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Digimon: Unholy Crusade

Solsabre

The Reforged Soul
Tessa Tesla
Wisemon
Temple Gardens


The blossoming memory faded. She paid little heed to the silence hanging between her and her company. Tessa had taken to jotting down a few notes regarding the memory playback and minor adjustments for future Workings. Occasionally, she made quiet glances towards the Imperialdramon as she wrote.

The Wisemon couldn’t help but finally notice that the Imperialdramon seemed oddly distracted, perhaps the entire time. Her curious nature finally getting the better of her, Tessa opened her lips to inquire. However, she was interrupted by the rocking blast sailing through the air, followed by the wailing city alarm. Her company launched to the air in response, leaving her alone in the garden.

“Figures,” She grumped in annoyance. Her Book expanded in size and stepped lightly onto the pages. The Book rose into the air obediently and sedately followed in the direction of the glowing fire and pluming smoke.

____________________________________________

Theo Grayson
BlackWarGreymon
Axis Mundi Tavern


Madness. The brawl turned into a free-for-all with many more of the patrons involved. The veracity of the fight appeared to be driven and maintained largely by the Apollomon he’d converse with early. At least that was Theo’s last brief thought before being crushed by a massive weight. The BlackWarGreymon grunted and pushed his arms on the broken ground but no luck.

The weight pinning him down up eased up after a few minutes. He groaned, limbs sore and achy from the abuse.

Agh! Dang it. Are you all right?" A booming rang above him, a large supporting hand on his back as he finally managed to push himself to his feet. Theo looked over his shoulder at the massive Machinedramon.

“Fine, I’ve endured worse.” Theo offhandly assured the metal dragon, shaking off any further assistance. The momentum of the fight simmered down as the Apollomon took to the air with a newly arrived Imperialdramon.

The raw primal power collided in the dark skies above, resulting in a shock wave traveling over the streets and its occupants. Digimon and tamers ducked for covered as it rushed over them. Theo braced upright, holding an arm up to protect his face, and weathered the force until it passed over. The two gods descended from the heavens after their exchange.

"My boss is gonna be pissed," The angry outburst of Nadia, the bartender, came through the broken window. Theo grimaced ever so slightly. He’d thrown one of the opening punches and Nadia had been nothing but courteous to him.

"It's accomplished everything I want," Svarog shot back. "Some of us are just looking for a good fight." He jabbed his thumb over his shoulder at the rest of the tamers and digimon behind him. "And maybe some of them understand what they're getting into."

Theo didn’t need to answer back to the Apollomon. His reasons were his own. Most digimon if they knew his early past would likely question why Theo chose to defy the Royal Knights. The BlackWarGreymon entered the ruin bar bypassing the shambles of tables and chairs, approaching the irate Lekismon futilely straightening up.

“Here, take this,” Theo said quietly, reaching into a pouch for a coin. “It should help cover some of the damages.” Nadia glared at him, taking the coin roughly from his claws. Her eyes widen when the light flickered off the shiny metal revealing its value. “How…”

“My previous occupation paid well.” Theo answered vaguely. He’d also lived a simple life following Asher’s death.

Nadia appraised the gold coin in the dim light and eyed him critically, “You know currency from Camelot is likely to drop in credit with this war.”

“Sell it for the value of metal than, otherwise I’m broke.” the old soldier said with a shrug.

“That troublesome Apollomon was right about one thing: you’re one strange dragon.” The bartender said, shaking her head.

“You don’t know the half of it.” Theo replied, glancing back over his shoulder and exiting the ruined bar.

_____________________________________________

A Wisemon floated high in the skies above well above the surging energies. Her theories regarding her former company more or less confirmed by the display of power and overhearing the conversation exchanged between the two gods. Tessa glanced towards the Apollomon intrigued. Another puzzle to solve, she grinned. She couldn’t identify the style of his garments to a known pantheon immediately, but some digging around in her collection of scrolls might reveal some insight later on.

