wave of evil Digimon were flying towards the castle.
“Crap! We need to fight those guys before we leave.” Sora took out her device.
“No.” They all turned to MagnaAngemon. “We can handle them ourselves. You must all go now.”
“Are you sure you can hold off that many Digimon?” Sigma saw quite a few Ultimates in the crowd.
“Whether or not we can does not matter. This is the Demon Lord’s desperate attempt to stop your advance before it started. Now is the best time to strike.” MagnaAngemon nodded at Leo.
“All troops! Prepare yourselves!” Leo ran back into the main hall while barking orders.
“We have our mission, and you have yours.” MagnaAngemon nodded at the kids.
“You better be alive when we get back.” Neo nodded back at him.
The children all ran out to their Digimon and left for the area that Beelzemon had described.
“Good luck, children." MagnaAngemon watched the Digimon quickly run off. "As for us, we must fight!” Light surrounded him and his cloak was blown off, revealing his battle mode.
“Who’s fighting who?” The Tamers wondered atop Hououmon's helmet.
“I’ll take on Laylamon. I have unfinished business.” Neo said quickly.
“I’ll hold off the Barbamon.” Sigma crossed his arms.
“Lucemon is going down!” Mari did a thumbs down.
“I’ll help Sigma take down the clones. Either that or I’ll fight the unknown member, whoever the heck it is.” Hideto rubbed his two devices together.
“And we’ll double team Leviamon!” Sora and Izzy nodded at each other.
“Are you sure we should leave the strongest member to those two?” Hideto leaned over to Neo.
“They may be the least experienced, but it's clear that they work together well. I trust them enough, and we can always assist if needed.” Neo looked over at the two 11 year olds.
“Alright. Then it’s decided. Now we just need to get to their place.” Hideto and the others looked forwards.
“They managed to get away before the vanguard could reach.” A DemiDevimon spoke to the Demon Lords.
“Then they will come here soon. We must be ready.” Barbamon floated down to the Digimental.
“Just a little bit more and we can release Ultra Daemon. Not even Zero can defeat him.” Leviamon started to pulse with energy.
“My final dance with Neo. Let it be a beautiful one.” Laylamon snapped a rose in her mouth in half.
“I’m ready to pound somebody’s face in.” Lucemon punched his fists together.
“Weaklings. All of you. I will fight Ze-ro~” The chained member looked at the group with a wholesome smile. They all backed away from him.
They waited patiently in their huge cavern base.
“Hey, Neo?” Sora walked over to him.
“Yes?” Neo raised an annoyed eyebrow.
“Why couldn’t one of us just take Tai’s Digimon dock? Then Zero could help us.” Sora asked like it was obvious.
“It’s not that simple. Every Tamer creates a bond with their Digimon. The closer a bond, the stronger a Digimon is. One of us would have to be close to Tai and Zero for him to be worth bringing. None of us fit the bill.” Neo shook his head.
“Oh. Jeez, Digimon are complicated.” Sora scratched her head.
“Tell me about it.” Neo tittered.
Hououmon slowly began to descend.
“We’re close. Everybody, get ready.” Hououmon landed as Neo directed the others.
Hououmon lowered her head to let everybody hop off, and they all walked over to their respective Digimon.
In front of them was a huge, but otherwise unremarkable tree. Though, it was withered and decayed, unlike all of the trees around it.
“Omnimon, knock it down.” Hideto shot a laser at him.
“Garuru Cannon!” Omnimon shot several large blasts at the tree. It was torn apart with ease. Even the roots were tossed out, which is exactly what the Tamers were expecting.
Under the roots lay a pool of dark miasma.
“That’s it alright. Blast the ground open!” Sigma pointed at the pool. All the Digimon shot at it until a sizable hole appeared.
“Let’s go! The Demon Lords await!” Neo and AxeKnightmon jumped in. The others followed closely.
“They are here!” Barbamon pointed his staff towards the ceiling of the cave.
“Then I will make our battleground more spacious for them.” Leviamon let out a ring of energy, blowing away a large portion of the cave.
The cavernous arena was now very large and tall. Perfect for the many huge Digimon that would be fighting within it.
*Pound*
“They’re coming!” Lucemon cracked his knuckles.
*Pound*
“I’m feeling hot!” Laylamon’s eyes grew bloodthirsty.
*Pound*
“Zero! Zero! Here comes Zero!” The chained member jumped around happily.
*Crash*
Several Digimon fell into the cave with their Tamers mounted on them.
“Tamers.” Leviamon led the group of demons.
“Asshats.” Neo led the group of humans.
“As mature as ever. Do you really believe you can protect this realm from the many threats that harrow it?” Barbamon pointed his staff at Neo.
“Better than you can. After all, your armies lost to a couple of children and their Digimon. I can’t even imagine how poorly you would do against an actual army.” Neo scoffed.
“Let us consider those to be your last words.” Laylamon ran at Neo. AxeKnightmon engaged her.
“Protect the Digimental! Keep fighting! Our destiny shall not be twisted by these fools!” Barbamon split himself into three. MetalSeadramon and Omnimon flew at them.
“I don’t enjoy hitting pretty women, but I guess that isn’t a good description of you.” Lucemon ran towards the now furious Mari and Mervamon.
“So you two think you can defeat me?” Leviamon looked down at Sora and Izzy. Even Hououmon and HerculesKabuterimon were tiny compared to him.
“Yeah!” They shot lasers at their Digimon. The large bird and beetle rushed at him.
“Get them, get them! You might be able to beat them!” The chained member cheered happily as blasts went on around him.
“Who’s the imp?” Omnimon and Barbamon clashed.
“He’s a mascot for the group.” Barbamon snickered.
“A mound of dirt would better suit the soon to disband Demon Lords!” Omnimon smacked Barbamon’s staff to the side and nearly landed a fatal blow when the other Barbamon smacked him in the back.
Omnimon swung all around himself, scaring off the two Demon Lords.
“Dark Inferno!” The two Barbamon shot flames at Omnimon. Omnimon flew upwards, causing the two flames to collide and surround the area. “Where is he?” The two Barbamon looked around wildly.
“Grey Sword!” Omnimon flew behind one of the Barbamon and landed a clean slice across his back.
