Chapter 30:
Destiny
Akira and Kodamon both opened their eyes and looked around. They were still surrounded in dark nothingness.
“What a history lesson,” Akira said wryly. “Somehow, it still feels unreal.” She thought of all the events she and Kodamon had experienced. The happiness. The pain. The hope. She thought of Rion, and felt his pain at being forgotten.
“So many things went wrong,” Kodamon murmured, staring at her paws. “In the end, I couldn’t save you after all.”
“Not everything that happened to us was wrong,” Akira said, “We met each other and became friends, and we saved the Digital World when we needed to.”
“What about the Dark Seed?”
Akira’s hand wandered to the back of her neck. “I beat it,” she said proudly, “With Seita and Tian’s help, I beat it. It’s still there, so I can’t say if it’ll affect me again, but I know I have friends and family to help me if it ever does again.” She smiled. “Nothing to worry about.”
A bright, pale-blue light shined on Akira’s chest. She reached into her shirt and pulled out her two Crest tags. The second tag shined a bright blue. Then, the light formed into a Crest, made of unblemished, light-blue stone with a spiral-shaped star carved into it.
“The Crest from before,” Akira murmured, “It’s whole!” Its name came to her, unbidden. “It’s called the Crest of Spirit.”
“All we need to do is believe,” Kodamon said, repeating the words Naoko said to them before, “and we’ll be strong.”
Akira nodded. Her thoughts were interrupted by another bright light coming from her pocket. She pulled out her shattered, blood-stained Digivice as it shined in tandem with the Crest of Spirit. Its form changed, suddenly, to a silver-bodied device with purple accents. A purple ring surrounded the screen with Digicode etched on it, and purple buttons below the screen. The entire device hung from a purple strap. A slot at the top of the device allowed for insertion of a Crest.
Kodamon felt power flowing through her. “I guess this means we can go back?” she asked, gripping her fists.
Akira gripped her new Digivice in her hand and the Crest of Spirit in the other. “Let’s do this!” The Crest glowed, and a blast of power erupted from the Digivice.
“Kodamon, warp evolve to…”
Kodamon’s form rapidly changed as she went through each of her evolutions, from Kodiamon to Helamon, then to a sleek, humanoid form, with metallic blue armor, long, light blue hair and a blue helmet shaped like a bear’s head, covering her eyes.
“… Auramon!”
“Come out right now and we’ll make this easy!” Rion shouted, looking around at the other kids and Digimon hiding behind rocks and trees. Thunder and lightning continued to rip the sky as the ground shook and splintered. “You know you’re just delaying the inevitable!”
“If this isn’t a rock and a hard place, I don’t know what is…” Seita muttered from behind a large rock. He put a hand on Gazimon’s head and nudged him a bit, but the Digimon was out cold. “Any ideas, Jun?” he called out, catching Jun’s attention from behind a tree.
“We need Megidramon to de-evolve,” Jun answered, quickly parsing through data on his laptop. Patamon lay nearby, exhausted. “Or disappear, or just be anywhere but here! The longer he exists, the more the Digital World will come apart at the seams!”
“But how are we supposed to do that the way we are now?” Mana asked frantically, holding Salamon in her arms. “Akira and Kodamon were the only hope we had…”
“We’ll just have to keep hanging on until they come back,” Tian said, sounding confident despite an injured Renamon sitting next to her.
“But what if they don’t?” Yuka asked softly, cradling Lopmon in her arms.
“Don’t say that!” Seita replied sharply, “They’ll come back. They have to.”
“Rion!” Kei called out, “You know what you’re doing is wrong! Just stop it!”
“It’s much too late for that,” Rion answered, “We’re so close to the end – all we need to do is finish the job, and that means all of you!”
“But if you get rid of us, you’ll only hurt yourself and Guilmon!” Kei continued, trying very hard to convince him. “Don’t you care about yourself?”
“He’s so angry, he’s not thinking straight anymore,” Tian said, “If only we could use that to our advantage…”
“You know I can hear all of you,” Rion called out, “So why don’t you all just give up now and face the end gracefully?”
“Like hell!” Seita shouted back.
Rion sneered. “All right, then. You first!” He turned to Megidramon. “Go get them!”
Seita launched himself and Gazimon away from the rock they hid behind before Megidramon vaporized it. He skidded behind the tree Tian and Renamon crouched behind and sighed in relief.