In the meantime, the fires on the buildings raged on. Tessa stood upright on her hovering book and cradled the Space Orb in cupped hands. The orb glowed and minutes later a gaping portal expanded in the sky, connected to a portal submerged in the lake outside the city.

A deluge erupted with gravity from the hole in sky in a solid stream, soaking half a block. The fires were effectively put out, though the grumbling in the streets was quite audible.


_____________________________________________________________


Fortress Camelot
Island of Avalon
The Independent Nation of Logress


Theo waited by one of the port windows on the Council’s Airship. He stared at the seas churning below for much of the journey lost in thought. The stillness before a terrible battle sang a dauntingly familiar melody his body hadn’t forgotten even with age. In his mind, he didn’t ponder the future outcome or the battle itself, rather he let it come to him for war was a frightening beast that was unpredictable.

A thin line of shore appeared in the distance, rapidly growing in size with each passing minute. Theo inhaled deeply, bracing with the knowledge that for the first time in over a decade he was returning to a home steeped in memories, however, as a challenger.

"We've arrived," Andraste's voice broke over the ship's intercom. "The Knights have declined our offer of surrender. Those of you who can fly, prepare for midair deployment. All others prepare for ground assault. Tamers. Suit up."


Theo tightened the straps of his Dramon Killers securely. The Knights kept multiple ranks of dramon at ready. He knew where he would be most effective.

The warriors around him stirred to action. The cargo hatch swung open and the warriors dropped into the open air. Theo spotted a Wisemon hovering through the opening on a large open book, bringing up the rear.

Following suit, Theo took the plunge head first into the whistling streams of air. He stabilized his descent and flew to the head of the disorganized formation. Let the battle be joined.
 

TheSequelReturns

Faithful Crusader
~ Aria Morningsong ~
- Evening of the Council Summons
- Axis Mundi Pub


Aria was trying her best to block out the dull roar that filled the tavern. Normally she'd be a rather large contributor to said noise code violation, but this moment called for absolute focus and concentration. One small mistake and it was all over. Everything she'd worked so hard for, gone in less than a second. Her reputation would ruined. Not today.

Carefully, the Lilamon pressed forward. Her fingers felt like they could break at any moment, despite the fact that she was fairly certain she didn't have bones. Sweat dripped down her face, stinging as it brushed against her eyes, but she was not backing down now. A few more inches... she desperately willed her feet to move. Right when she thought her back would snap, she made it to her goal. A huge grin spread across her face.

"Wooo!" Aria leapt up to her feet, her head narrowly clearing the limbo bar where it sat ridiculously close to the ground. "And that ladies is is how you limbo!"

The nearby table erupted into grumbling as coins changed hands and a decently sized pile slowly formed in front of Aria's chair. The Lilamon wiped the sweat from her brow, grabbed her chair and spun it around so that when she finally dropped into it the backrest clattered into the edge of the table. Her chair now backwards and balancing on the back two feet, she smacked one elbow on the table and made a show of counting her earned coins with her free hand.

"My my, I'd like to keep taking your coins but I don't think anyone else is getting under that bar." She knew full well that most of these Digimon were automatically disqualified from that by their natural size alone. Sometimes it pays to be small. It pays very well. "If you'll excuse me gents." Aria swept her coins into the little leather coin purse she kept tucked away in her flower and spun her way out of the chair.

Where to next? The card tables perhaps? It had been a while since she tried counting cards, though to be fair her last attempt nearly cost her an arm. She wasn't sure what had happened to that old bar after the dust had settled and the fires had been put out, but man had that been a fun night. Maybe she should just lay it low and drink some of her winnings away.

She entertained that though until she saw the large Apollomon from earlier sitting square in the middle of the row of stools. Too much hot-blooded testosterone in the air around that one, best to steer clear. Didn't help that, as a plant, fire was certainly not on her list of favorite things. Instead she sauntered off to a relatively quiet corner of the bar, swiped a piece of cake from the table of a distracted reveler, and leaned against the back wall munching on her prize.