“There you are! Greedy Wand!” Barbamon swung around and tried to smack Omnimon with his staff. Omnimon headbutted the end of it, destroying the crystal. The crystals on the other staves blew up.
“Got the real one out of the way already!” Omnimon slapped the Barbamon in front of him across the face with the broad side of his sword.
“Dammit it all! Pandemonium Lost!” The two Barbamon attacking Omnimon shot a huge blast. Omnimon dodged out of the way, causing the blast to hurtle towards Laylamon and AxeKnightmon.
“Spear Rush!” AxeKnightmon and Laylamon met spear to claw. AxeKnightmon pulled back for a large thrust and Laylamon rushed forwards.
“Razor Nail!” Laylamon stuck her claws deep into AxeKnightmon’s chest. “You should reconsider getting rid of your shield!” She laughed.
“You should reconsider bragging while your opponent is still alive.” AxeKnightmon wrapped his arms around Laylamon, sticking his bone arms deep into her side. “Hand Of Doom!” Darkness shot through Laylamon’s body, causing poison to father in the side of her body.
“Phantom Love!” Laylamon phased backwards out of AxeKnightmon’s hands. “What did you think of that?”
“Black Javelin!” AxeKnightmon shot his javelin at Laylamon, cutting her across the face.
“My face! My beautiful face! How dare you!” Laylamon’s devil hand lit up with dark flames.
AxeKnightmon called his javelin back as Laylamon rushed at him. The spear nearly cut Lucemon across the face as he lunged towards Mervamon.
“You keep to your battle, jerk!” Lucemon yelled at AxeKnightmon. Mervamon jumped behind him and swung her sword at his back. He dashed away without looking at her.
“You can’t run forever!” Mervamon blocked several surprise punches from Lucemon with her blade.
“Who said I was running?” Lucemon sped up.
“Olympia Kai!” In the brief moment that Lucemon threw no punches, Mervamon slashed him across the chest.
“Dang wench! Terrible Dance!” Lucemon tried to roundhouse kick her. Mervamon blocked with her sword before jabbing him in the stomach with her snake hand.
“That the best you can do?” Mervamon backed away from him.
“Try this on for size! Deadly Roll!” Lucemon did several swift moments before throwing out a magical roundhouse kick.
“Just as we expected. Final Strike Roll!” Mervamon dashed under the kick and grabbed Lucemon’s other leg. She tossed him forwards and rammed her sword through his chest.
“Is that the best YOU can do?! Grand Cross!” Lucemon shot ten flaming blasts at the very close Mervamon. She managed to bend around a few of them, but she was struck by several.
"Dang Demon Lords." Mervamon rubbed a burning wound on her exposed stomach. "Why can't you people just die and stop causing us trouble?!"
Lucemon stared at her for a few seconds. "...Sorry, but have we met before? I feel like I saw you without a Tamer once." He squinted.
"For the love of-focus on the fight!" Mervamon rushed at him again.
"Very well! Grand Cross!" Lucemon fired another ten blasts. Mervamon deflected them with her blade.
The blasts ricocheted around the room, but the always agile MetalSeadramon easily coiled around them.
“You snakes shall be slain!” Barbamon shot several small black beams at MetalSeadramon. Despite his large stature, he easily dodged each laser.
“Die!” The third Barbamon flew behind MetalSeadramon and charged a blast in his hand. Omnimon shoulder slammed him away.
A laser hit MetalSeadramon. “Thanks, Omnimon.” MetalSeadramon nodded at him while easily dodging a surprise blast from Barbamon.
“You slippery gnat! Why won’t you die?!” Barbamon shot several more blasts.
“Losing our cool, our we? Hot Squeeze!” MetalSeadramon wrapped his body around Barbamon.
“No! No!” Barbamon struggled.
“River Of Power!” MetalSeadramon blasted the third Barbamon clone, killing it.
“Cursed rat!” The two living Barbamon backed away from Omnimon and MetalSeadramon. They ducked under Leviamon as he flew past them during his scuffle with the last two Megas.
“You know the plan!” HerculesKabuterimon jumped forwards and grabbed Leviamon’s two tails with his four hands.
“Right! Crimson Flare!” Hououmon slammed her flaming body into Leviamon. HerculesKabuterimon let go of Leviamon as Hououmon’s attack connected, launching him into one of the walls of the cavern.
Leviamon didn't even flinch. “Disappointing. Thunder Breath!” Leviamon shot a roaring wave of flames at the two.
“Golden Persuasion!” The flames wrapped around Hououmon in a semi sphere, immediately hardening as they did.
"It's a good thing Hououmon can control fire, or that might have been ugly." Sora commented quietly.
"Indeed." Izzy nodded. Both of them fired lasers from their D-2s.
“High Mega Blaster!” HerculesKabuterimon charged four blasts in each of his hands and combined them into one great blast, which he fired at Leviamon’s underbelly.
Leviamon roared as electricity coursed up and down his body.
“Sharp Hooked Claws!” Hououmon smashed her claws into Leviamon’s face and started to rend it as the electricity held him in place.
“Shell Shock!” Leviamon opened his mouth and tried to eat Hououmon’s entire body. Hououmon backed away last second, her large helmet being grazed by Leviamon’s sharp fangs.
“This guy barely reacts to being hit!” HerculesKabuterimon moved in between the twin tails coming down on him.
“We’ll make him feel pain, whether or not he wants to.” Hououmon screeched at Leviamon.
“I’d like to see you try! Rainbow Flurry!” Leviamon released a noxious gas from his nostrils. The two Megas backed away as he disappeared within it.
“Where did he go?” Hououmon searched the cloud with her keen eyes.
“He has to be in there...somewhere…” Hercules snapped his claws open and closed, waiting to grip something with them.
"Show yourself, Leviamon!" Sora demanded.
“Wave Of Darkness!” Leviamon dropped his whole body onto Hououmon. Hououmon caught him with her claws but was rapidly falling towards the floor due to his weight.
“Giga Scissor Claw!” HerculesKabuterimon caught the bottom of Leviamon’s body with his pincers and helped Hououmon keep him up.
The Tamers all raised their device to send new orders.