“Nice negotiation skills,” Tian said dryly. Seita made a face at her.
“Stay put!” Rion shouted. “Megidramon, fire again!”
Megidramon roared, and turned his emotionless eyes toward Rion. Energy built up in his mouth, and he fired. Rion dove out of the way as the energy beam slammed into the ground.
“Megidramon, what are you doing?” Rion asked, angry and puzzled.
Megidramon ignored Rion and fired again, this time at a random target. The broken land around him crumbled more, and the earthquakes increased in number.
“He’s gone out of control,” Tian said, picking herself up. “Maybe this is our chance to run!” She and Renamon nodded. “Let’s go, everyone! Before things get worse!”
“How much worse can this get?” Seita muttered, carrying Gazimon on his back.
“Megidramon, stop!” Rion shouted, “Focus!” He looked back at where the others were hiding. “They’re getting away!”
Megidramon let out a great roar, more powerful than the others, and the world shook. The massive earthquake knocked everyone off their feet, and the cracks in the ground became large crevasses.
Megidramon fired another energy beam toward the escapees, one that would certainly hit home, when a bright pillar of light suddenly appeared and deflected the beam.
The light shined almost blindingly for a moment, then slowly faded away, revealing a familiar human and Digimon pair.
“Akira!” Kei shouted, running over to her and hugging her.
Akira laughed. “Sorry we’re late, guys.”
“Took you long enough,” Seita answered. They both exchanged smiles.
“Auramon,” Akira looked over at her partner and nodded. Auramon rose into the air and flew over to Megidramon at high speed.
“Auramon…” Jun murmured. “Ultimate level…?”
Auramon lifted her hand and pointed it palm out at Megidramon. Then, an orb of blue energy erupted from it.
“Aura Burst!”
The attack hit Megidramon square in the chest, causing him to stagger. He roared and fired a flaming energy beam toward Auramon.
“Megido Flame!”
Auramon dodged the attack with a mid-air flip, then swung back toward Megidramon. She landed on the ground next to Megidramon, raised her arms, and moved her hands in a spherical motion. A spherical energy barrier appeared around Auramon and Megidramon, causing mini-thunderstorms within the enclosed space. A large vortex appeared on the ground inside the barrier, and Megidramon began to phase in and out.
Akira watched in awe. She could actually feel Auramon control the energy levels inside the barrier, increase them up to a certain point, then stop. She had the feeling Auramon could go further and push harder, but had decided to take it easy. Suddenly, she launched herself outside the barrier and let everything go.
“Aura… Destroyer!”
Everything fell silent. Sound and movement ceased. One moment passed, then another.
Then, the storms inside the barrier combined into one and unleashed a fury of wind and lightning. The vortex on the ground rose to join the storms and enveloped Megidramon. The barrier shrank until it disappeared into the air, leaving a critically damaged Megidramon behind.
Megidramon roared, then glowed a light grey, finally reverting back to Guilmon. The earthquakes and thunder affecting the Digital World immediately stopped. Guilmon landed softly on the cracked ground, his eyes spinning dizzily.
“Guilmon!” Rion shouted, running over to him. His eyes flashed, cold black and warm brown fighting for control. “Guilmon…” A sob emerged from his throat, and he hugged Guilmon.
Auramon slowly landed on the ground and with a flash of blue light, reverted to Kodamon.
A menacing laugh broke the silence, and a tall, sinister figure appeared. He wore black robes and his face was concealed behind a hood. He clutched a long, silver staff in a withered, gnarled hand.
“Mataymon!” Rion said in surprise.
“I see you’ve failed yet again,” Mataymon said.
“Mataymon…” Akira and Kodamon looked at each other, confused. The others looked on, whispering to each other.
Rion opened his mouth to retort, but Mataymon cut him off. “Your little experiment failed spectacularly. Not only do you abuse your Crest’s power, but you also put the entire Digital World in danger. It would be so glorious if wasn’t already so stupid.” He laughed, sending chills down Rion’s spine. “I suppose it’s time to cut my losses,” he continued dismissively.
“What?” Rion asked sharply, “What do you mean, ‘cut your losses’?”
“You’ve become rather useless to me,” Mataymon explained, “so I’m dropping my investment in you.” He laughed. “Do whatever you want. Join the rest of these pathetic kids. Strike out on your own. Just don’t come crying back to me. We’re through.” He rose into the air and began to disappear.