As Aria enjoyed her pilfered chocolate cake, her mind carried her back to the Council meeting earlier and once again she shook her head in disbelief. What was she even doing here? She was a good fighter, sure, but she wasn't anywhere near the level of the Royal Knights. Even against only a few of them, this group would probably be torn apart. If the Council members themselves weren't hitting the field with them Aria would probably be halfway home and still laughing too hard to breathe. And yet...

Her eyes followed the crowd to where the Tamers danced with their partner Digimon and she smiled. Those rebels were why she was here. What kind of a world looked at young happy souls like those and condemned them to death? She wouldn't stand for it. But the thought that she could very well die tomorrow kept nagging at the back of her mind. It was a no-win situation, no matter how she looked at it. Why did she have to go and accept the stupid invitation?

The dull roar of the tavern's patrons suddenly grew into a sharp roar. And then there was the unmistakable sounds of wood splintering, glass breaking, and fists hitting faces. Aria looked up just in time to see a poor BlackWarGreymon turned into a table sandwich. That had to hurt. The brawl started to grow bigger and bigger, roping in more and more of the revelers until it seemed like at least half the bar was trading blows and throwing chairs. This would make the twelfth tavern that had been devastated on her first visit, an even dozen. She smirked at the thought. Part of her wanted to go and join the brawl, but the chunk of cake she had swiped was nearly the size of her head and it was very tasty... no need to go and lose it in the fight. Instead she watched from the sidelines, cheering on the mons on the Tamer's side of the fight.

But when the BlackWarGreymon was sent flying into the Apollomon (that guy really could not catch a break) and the burning lion joined the fray the brawl became something else entirely. Something exploded in a burst of fire and suddenly the fight was tearing out of a large hole in the wall of the tavern. The Apollomon was at the center of it all, his intense flames making him easily visible among all the chaos.

Aria tried to fight her way to the front of the crowd, but the brawlers were having none of it. The sound of thunder sounded outside and a red flash lit up the bar. She had to get out here to see what was happening. A street fight like this was a rare sight and Aria wasn't going to miss it.

The crowds were clustered all around the exits, isolated brawls still raging on all throughout the horde of mostly drunken mons. The noise was deafening. "Trying to get through here!" Aria shouted as she pushed and dodged her way through the crowds. Her call brought her into the cross-hairs of a severely intoxicated WarGrowlmon. He roared something unintelligible and tossed a punch her way. Aria simply ducked under it and stuck her foot out. The WarGrowlmon's momentum carried him forward where he tripped over Aria's outstretched foot, tumbling into another group of brawlers and getting into their fight. Aria laughed. Such fun this was, if only she wasn't facing certain death tomorrow she'd get in on the action. Still, sweaty and drunken mons blocked her way. "Pardon me!" she called as she kicked an Ogremon square between the legs and stepped over his prone writhing form.

She made it outside just in time to see the sky ignite in an absolutely breathtaking display of power. Her eyes sparkled. This was what true power looked like. Perhaps with these two... tomorrow might not be a suicide mission after all.

-----

+ Frantz Stein +
- Evening of the Council Summons
- Outskirts of Axis Mundi


Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom.

The giant of a man slowly plodded his way along the deserted roadway, each footstep like a tiny earthquake. He wasn't in any hurry. Each step was measured and purposeful for Stein knew where it was that his feet were taking him. To his eternal surprise, the Council had sent him an invitation to some sort of gathering of warriors. Why they deemed him worthy of their cause he didn't know. He was amazed that the Council even knew he existed. Stein was beaming. Not that anyone could tell with the mask covering the Boltmon's face.

He only hoped he wasn't late. Speed was not his strong suit, and the journey from his secluded homelands all the way to the seat of the Council was a long one by any means. But when your primary means of travel was a slow and steady walk, travel time gained a whole new meaning. It couldn't be helped. Stein shrugged. He was here, late or not. He figured that was all that really mattered when you got down to it.

What was the Council like he wondered? When he tried to picture a room full of Digimon fully of godly power all he could think of was an impossibly bright room too blinding to even enter. Then he tried to imagine them talking and came up with a chorus of booming voices that would drown out even his own. How would anyone be able to stand such a thing? Stein pondered that for a while and came to the conclusion that it couldn't be as he imagined it. After all, he had an invitation. It would be hard to write it in an impossibly bright room, and no one would be able to understand what to write down if the Council was all talking at once. He chuckled.