“Frozen Fury!” Leo shot a cold lion head at the wave of Devimon in front of him. They were frozen in place and then smashed into bits by the many Angemon defenders.
“They’re getting close to the doors!” One of the Angemon defenders had his staff ripped out of his hands by a Boltmon.
“Why do I do this? Samurai Tone!” Gekovitch ran out and blasted the enemy Digimon away with his music.
“Good job, Gekovitch! Howling Blaster!” Gabo stood atop the castle walls and shot blue flames at several Digimon.
“Let’s get that Boltmon.” Ninjamon and Kogamon watched the battle.
“Yeah.” They nodded at each other before hopping at the Boltmon. They took out their blades and imbued them with Gabo’s blue flames.
“Fire Enbuken!” They dropped onto the Boltmon and continued to slash him with their searing blades until he was a heap on the floor.
“Go. Go. I will kill the big one.” Devitamamon stood over the vast army.
“We’ll see, monster.” Leomon spun his sword around.
“Continue to lead the forces. I will take care of him.” MagnaAngemon walked to Leo's side.
“What? Er, alright, Lord MagnaAngemon.” Leo ran off to fight some Ultimates as MagnaAngemon approached Devitamamon.
“Die. Angel. Laser Eyes.” The many eyes on Devitamamon’s grotesque face lit up and fired beams at MagnaAngemon.
“Villains like yourself will never succeed. Gate Of Destiny!” MagnaAngemon summoned his sword and made a circle in the air with it. A small golden gate appeared and sucked up several nearby foes and the lasers. Devitamamon started to get pulled towards it.
“Demon’s Gait.” Devitamamom ran forwards towards the gate and crashed into it, destroying it.
“It seems that I must train more often. Very well.” MagnaAngemon jumped forwards. "Excalibur!" He slashed Devitamamon's entire body in half with ease.
“I-incredible!” Gekovitch and the other defenders watched in awe.
The battlefield calmed down as Devitamamon's body wasted away. The demon Digimon all backed away.
The demons fled as MagnaAngemon and Leomon showed their stained blades.
“Get out of here!” Gabo celebrated. His hairs stood up as he heard somebody come behind him.
“Gabo? I need your help.” The voice made his eyes flare with interest.
“Garuru Cannon!” Omnimon just barely missed Barbamon with each shot.
“Horn Of The Lake!” MetalSeadramon rammed his horn through Barbamon’s back.
“Thanks! Grey Sword!” Omnimon did a spin before slicing the second Barbamon clone’s head clean off.
“That’s not good!” The last Barbamon shook.
“Go help Hououmon and HerculesKabuterimon. I’ll clean up here.” MetalSeadramon nudged his head at the two struggling Megas.
“Right. Be careful.” Omnimon zipped away as MetalSeadramon focused his eyes on the elder Digimon in front of him.
“One Barbamon left. Good.” AxeKnightmon blocked several swipes from the nearly feral Laylamon. She pulled back for a second before stepping forward and swiping off one of the large horns on his chest.
“You will pay!” She continued to overwhelm AxeKnightmon with her flurry of attacks.
“Your attacks are indeed swift." AxeKnightmon grunted as he blocked a few and was forced to tank others.
"And you're going to be dead!" Laylamon hissed.
Laylamon pulled both of her claws back and Neo smirked. He shot a laser at AxeKnightmon.
AxeKnightmon caught both of Laylamon's claws with his double-sided javelin. He kneed her in the chest, making her stumble back.
"Well, that hurt a lot..." Laylamon gripped her stomach. “But I expected more from Neo and his Digi-”
“Twin Spear!” AxeKnightmon rammed his spear through Laylamon’s chest.
"Oh...Is...that all you got?” Laylamon grabbed the handle of the spear and tried to pull it out.
“Hold it together, woman!” Lucemon and Mervamon jumped by.
“You might want to follow your own advice!” Mervamon’s slices were blocked by Lucemon’s quick blocks.
“Grand Cross!” Lucemon shot ten orbs at Mervamon again.
“Stop it with that attack!” Mervamon cut them apart and rushed at Lucemon. “This is the end!” Mervamon launched another flurry of attacks at the tired Lucemon.
“It’s all breaking apart!” Leviamon was struck by several blasts at the same time. “But I won’t lose!” He pulsed with energy, forcing the Digimon around him away.
“This guy is tough!” Omnimon shot several more cannon beams at Leviamon with little effect.
“No wonder he managed to survive all that abuse from Zero.” HerculesKabuterimon panted.
“We can’t stop now.” Hououmon landed to take a quick breather before flying at Leviamon again.
"Come on! Don't stop yet! You can do it!" Sora and Izzy shouted encouragingly.
"We've won harder battles!" Hideto called out.
“Tch. All of you together wouldn’t stand a chance!" Leviamon scoffed. "The only Digimon, the ONLY Digimon that stands a chance against me is Ze-Ah!” Leviamon backed away from the group.
Hououmon, HerculesKabuterimon, and Omnimon turned around, like they thought someone was behind them. "What is it?" Their Tamers asked.
“Zero! Zero!” The chained member celebrated.
“What?!” Neo turned away from the battle to see if the chained member was looking at anything.
“But if Tai isn’t here, then Zero isn’t either. They must have sensed something else.” Sigma checked the energy reader in his D-1.
“No, that's Zero!” Hideto’s reader was going wild.
“Zero! Zero! Zero!” A few chains broke off of the small member.
“But why now? Why wasn’t he here before?” Leviamon tensed his whole body.
“It must be a bluff!” Barbamon’s hands shook.
Everybody turned their attention to the hole the Tamers had made in the cave’s ceiling earlier.
“I won’t believe it! Thunder Breath!” Leviamon split the group of Digimon in front of him with a large blast from his mouth.
Everybody jumped back as a barrier forced the beam into random directions.
“Well, well, well...” Everybody’s eyes grew wide at the voice. "Based off how much that attack sucked, I'm assuming that was Leviamon." A figure lowered himself into the cave.
“Zeromaru!” The chained member yelled with ecstasy.
The blue dragon knight hovered in the air. His eyes were focused on Leviamon and the chained member.
“But how?!” Neo looked on in an amazement.
“I made it in time!” Everybody’s eyes popped at the even more startling voice.