“Wait,” Rion said, “You can’t just leave me like this!”
Mataymon only cackled, then completely disappeared.
Rion clenched his fists and let out an inarticulate shout, beginning in rage and ending in anguish. He felt his anger finally burn out, leaving behind a lifeless husk that scarred his emotions.
It was all for nothing. The anger and blame. The push to get stronger, to evolve further. In the end, it got Rion and Guilmon nowhere. Rion’s mind reeled as he realized all the damage he had done and all the people he had hurt. All of it, over something as petty as forgetting about him.
“What am I doing? What have I done?” With that, the last of the darkness left his eyes, and they turned a warm, chestnut brown. They immediately filled with tears.
What do I do now?
A memory came to him, unbidden. A snippet of what a hologram-child said to him once about his power.
“You’ll need to be careful. The power of your Crest means that you’ll walk the line between light and darkness. Don’t let yourself fall completely to the darkness, or you’ll become just as evil as the Digimon you’re fighting!”
Well, he definitely failed at that. He had fallen so far into the darkness that he had threatened the very existence of the Digital World. Could he still escape?
When at rock bottom, the only way to go is up.
“Rion?”
Rion looked down at Guilmon, who had finally opened his eyes. “Yes, Guilmon?”
“I’m hungry.”
Rion laughed, then cried, and hugged Guilmon. “You’re always hungry, Guilmon!”
He felt the other kids and Digimon approach them, and he swallowed in fear. What could he say to them? He didn’t think a simple “I’m Sorry” would suffice. He opened his mouth to say something when Akira interrupted.
“Come with us.”
Rion looked up at her in shock. “What?”
“Don’t pretend we didn’t see it,” Akira said, “The way Mataymon threw you away like trash. We would never treat you that way.”
“But-”
“I want us to be friends again, Rion. To go back to the way things used to be.” Akira’s smile turned bittersweet. “I know I forgot about you for a while. I’m sorry for that. But now I remember everything again, and I’ll never forget again.”
Rion said nothing.
“I don’t want to leave you behind,” Akira continued, “You’re one of us, a Chosen Child. Together, we’re stronger.”
Rion looked down at the ground, at a loss for words.
“So will you come with us?”
Rion looked up at Akira, who stood over him with a hand outstretched. He looked into her eyes, and saw the recognition and love there, finally. He looked at Kodamon, and she gave him a smile and a nod.
Will they forgive me?
He looked around at the others. Seita’s expression was in between a frown and an outright glare, while the others were a little more indecisive. Kei looked back at him with a hopeful smile.
Maybe they will. Time will tell.
He reached out and took Akira’s hand.
A bright light shined between them, then split between Rion’s chest and his pocket. Rion pulled out his Digivice to see it change shape to a silver device with black accents and a black strap. He then looked at his Crest and saw another Crest Tag appear beside it. Inside was a Crest of light gray stone with a carving of an eclipsed sun and moon.
Rion stood up and looked at his newly-transformed Digivice and the new Crest. “Wow.”
“Welcome to the team,” Akira said. Then she giggled. “I think the Digital World agrees, don’t you?”
Rion gave a shy smile.
Kei gave a cheer and gave Rion a big hug. “I knew you were good!” she said happily, “I knew it!”
“I’m reserving my judgment for now,” Seita said with a frown. Kei made a face and stuck her tongue out at him.
“If Akira accepted you, we’ll do the same,” Jun added, and Mana nodded.
Tian looked at Rion cautiously. “I’ll be keeping an eye on you.”
Yuka walked up to Rion and gave him a searching look, then smiled. “I’m glad you’re not the bad person I thought you were!”
Suddenly, Akira’s Digivice beeped. She pulled it out to see a holographic screen spring out from it, and a message appeared:
“Follow the Way. When you arrive, all questions will be answered.”
The message disappeared, to be replaced with a map. A lone blinking light shined on it, some distance away.
Akira pushed a button, and the holographic viewscreen disappeared. The map was still visible on the normal screen.
“That’s convenient,” Seita said, “An invitation and a map.”
“Could it be a trap?” Jun asked.
Akira shook her head. “Somehow, I don’t think so. I think we’re finally going to get some answers.” She looked around at everyone. “Let’s go!”
Rion and Guilmon walked along with them. Kei ran over and slipped a hand in Rion’s, not letting him fall behind. Rion looked back at her with a tentative smile. Maybe he had made the right decision after all.