And what of these... Spoiled Nights? Foil Bites? He couldn't remember their name now, and trying to think it up was only making him hungry. He hoped they wouldn't have to fight him, but he knew well enough that there were some in this world who held on tight to what was wrong. And when they didn't let go, good mons got hurt. So sometimes, strong mons with good hearts had to make them let go. It didn't matter who it was that was being hurt. It didn't make a difference if they were Digimon or one of the "Huemons" Stein had heard about. The defenseless should be defended. And the strong should not be cruel. Such things went against every byte of his code.

A huge colorful explosion lit up the sky above Axis Mundi, catching the Boltmon's attention. His pace didn't change one bit.

Has the fighting started already? I must make up for being late.

Stein's pace quickened ever so slightly as he trudged his way along the road, his booming footsteps echoing into the night.

---------

- Fortress Camelot
- Dawn of the Assault


Aria dove out of the airship along with the rest of the airborne fighters, still not entirely sure if she was insane or just plain suicidal. She might be here to fight, but she was not here to die damn it. She held back while the others charged forward, filing into place in the rear of the group near a Wisemon flying on a book, a bewildered looking Pixiemon, and a Biomerged Eaglemon who looked like he was having second thoughts.

What fighters they all are. I could take them in a bar brawl any day. Is this really the best we have?

No, she supposed. The best they had were all at the forefront of the assault. She was the one flying along back here with the scrubs. So what did that say about her then? She was about to let her pride get to her and charge forward when one of the Royal Knights, a Dynasmon, tore into their group like a bolt of lighting. The Council's army, for all their puffed up talk, were scattered like dandelion seeds in a hurricane. She wanted no part of that. Instead, she banked away tailing after a few of the others as they engaged a squadron of Wingdramon.

Meanwhile, down below on the island, the ground forces were disembarking. Among them was a huge Boltmon, calmly stepping out of the ship as others dashed around him. He hadn't even drawn his ax yet. He had managed to track down some of the Council's group after he arrived in Axis Mundi last night, but wasn't able to actually find where he was supposed to go until he had spotted the crowds marching into the airships. Though he was a stranger, and even though he completely missed the Council meeting and perhaps accidentally ate his invitation, when a massive Boltmon said he wanted to go fight the Royal Knights with your army you didn't turn him away.

Stein had spent the better part of the flight over by patting any nervous looking soldiers on the back and saying "Do not worry. We fight for the sake of others. If we are to to meet our ends it will be an end well met." Now, many of those same soldiers charged out of the airship with renewed vigor. It made him grin beneath his copper mask.

As the ground forces met their opposition, Stein began to pick up his pace. The battle was raging all around him, a flurry of steel and power. Good mons were getting hurt. It was time to be strong. "I am Stein of the Southern Mountains!" he roared. "I will honor the courage of my friends! I will be strong!" He began running now, his mighty steps leaving craters in his wake. Roaring like a feral beast, he crashed headfirst into a group of Veedramon. Stein's massive bulk sent several of them flying, the others he trampled beneath his spiked boots without even slowing down. His target was the Knightmon who were beating a group of Council fighters up ahead. The Veedramon were just an obstacle.

The first Knightmon was preparing to cut down a scrappy Grapleomon who had bitten off more than he could chew. His sword raised high, sunlight gleaming off the blade as the GrapLeomon realized he was done for. The blade fell only to find itself held firmly in Stein's fist. The Boltmon hadn't even flinched at grabbing the blade's sharp side in his palm. With a twist, he tore the sword from the Knightmon's hands, then sent his free hand slamming into the Knightmon's helm with enough force to crack the metal. The Knightmon easily flew fifteen feet. Shards of his shattered helm glimmered in the morning sunlight as they fell to the ground. Stein, still holding the pointy end, held the sword out for the GrapLeomon who gladly took it without asking questions. He struggled to lift it.