“R…” Hideto looked at the familiar girl who floated down in an orb of light.
“Rei…” Neo’s mouth was open.
“What’s going on?” Izzy was just as stunned as the others.
“I’ll explain later! For now…” Zero cracked his knuckles. "I have to destroy the Digimental!"
"Tch. You fool! The Digimental is made out of nigh invincible material! Not only that, but an incredible amount of energy is also stored within it!" Barbamon swung his staff at him confrontationally. "You cannot destroy it! You'll be burned to a crisp!"
"We'll see!" Zero flew past all of the Demon Lords in the blink of an eye. He punched open the glass case holding the Digimental and grabbed it.
Immediately, the Digimental sparked angrily at him, causing black lightning to tase him. Zero grunted, but he didn't flinch. He made sure to hold onto the Digimental tight.
"So much negative energy..." Zero narrowed his eyes at the Digimental. "But not nearly enough to overpower the Ulforce!" His own body sparked with bright blue energy.
The black lightning and Zero's energy struggled with each other. Everybody backed away as both the positive and negative energy flew around the room wildly.
"The amount of power UlforceVeedramon is releasing..." Leviamon watched on with shaking eyes.
"It's insane!" Laylamon held a hand over her mouth.
"Stupid piece of jewelry!" Zero growled as the Digimental slowly began to be crushed. "First you powered up Arcadiamon! Then you helped Daemon! And now you're trying to revive him?! I won't allow it, and I know Taichi wouldn't either!" He shouted.
The Digimental's black lightning began to be slowed down as Zero crushed it in between his hands. The glass orb in the middle of it grew several cracks. It threw out several desperate whips of energy, but none of them received a response from Zero.
"For everyone in the Digital World, I'll destroy this thing!" Zero roared as the Digimental was completely flattened in between his hands.
Zero crushed the item in one of his hands with all his might. Everyone heard a loud bang, almost like a cannon being discharged suddenly.
Zero opened his hand back up, revealing that the Digimental had been completely destroyed. In its place was only a few bits of data, all of which disappearing within mere seconds.
"He...he..." Barbamon gasped.
"He destroyed the Digimental?!" Lucemon shouted in surprise.
"Jeez. That kinda hurt." Zero rolled his hand.
"Damn you, dragon knight!" Leviamon released a storm of flames at him.
Zero backhanded the blast away with ease. "Now then. Time to get rid of you guys too." He summoned his swords.
"Great job, Zeromaru!" Rei cheered casually.
Everyone turned to her. “Rei...HOW?” Sora rubbed her head.
“It was Taichi’s plan.” Rei grinned.
“Take my device and go to the Digital World. You should be able to control Zero.” Tai dropped the device into her hands.
“Are you sure? I’ve never been an actual Tamer before.” Rei looked at the knight on the devices’ screen. "A-And it's Zero too. Are you sure you want to trust me with him?"
“You got Saiba blood in you. If you’re 1/10 as good as your brother and half as kind as me, you’ll be good.” Tai gave her a pained thumbs up. "And I know for a fact that you several times as kind as I am."
“Alright, Tai. But how will I find the others?” Rei pocketed the device.
“Ask Gabo. I’m sure he and the other Holy Angel defenders will know. You’ll do great, Rei. I know it.” Tai nodded at her.
“Alright, Tai. I'll do it.” She smiled at him.
“With a little bit of help, Zero and I tracked you guys down.” Rei looked up to see a couple of Angemon waving bye.
“Yay! Yay!” The chained member jumped up and down.
“What is that thing…” Zero whispered. “Everybody! We have no time to lose!” Zero looked at the Tamer’s Digimon. They all nodded at him.
“Let’s finish this!” MetalSeadramon flew at Barbamon.
“Die, serpent! Chaos Astray!” Barbamon charged an even more powerful attack than Pandemonium Lost and blasted it at MetalSeadramon.
“Will against will! And you’re not going to win! River Of Power!” The two continuous blasts met with a strident bang in the middle.
"Come on, MetalSeadramon! You can overpower an old hag like this guy!" Sigma cheered. MetalSeadramon's ray picked up power.
“Maybe if I was younger, I could overpower this beast…Maybe if he didn't have a Tamer, I could overpower him...” MetalSeadramon’s blast approached Barbamon. “How could my plan have failed so badly?” The attack overtook him.
He came out of MetalSeadramon’s beam with torn clothing and a burned beard.
“Hurry up. Finish me.” Barbamon breathed heavily.
A laser hit MetalSeadramon. "Hmph. It’s over! Dragon Rise!” MetalSeadramon rested his blaster snout on Barbamon’s chest. Lights shot out from all over Barbamon’s body.
“I die with no regrets!” Barbamon shouted before exploding into a rainbow of data.
"Great job, MetalSeadramon. Let's help the others with Leviamon." Sigma and MetalSeadramon ran towards the leviathan.
“Looks like you beat the rest to the party, huh?” Neo scoffed. Laylamon still rested her hands on AxeKnightmon's as she tried to rip the spear out of her chest.
“Do you really wish to die during such a pointless battle?” AxeKnightmon stuck the spear further through the other side of her body.
“N...No.” Laylamon loosened her claws.
"Lord Neo. Would you be willing to offer surrender terms to her?" AxeKnightmon asked.
"If she's willing to take them." Neo answered.
“Very well. Laylamon, surrender and we may spare you.” AxeKnightmon’s voice held sincerity.
“Would you really?” Laylamon looked at him with teary eyes.
“If you surrender now.” AxeKnightmon pulled his spear backwards.
“That's…” She sniffled. “So naive!” She tried to slap AxeKnightmon.
“Then you will die a fool!” AxeKnightmon pulled his spear up through her body before going all the way down.
"Neo..." Laylamon looked over to the bored boy.
She made a kissing motion at him before falling over.
"Weirdo." Neo replied coldly. "Let's go beat Leviamon, AxeKnightmon." He and his Digimon ran towards the leviathan.
“Laylamon! Just when I thought things couldn’t get any worse!” Lucemon punched Mervamon’s cheek.
“No more horseplay! I’m finishing this!” Mervamon knocked Lucemon back with her snake hand.
“Then let us meet our fate together! Ultimate Sacrifice!” A sphere appeared around both of them. Flames started to burn in the middle of it.
“I've seen heaven, but I have no interest in seeing hell!" Mervamon brandished her blade. "You will see your precious underworld alone!
"What the hell are you on about?!" Lucemon rushed at her with a glowing fist.
Mervamon's sword lit up. "Olympia Kai DX!” Mervamon cut Leviamon clean in half horizontally. He gasped in pain.
“Aaaah! My only regret-” Mervamon stopped spinning and landed one final slice through Lucemon’s entire torso, ripping his upper body off. “-was not reading more often.”
Lucemon’s two parts fell to the floor and disappeared into data.
"I feel like that was a reference to something..." Mervamon muttered.
"Come on, Mervamon! Let's go take down Leviamon too!" Mari and Mervamon ran towards the leviathan.
“And then there was one.” All the Megas swarmed around Leviamon.
“Leviamon, this is where you’ll fall.” Zero showed off his two sabers. The others showed their claws, teeth, or weapons.
“You fools. I have seen hell itself." Leviamon chuckled menacingly. "None can possibly defeat the terror that shall befall you. But I will give you a taste of such terror! Void Cancellation!” Leviamon’s entire body lit up with dark energy.
“Just die!” Zero pointed forwards.
“Poison Fountain! River Of Power! Garuru Cannon! Crimson Flare! Mega Electro Shocker! Spear Shot!” The six Digimon behind Zero fired at Leviamon at the same time.
“Take my wrath!” Leviamon released a stream of energy shaped like a great dragon.
The shots all clashed and let out an explosion so great, that the entire cave began to collapse.
“Wuh oh. We need to go! Take your Tamer and run!” Zero directed the others. They ran over and grabbed their Tamers and any Digimon incapable of flight.
“You’re not going anywhere, Zero!” Leviamon lunged at him.
“We’ll see!” Zero flew right at Leviamon.
The Digimon let go of their cargo once they got outside. The ground under them rumbled violently.
“That’s five of the seven Demon Lords down. Only Leviamon and somebody else are left.” Neo reported. The others nodded as more rumbling came from underneath them.
“Who’s the final Demon Lord?” Rei jumped up as a large crash came from underneath them.
“I don’t know. That weird, chained thing was supposedly a ‘mascot’, but I don’t buy it.” Hideto kept still as the ground shook.
“Yeah, but what danger could that thing possibly pose?” Mari didn’t look too afraid.
“I don’t know. I didn’t manage to scan it.” Sigma scrolled through the menus on his D-1.
“Well, together I’m sure we can beat whatever appears.” Sora grabbed onto Izzy as he nearly fell over from a sudden quake.
“But what did he mean when he said that ‘none can defeat the terror that will befall us’?” Izzy rubbed his chin.
Zero flew out of the ground and was being tailed by a large red leviathan with large cuts up and down his body.
“You stubborn dog! Die!” Zero dodged Leviamon's charge.
“Zero! Leviamon!” Rei covered her face as the battle kicked up violent winds.
“Zero can handle him with ease. Don’t worry.” Neo watched confidently.
“I agree! I agree!” Everybody swung around. The chained member sat behind them.
“You. What are you?” Neo and the others backed away as their Digimon moved in front of them.
“Weaklings weaklings. I want somebody stronger. I want Zero.” More of the member’s chains snapped off.
“N-Neo.” Sigma showed Neo his device. Neo’s eyes jumped at the stats.
“Everybody get away! That thing's much stronger than it looks!” Neo started to sweat as a smile appeared on the chained member’s face.
“That thing is powering up again!” Leviamon and Zero looked down at the seemingly harmless creature.
“Zero. Zero. Zero.” The last few chains broke off violently.
For the first time ever, the creature opened its eyes. They were a malicious red that heavily clashed with his warm smile. The same black silhouette as before started to appear.
“What is that thing?” Neo and Hideto got in front of Rei. Mari and Sigma stood close while Sora and Izzy hugged each other out of fear.
“I don’t know where Daemon found such a creature, but the end has come for everything in this world.” Leviamon still had a look of fear as his long mouth stretched into a smile.
“That power...it rivals Arcadiamon himself!” Zero clenched his fists.
“Die. DiE. dIe. DiE. DIE.” The chained member glowed an ominous crimson color.
“You guys fight, Leviamon! Defeat him! Make sure he’s dead!” Zero flew in and grabbed the chained member.
“What about you, Zero?” Rei shouted.
“Only I can fight this thing!” Zero flew high up into the air, surpassing the clouds.
“Wuh-You heard the man! Attack Leviamon! He should be weak enough for this to be an easy win! Come on!” Neo pointed at the great leviathan.
“I am no longer afraid of death! After what I witnessed, I embrace it’s grasp!” Leviamon flew at the six Megas.
“Let's finish this for good!” They all shot red lasers at their Digimon.
Hououmon flew up and caught Leviamon with her claws. The two struggled in the air for several seconds before AxeKnightmon and HerculesKabuterimon grabbed Leviamon’s tail and forced him to the floor. As they held his tails, Hououmon pushed forwards, bending Leviamon backwards and slamming him into the hard ground.
“You people can’t do anything to stop me!” Leviamon let out a pulse of energy. Mervamon and MetalSeadramon surged forwards.
“River Of Power!” MetalSeadramon shot a stream of energy into Leviamon’s belly. He let out a roar as Mervamon ran on top of him, dragging her sword into his stomach.
“Night Stalker!” She shot her snake arm at his eye and Medullia bit down on it. Leviamon roared again before flying back into the sky, throwing off Mervamon.
“You people are strong. It’s too bad you’ll die right now!” Thunder struck the area. “Thunderstorm Breath!” Leviamon shot a large beam that scattered into the area wildly. It tore through the ground as Digimon either retaliated or ran away.
A laser hit Omnimon. “Now’s my chance!” Omnimon flew towards Leviamon's stomach and released his sword.
“Counter his attack now!” AxeKnightmon stopped running and shot his spear at Leviamon. The others shot their own blasts, but were quickly being overwhelmed by Leviamon’s strength.
"While he's stuck, Omnimon! This is our chance!" Hideto yelled.