Turning his gaze to the other Knightmon, Stein roared a challenge and rejoined the fray.
 
Last edited:

TheCharredDragon

Tis the Hour to Reload
Shula Hernandez & Tyfrigo "Frost" Rex

Fortress Camelot
Island of Avalon
Independent Nation of Logress


"Tamers. Suit up," the MedievalDukemon goddess said through the PA.

Shula chuckled. She highly doubted that their commander knew much, if at all, of human culture, but it reminded her so much of a superhero comic. In fact, all of this reminded her of those comicbook stories...and war stories. A warplane packed to the brim with warriors and soldiers, and maybe even a few mercenaries here and there. All of them ready to fight a war for the safety of others.

She wondered where the trio they fought with last night were. She didn't blame them for being scared to die. Even now she was scared, her heart was racing at the thought. But she knew she could do something to make a difference, no matter how small. If she couldn't act as the weapon to lead to their enemy's defeat, then she'll be the shield for those who will, if for a short moment. Sometimes one moment is all one ever needs.

The lights and sounds of digivolution happened around her, both biomerge and not. The sight of those made her smile. The power of Tamer and Digimon as one, bringing out the strongest in both. She stood up from her seat and readied her digivice. She turned to Frost and said,

"All right, let's join up with 'em."

She was about to digivolve Frost into a Megadramon, until Frost said, "Wait, Shula."

She stopped but stared at him confusion. "What?"

"Would it not be more helpful if we biomerge and fight with the ground forces, instead of joining the skies?" he said. Then he added, though with some exasperation, "And you would be less likely to die within the first few minutes as well."

She blinked. Then she groaned. He had a point. They would be more helpful on the ground, where they had more experience in, as well as be in a more powerful form. She nearly rushed in head first again and cost them. But she couldn't help but smile warmly at him. He was always looking out for her, even if he was annoyed. One of the many things she loved about him.

"Okay then." She held her digivice near her chest. "Biomerge activate."

The same light as many did before them surrounded the pair. When the light faded, the machinal body of Machinedramon was once again in their place, with her eyes in its eye sockets. They headed for the exit bay as the fliers left from it and took to the skies. Careful to not crush anyone from their size, they eventually made it to among those at the front, closest to the exit, waiting for the ship to land.

As soon as it did...they were among the first to head out.

The suddenness of the charge of a bulky figure startled many of their comrades, but did little to the squad of Knightmon they were heading for. That didn't matter, they weren't their target. Many of the knight Digimon raised their shields and readied their swords at them. They stopped just feet right in front of them and raised their arms to strike. The knights were about to swing, prepared to have their shields take their attack. But they didn't hit them.

They dug into the earth and pushed it up. There were shouts of surprise as the ground below them moved before grunted when flipped many of them over. They scrambled to strike them, and some did, and they attacked in turn, but for the most part, they pushed pass them. They gave a quick glance behind them when they heard the yell of a Boltmon named Stein as a nearby Knightmon tried to finish off a GrappleLeomon. The knight didn't stand a chance.

They returned their sights forward as they attacked those who tried to stop them. They were slowed down, that was expected with all the chaos them. Warriors with little arrangement, many charging forward--not that they were any better. Both were tempted to lead at least some of them, but with all the noise and attacks flying around, they knew it was useless. Besides, why would they listen to them? They would just have to focus on making the fights of the others easier.

Starting by taking out the Breakdramon right in front of them.

They took aim and fired. The shot landed on its face, making it shriek. They took this chance to near it and punch its chest. The beast roared again but then countered biting their cannons. They gritted their teeth and attempted to shake it off. It then raised one of its many drilled appendages and lunged at them. They grabbed it right before it hit their face. But they yelled when they were suddenly in the air. The Breakdramon lifted its head as high as it could with their weight--which was surprising either way--and they noticed all of its drills were raised as well.

They heard it say, as best as it could, "Infinity Boring."

Oh scrap.

They screamed as all over their body was being dug into. Even with their metallic body, they'll be ripped in seconds if they didn't do something. Frost was against the idea that popped into Shula's mind, but she had to remind him that Breakdramon were made of the strongest metals all over the land, Giga Cannon wasn't going to cut it. Frost cursed, to which Shula reminded him not to as she charged their cannons. It would make her feel very tired when this was all through, but that was if they even made it.

They shouted, "Catastrophe Day!"

A screech so inorganic that it nearly made them deaf. The drilling stopped and they were instantly let go as it continued to scream. They landed with a loud thud and groaned, their whole body sore. They turned back to see the mecha dragon staggering back with its muzzle completely blown off, smoke billowing from it. They knew it they wouldn't beat it, but now they had a chance to.

Now it was their turn to stagger when a sword hit their flank.

They saw their Knightmon attacker follow it up with another swing. They caught it in their hand without flinching. This caught their opponent in surprise long enough for them to wrench the sword out of its grip and use it against it. The knight flew several feet to the side and the brute force, crashing into a Veedramon troop that was heading their way. They turned around to the Breakdramon and saw it had recovered from their shot. They took a battle position.

Time to deal with it.
 

Solsabre

The Reforged Soul
Theo Grayson
BlackWarGreymon
In the skies above Camelot


The edge of the Dynasmon’s fiery attack intersected with Theo’s section of the haphazard formation. The dragon soldier quickly reached behind his back for his brave shield, holding it the two halves together in front of him and cutting his air speed.

“Drop!” he barked over the winds and roaring plumes of fire swarming his group. A handful of warriors heeded his shout to descend to a lower altitude below the blast, while others scattered in other directions in confusion and got caught up in the fire. Enough with the evasive maneuver, Theo felt the fire curling around the edges of his shield onto his black scales.

Theo returned the shield to his back, resumed his course, and regrouped with the council’s warriors, a Lilamon he noticed among them. Ahead of him, a squadron of Wingdramon approached swiftly. The BlackWarGreymon ascended higher to reclaim lost altitude. The lead Wingdramon met the old soldier’s gaze, roaring with challenge. The winged dragon rushed forward, dramatically increasing his speed till his form started blurring.

“Blaze Sonic Breath.” Plumes of fire erupted from its mouth, spewing forth to strike Theo.

The black dragon stretched his dramon killers forward, his path on a direct collision with the flaming wingdramon in a game of chicken. At the last possible second, Theo dodged down below the Wingdramon, twisting his body to face upwards. The dramon killer on his right hand sliced across the dramon’s blue body, leaving a trail of blood and data leaking into the air. The wingdramon faltered gravely wounded and dropped to the seas below.

Two more Wingdramon converged on Theo in anger for their fallen comrade. They crisscrossed mid flight just overhead of the former soldier at mach 1, buffering him back with dual shockwaves. Turning around, they returned to make another pass. However, Theo feigned disorientation. Reaching the point of crisscrossing again, the BlackWarGreymon warped the air around him.

“Great Tornado!” He cried, a massive whirlwind of air and moisture spun around him and grabbed one Wingdramon by forearm, while the tornado tossed the other charging Wingdramon in the opposite direction. Using the momentum of the rotating, Theo swung his captive around his body multiple times before releasing the dazed dramon like a whip and sending him colliding into his comrade.

Theo held himself still in the air, a momentary break free from fighting, surveying the current status of both forces. The wingdramon squadron had simply been a forward group to shake up the council’s disorganized aerial forces. The BlackWarGreymon looked west. The main formation of the Royal Knight’s Aerial Forces were near on approach. For a brief moment, Theo hesitated. In the recent past, he’d been no different than those charging at the Council forces now, confident and sure in victory with tried and true comrades beside them. Theo shared no camaraderie with any of the Council’s chosen fighters, no time to gauge who to trust his back with.

Theo sighed resignedly. He could only hope for the best.

“Follow my lead, I’ll create a break in their formation.” Theo shouted to many of the digimon still nearby after clearing out the wingdramon squadron.