“Gray Sword!” Omnimon started to spin with his sword above his head. He shot straight through Leviamon, causing the beast to let out another roar of pain.
“Push!” The Tamers yelled.
The Digimon all put their full force into their attacks as the scattered rays from before disappeared. All at once, their blasts collided with Leviamon, ripping through several parts of his body.
“Gah! I was supposed to rule over everything. I wasn't supposed to die to these children!” Leviamon defiantly continued to float in the air.
“Your dreams were wrong and evil without redemption. If you truly had the beneficial destiny you preached, you led yourself astray! Garuru Cannon!” Omnimon aimed his cannon down at Leviamon and released several huge shots.
The air lit up with ice and blue orbs of energy as Leviamon’s entire body started to keel over like a blimp in the sky. He crashed into the ground.
“I may have lost...but Zero will die...Zero...will die!” Leviamon cackled. “I’m coming, my fellow Demon Lords. In Hell we shall bask in our victory!” Leviamon let out one more painful laugh.
He fell away into a huge collection of data.
“Zero.” Rei looked towards the sky.
“I don’t know what that thing was, but it’s not going to be easy to beat him. Even Zero will struggle.” Neo stood close to his sister.
Everybody looked up while their devices shone with insane stats.
Tai sat in his bed thinking.
“What are you?” Zero stared down the small dog-like creature. It had grown large purple wings.
“I’m Daemon’s favorite friend!” The shadow around him continued to be sucked in.
“Drop the act. You’re a Demon Lord for a reason.” Zero pointed his sword at him.
“Hmmm. I like you.” The creature started to grow. Zero stood his ground as it became huge.
“Then answer my question.” Zero looked up to see its face.
“I was the most powerful Demon Digimon. Far beyond even Mega Daemon. I proved to be too much of a threat for the guardians of our world many years ago, so they sealed away my power. But Daemon knew I could be used later on, so he made me a Demon Lord, waiting for the perfect time to use his trump card.” Its entire body started to take on a demonic form.
“Guardians? Do you mean MagnaAngemon?” Zero slowly flew back from the creature in front of him.
“There are gods. They are weak. In an attempt to seal away my power, they only gave me greater control over it. Now I can go on a rampage when I please!” The creature stopped changing form. Zero wasn't phased by him.
“I don't know who those gods are, but I've already proven that I'm stronger than any demon! Whether the creature's from heaven or hell, I'll beat it!” Zero entered a stance with his two swords out. "For Taichi and his friends!"
“Gooooood.” The creature let out a roar that shook the entirety of Folder.
“Tell me, demon! What is your name?!” Zero’s body sparked with energy.
“I am Belphemon Rage Mode!” The creature bellowed loud enough for everybody at Holy Angel Castle could hear it.
It was twice Zero’s size. It had a black dog-like body with the Mark Of Evil strewn across its chest. Chains with a ghostly smoke were wrapped around its limbs. Golden gloves sat on top of his hands and released green energy claws. His eyes were completely red.
“And I shall be your reaper!” Belphemon flew at Zero.
They immediately met energy sword to energy claw, and the overwhelming force from Belphemon pushed Zero back.
“You don’t just rival Arcadiamon! You surpassed him!” Zero tensed up.
“Without Dot Matrix, that fool is just like any other Mega!” Belphemon continued his assault, leaving Zero no time to counter.
Zero managed to knock away one of Belphemon’s claws long enough to swing at him with his blade. Belphemon quickly guarded himself and they started to trade blows.
They pushed away from each other, now aware of how strong the other one was.
“I’m so excited! I’m going to tear apart this whole world when I’m done with you!” Belphemon flew straight at Zero.
“Heh. I'm weaker because Tai's not here, but that doesn't mean I'll lose!” Zero clotheslined the large demon. He then punched Belphemon through the clouds
“I would never underestimate the one who slayed Ultra Daemon!” Belphemon caught himself midair and his claws lit up.
“Try something, demon! I can take whatever you can give!” Zero raised his blades in anticipation.
“Gift Of Darkness!” Belphemon shot large flaming claw shots at Zero.
“Ulforce Slash!” Zero countered with two huge sword beams.
The large swipes collided, tearing apart the sky itself.
The clouds parted and everybody looked up at the battle.
Zero flew down at Belphemon. Belphemon burst forwards and grabbed the surprised Zero in a bear hug.
“Lampranthus!” Belphemon’s chain started to flare with black flames.
“D-Damn!” Zero felt the warm embrace of the scorching flames surrounding him.
“Should we help him?” Sora’s hands shook.
“He needs all the help he can get. Omnimon-”
“No.” Rei cut Hideto off. “Zero can do this. Taichi knows he can.”
“Get off of me! Ulforce Saber!” Zero released his blades straight through Belphemon’s stomach. Belphemon pushed Zero away and shot several large fireballs out of his mouth.
“Die! Die! Die! Feel the cold embrace of death within my black flames!” Belphemon continued to spout fireballs.
“Is this the best you can do? Tensegrity Shield!” A barrier came out from Zero’s gauntlet and protected him.
“Don’t hide, coward! Dark Horn!” Belphemon rammed into the shield, breaking it with ease.
“I wasn’t hiding, idiot!” Zero collapsed his swords and grabbed Belphemon’s neck.
“Hehehe. Kill me!” Belphemon cackled as Zero tightened his grip, completely crushing the sadist’s neck.
“God you're weird!” Zero threw Belphemon above himself and energy appeared in his hands. “V-Energy Arrow!” He shot a wave of arrow blasts at Belphemon.
“Lightning Horn!” Belphemon’s horns lit up with electricity. He fired several red bolts at the arrows, destroying each one and creating a cloud of smoke.
“Ulforce Saber!” Belphemon heard Zero’s swords come out.
“Found you!” Belphemon shot a huge black flame ball at the noise.
“Sike!” Zero appeared above Belphemon and kicked him in the back. Belphemon coughed up spit as Zero wrapped his arms around the demon’s waist.
“Trying to use my own technique?” Belphemon struggled in Zero’s firm grasp.
“Envy’s one of the sins, right?” Zero plummeted towards the floor.
“I guess Leviamon took a liking to you for a reason-Woah!” Zero threw Belphemon at the floor like a spear.