The BlackWarGreymon warped the air around his body once more, only this time his whole body began rotating. His dramon killers extended out in front of him, the soldier spun faster and faster, till his body became obscured in the swirling vortex. The moving air spiked in temperature. Fireballs forming around his hands became distorted with the rotation and wrapped his spinning body in a cocoon of fire.

The swirling mass of fire surged forward in a rush spearheading directly into the formation line with tremendous force. This combo technique of Black Tornado and Dramon Fire was one of Theo’s maneuvers he’d been known by while serving in the Royal Knight standing forces. Plowing deep into the opposing enemy’s midst, two Hisyarumon were struck immediately and vaporised, unable to dodge away in time. Other Ultimates dodged away, creating a temporary gape.

The flaming tornado dispersed, revealing the battle-ready Theo with dramon killers poised. However, the old dragon briefly risked a glimpse over his shoulder, the Royal Knight ranks quickly recovered from his attack and closed the gape. No other warriors from the Council’s forces had followed or made it through in time. Theo was alone behind enemy lines.

Dramon and other aerial fighters prepared to bombard to the lone Greymon, only to be called off. Theo jerked his horned helmet sharply to the right, where a Slayerdramon emerged from the ranks. The dragon knight held a hand up in gesture, dismissing the handful of Garudamon and Silphymon surrounding them. The stray Greymon was his.

Theo raised his claws in attack form. The dramon clashed.

Tessa Tesla
Wisemon
Camelot Shore


The female wisemon drifted away from the airships taking up position with slower members in the rear. She flew alongside a Lilamon before the plant digimon rushed off to the frontline. Tessa shrugged, summoning her Time and Space Orbs. The Orbs spiraled around her independently, freeing the Wisemon’s hands. The moment the Orbs were released, they began collecting real-time data for the lithe sage to utilise.

Digimon clashed in the air from both sides, creating havoc and mass chaos. The ground forces engaged with the Royal Knight forces lead by Sir Gankoomon. Tessa froze with sudden uncertainty. She was confident in her abilities to be of help, but where should she go?

“Dragon Thrower!” The mighty Dynasmon roared, cascading waves of fire on the Council’s forces and devastating them. Tessa reacted, opening a portal in part of the blast’s way in order to redirect the fiery attack harmlessly in another location. However, the intensity and magnitude of the fire plume overwhelemed the portal, shattering it.

Tes jerked back in surprise. The severity of the situation finally sinking in of the strength of what they face. The Imperialdramon’s words from the night before echoed through her mind.

“Come on, Tessa, get a grip,” She muttered to herself, smacking her cheeks lightly with slim hands to focus. “Remember what you read in that survival guide last night, calmness is key.”

Taking a deep breath, Tessa settled her nerves as best she could. The Orbs glowed with an increasingly bright aura. Her Book carried her down to the shoreline to support the ground forces as they engaged Gankoomon’s ground forces.

“Time to take off the training wheels,” she said in a quiet voice. Data streams of High Code wafted around her, heeding her direction and command. A Mistymon hurled a flaming crystal ball at a fleeing Council soldier. Tessa made a cutting motion through the air trying again to intervene with an open portal. The portal expanded rapidly just enough to swallow the the flaming ball and redirecting it over the head of a Groundramon.

Tessa alternated between porting enemy attacks at ally forces to other Royal Knight soldiers and teleporting cornered Council’s soldiers to a safe distance, much to their confusion.

Due to her concentration at the time, Tessa didn’t notice immediately the approach of a Garudmon diving from above.
 

Kamotz

God of Monsters
Thor and Caradoc collided like two freight trains, shaking the very air with the force of their impact. Thor's vision blurred but he recovered quickly and the two raced across the sky, trading blows as they weaved through the mass of other fighters. Thor watched stray attacks fracture off the Dynasmon's chrome digizoid armor, not even slowing him down. Caradoc dipped and turned to avoid the Royal Knights' soldiers, knowing--almost instinctively--where they were, and all the while not breaking eye contact with Thor. It was surreal. Even Thor, with all his years of experience and battle awareness had to look away, to duck and dive beneath the fighting Digimon that crowded the sky. But Caradoc did so without breaking stride.