Belphemon slammed into the ground with a great crash as Zero continued to advance on him.
“You’re making this too fun! Gift Of Darkness!” Belphemon stood in his self-made crater and shot several more flame scratches at Zero. Zero sliced them out of the way, not realizing they were a distraction.
“Shi-”
“Dark Horn!” Belphemon rammed his goat horns into Zero’s chest, leaving a large indent. Zero went flying into the sky, becoming winded in a second.
“This guy...he takes pain like it's nothing. I don’t even know how much longer he can last.” Zero straightened out as Belphemon rushed at him again.
“Lightning Horn!” Belphemon’s horns fired several more bolts at Zero.
“Shining V Force!” Zero shot a golden ray from the V on his chest. It cleared throught the bolts without struggle.
“Oh boy!” Belphemon’s stomach was burned by the laser, leaving a large flaming V and making Belphemon genuinely scream in pain. “You’ll pay for that one!” Belphemon flew at Zero with furious eyes.
“Make me!” Zero backhanded Belphemon the second he was in range. He caught the dog’s leg and clamped down on it.
“You’re no less merciful than I!” Belphemon said right before being spun around at incredible speeds.
“But I’m not a heartless demon like you!” He tossed Belphemon at the ground again, this time putting a spin on him.
Belphemon hit the ground hard like a drill, causing him to go underground. Zero landed and listened for his enemy.
“Die!” Belphemon popped out of the ground behind Zero. Zero spun around and landed a clean cut with his saber. Belphemon backed off and dug into the ground again.
“Relying on rat holes, Demon Lord?” Zero heard the ground underneath him shake.
“Whatever it takes to cause destruction!” Belphemon jumped from underneath Zero. Zero lifted himself into the air and showed his bracelet to the demon.
“Tensegrity Shield!” The shield's sudden appearance ripped off a part of Belphemon’s snout. He grabbed his nose while howling in pain.
“Clever.” Black gas fell from Belphemon’s mouth. He threw his chains into his hands and spun them around.
“Finally using a real weapon instead of your claws?” Zero took a stance with his two sabers released.
“We were all animals once.” Belphemon shot his chains at Zero. Zero barely blocked the first wave, not noticing the chains wrapping around his legs.
“You will never not be a dog!” Zero shot an X shaped slice at Belphemon.
“You give me too little credit! Lampranthus!” Belphemon’s body was surrounded in a protective black flame that destroyed Zero’s attack. The flames coursed through the chains and seared Zero’s legs.
“Aaaah!” Zero cut the chains off his legs and backed away.
“Die!” Belphemon rushed forwards and slashed Zero across the face, leaving four huge marks on his cheek armor.
Zero stumbled back on his weakened legs as Belphemon surged forwards again and slapped him across the other side of his face.
“One clean attack was all I needed!” Belphemon sped up his abuse.
“Now would be a good time to help!” Hideto clenched his teeth.
"Hold on." They all turned to Neo. "I don't think Zero's actually trying."
"Huh? Are you sure?" Rei asked. "He's weaker because Tai isn't here, we don't want him to lose the fight because we thought he wasn't trying!"
"Just watch." Neo crossed his arms.
“I'm going to kill you, dragon knight!" Belphemon swung at him. "And then I'll tear apart your Tamer!"
Zero caught Belphemon's arms faster than anyone could see. "You can threaten me, Demon Lord..." Zero began to crush Belphemon's arms.
“I can and I have..." Belphemon snickered while struggling to escape Zero's grasp.
"But the second you threaten Taichi..." Zero completely crushed Belphemon's arms, making blood spurt out of them. Belphemon stifled a wail of pain. "IS THE SAME SECOND YOU DIE!"
Zero threw Belphemon into the air. Belphemon caught himself midair.
"One last gust of wind under your wings?" Belphemon taunted.
Zero panted for a just a second. "Taichi and his friends' faith in me will come at you like a hurricane, Belphemon!" He warned.
“Your wind will be burned to dust by my flames!” Belphemon’s entire body lit up with flames.
“The winds of the present shall carry my wings to the future! I'll make Taichi proud!” Zero was surrounded by a gigantic dragon figure made of energy.
"Oho!" Belphemon smiled widely. "This is what I've been waiting for!" He roared.
"We should really get some space between ourselves and Zero!" Sigma suggested quickly.
"Right!" Neo and the others ran quickly retreated backwards.
Shockwaves flew out of Zero as the dragon grew ever larger. Belphemon's entire body flared with black fire.
"Remember, Belphemon, the only person to blame for your death is you!" Zero shot at Belphemon incredibly quickly.
“We’ll see who dies! Takai Jigoku! (High Hell!)” Belphemon spawned a circle of flames in front of himself. He fired a huge pillar of flames straight out of it.
“Dragon Impulse X!” Zero rammed straight through it without a second thought.
“What?!” Belphemon’s eyes grew wide as Zero got closer. He swung his claws at the nearly invisible threat, but Zero flew clean through before Belphemon even finished his strike.
“That one was from Neo and AxeKnightmon!” Zero surrounded himself in the dragon aura again.
Belphemon couldn’t retort as he choked on his own blood.
“This one is from Hideto, Sigma, and Mari. Omnimon, MetalSeadramon, and Mervamon!” Zero plowed through Belphemon’s back.
Belphemon tried to roar as two of his wings were torn off by the strike.
“This one’s from Sora and Izzy! Hououmon and HerculesKabuterimon!” Zero plowed through Belphemon’s right arm.
Belphemon let out a few gargled murmus of pain.
"This one's from Rei and all of the Digimon you and the other Demon Lords hurt!" Zero blew off Belphemon's legs as he passed by him.
The broken demon could barely stay conscious as a gigantic aura surrounded Zero.
Zero turned to Belphemon as the aura hit its peak. “And this one! This one is from my best friend and the greatest Tamer alive! The 100% V Tamer that will always push his allies to the future! Taichi Kamiya!” Zero flew at Belphemon.
He flew with so much power spiraling around him that the ground started to tear apart. Thunder started to strike the ground around them so rapidly that it could be passed off as a storm. Everybody was blinded by the huge white aura that covered the sky.
“This was the power I always wanted to experience! The pure destructive strength of the mythical Ulforce and its master!” Belphemon let out a grating cackle.
Zero shot through Belphemon’s body one last time, shooting a ring of energy through the sky. Anybody from the west side of Folder to the south side of File could see it.
Belphemon’s body was completely erased from existence. Not a single bit of data flew from where he once was.
In his place flew a dragon knight who stared at the bright sun.
“Demons will never rule these lands as long as Taichi and I live. There’s a reason we're called the 100% combo.” Zero rubbed the bottom of his nose with his finger as he landed. He drooped. "Man, that guy hit hard..."
“You did it, Zero!” Rei ran up and hugged him.
Zero hugged her back. "Only because my Tamers are so strong." He chuckled.
“That was incredible.” Neo walked over with his hands in his pockets.
“Tai must have raised you better than Miko for you to be able to do that!” Sora laughed.
The others shouted similar compliments as Zero smiled proudly.
“Thanks guys. But remember, you guys and your Digimon defeated the other Demon Lords. I don't think I could have done it all on my own.” Zero gave them all a thumbs up.
"I doubt that." Neo narrowed his eyes at Zero. Zero held his hands up in surrender.
The group looked up at the bright sky before walking back to Holy Angel Castle. The walk would take a while, but they were no longer in a rush.
“I hate it when the humans do good.” Gekovitch mumbled as the others celebrated.
“They’re acting like we didn’t do anything.” Leo bit down on a huge chunk of meat.
Agumon and several In-Training Digimon danced around the feet of the Tamers.
Nobody noticed as Zero and MagnaAngemon slipped out.
“You truly are incredible, Zeromaru.” MagnaAngemon and Zero stood atop the castle walls.
“Thank you, Lord MagnaAngemon.” Zero stared out into the lovely green lands.
“What did you want to talk to me about?” MagnaAngemon turned to face the dragon knight.
“Belphemon mentioned something strange. He said that there were gods beyond you who protect our world.” Zero crossed his arms.
“Really? I had always thought those were just rumors." MagnaAngemon looked towarsd the sky. "Some say the stars that shoot across the dark skies are the gods checking on us. However, in times of turmoil, you never see such a beautiful sight.” He almost sounded annoyed.
“I wonder what the gods think of me and Taichi...Hopefully, only good things.” Zero looked up at the clean skies.
“They’d be foolish to think anything less about their saviours.” MagnaAngemon patted Zero on his shoulder before going back into the castle.
“Heh. We’re not saviors. We’re just a boy and his Digimon on a journey.” Zero continued to stare at the bright sun that Taichi trusted. He felt its relaxing rays surround him like a reward for his efforts.
“We did it! We did it! We did it!” Mari danced around crazily while Sigma did a small celebration dance next to her.
“Man, if being a hero gets you all this, then I can't complain about helping the Digital World." Sora and Izzy looked at a table filled with food.
“Even when Tai isn’t here, he’s saving us. Freakin' incredible." Neo grumbled.
“I can’t disagree with that.” Rei looked at her D-1 with a smile.
“We should head home and tell Tai.” The group walked over to Neo and Rei.
“Yup. Let’s head out.” Neo barely took a step forward before being hoisted over several Angemon. The other Tamers were quickly lifted up as well.
“The destined saviors of the Digital World! The Digidestined!” The Angemon shouted.
“Even me?” Neo asked one of the Angemon.
“Even you, scarf boy!” The Angemon responded.
Neo and the others smiled at each other.
“Thank you all. We’ll handle things the best we can. Take some time to relax. Just, try not to break your arm in the process.” MagnaAngemon and the other defenders waved bye to them as a portal opened behind the Tamers.
The Tamers said their farewells as they walked through the portal.
“Stay safe everybody.” Neo did a playful gun motion.
They all waved bye at their trusted hero.
“So this is how Tai feels. I guess being a hero does have its perks.” Neo thought as he walked through the portal.
“Mr. Kamiya, you have visitors!” A nurse shouted on the other side of the door. Tai quickly rubbed his eyes with his hand.
“Come in!” Tai leaned back in his bed. He was hoping to high heaven that seven kids would come in.
"We did it!" Mari basically flipped into the room.
“Yeah!" Rei moved in too. She looked at Tai, seeing his eyes were somewhat red. "Tai?” Rei pointed at him. “Were you crying?”
Tai smiled reassuringly. "The nurses use a really annoying air freshener that stings my eyes. Anyways, are you guys sure all of them are dead?" Tai sat up in bed.
"Yeah. The Digimental was also destroyed." Hideto and the others weren't sure what to think of this.
“Oh well. That thing was more trouble than it was worth. Especially if it could bring back Daemon.” Tai shrugged.
“What do we do now, I wonder?” Sora messed with the red device in her hands.
“Well, you can focus on the tournament again. You’ve been so focused on the Digital World; you guys were probably left in the dust by a bunch of random children.” Rei pointed at Neo’s device.
“You’re right! I’m going after the top 30 the second I can!” Neo closed his hand around the device.
“Dang. I’ll be out for two weeks! There’s no way the hospital would let people come into my room just to fight!” Tai groaned.
“I’m sure the V-Tamer will figure it out.” Sigma teased.
“Let’s just hope this peace lasts a little longer than a day this time.” Neo nodded at Tai before walking out.
“Yeah, or I might have to work with him again...I hope you get better soon, Tai.” Sora patted his arm before walking out.
The others gave their final comments before leaving. Tai and Rei were alone in the room.
“You did good, Rei. My plan worked perfectly because of you.” Tai smiled at her.
“Oh I didn’t do too much. Zero did all the hard work.” Rei placed his Digimon dock on the bedside table.
“You were still his Tamer though. Thanks for the help.” Tai rested his head once again.
“Get better soon, Tai. I’ll be back tomorrow.” Rei wheeled over to the door.
“Don’t force yourself. Your health is just as important as mine.” Tai waved bye to her.
He lay in silence and looked at his device.
“I missed you, Zero. It’s not fun to be alone with my thoughts.” Tai grabbed his device.
The vision of Zero’s data wasting away came through his mind.
He gripped his device tightly as the sun became brighter than ever.
To be continued...