Until he didn't. The Royal Knight twisted suddenly and changed angles, streaking towards Thor. He thundered forward, plowing through a pair of Council warriors without breaking momentum. An Okuwamon and a HippoGriffomon exploded instantaneously under the force of his charge. It was a savage display that stunned Thor just long enough for Caradoc to slip beneath his guard and level him with a massive blow. Thor fell through the sky, tumbling, with Caradoc right on top of him, driving him further and further towards the water.

Thor tried to fight him off, tried to counter his strikes, but Caradoc was so overwhelmingly strong. By all the gods, he was strong. Thor couldn't remember being hit that hard in his life.

But in a moment of sudden clarity, Thor managed to catch Caradoc's next punch, deflecting it off his armored bracer. Thor struck back with a huge uppercut, snapping Caradoc's head back. He then grabbed the Knight by his horns and pulled his face down, driving it into his knee before hammering him with a double-fisted blow.

Caradoc spun downwards but caught himself before crashing into the ocean below. He let out a furious bellow and sent spirals of draconic energy tearing up into the sky from the glowing gems on his hands. They tore through almost a dozen Council soldiers without slowing down or weakening, before continuing towards Thor.

The Asgardian retaliated, summoning his positron cannon into existence from the armor on his right arm. He fired, and sent a blast of lighting and energy ripping down to meet Caradoc's. The two attacks collided and exploded, showering the sky with fire and gale-force winds.

Through the conflagration charged Caradoc, howling with fury. Thor snarled and rushed to meet him.

==\=/==

Svarog watched the battle unfolding around him, waiting patiently for the right moment to join in. He watched the Council members clash with two of the Royal Knights, while Thor and the Dynasmon collided with one another like bulls. Svarog didn't even contemplate joining those battles; there was no glory in that. To fight two-against-one was a tactic for lesser beings than he.

He inched backwards, narrowly dodging the upward slash of a Slayerdramon's elastic blade. He swerved again to avoid the follow-up, and grabbed the burning weapon. He coiled it around his arm and yanked the dragon warrior close, delivering a crushing blow to its midsection before letting it tumble back towards the ocean. An OwRyumon slashed its way towards him through the air, but Svarog deftly dodged each strike and swatted it out of the sky with a heavy backhanded blow.

These were not his worthy foes. He did the math. There was only one option left to him.

Svarog dropped from the sky just as a trio of Gryphonmon slammed together in a clumsy attempt to attack him. He left them in his fiery wake. Svarog plummeted down and raced over the water, trailing a plume of flame behind him, his sharp eyes scanning for his target.

-----

Sir Gareth of the Royal Knights stood at the beachhead directing the flow of battle. Their ground forces were strong and well-trained, but they lacked the sheer power that the rest of the Knights brought with them into the skies. Only a handful of Breakdramon made up their Mega-level troops. They were mostly whatever reserve troops were currently stationed at Camelot and the personal forces of Bedivere, Caradoc, and Guinier. He hadn't even had time to rally his vassals when they'd heard of the Council's impending arrival.

He glanced up into the sky, where his comrades battled the Council and their forces. He wanted to be up there. Fighting a real fight. But he knew he had to be where he was. He had to keep the ground from being overrun by the Council's soldiers.

Gareth charged into the fray, landing a double snap-kick to a GrappLeomon and a hulking Boltmon. The kick sent the lion soaring though it barely stunned the Boltmon, but Gareth had expected that. He continued his assault, striking at the joints and vitals of the giant digimon with a blurred salvo of stiff punches. He landed a swift elbow to the Boltmon's throat and then whipped into a backflip-kick that landed square on the massive digimon's chin and sent it flying out into the shallows.

It was then that he noticed something racing over the open ocean towards him. A rising plume of steam trailed upwards, led by a pillar of fire driving full-force towards him. Gareth saw a shape in the midst of the inferno, saw it plow through his forces, saw it **** back a fist.

And Gareth charged to meet it. They collided, knuckles crashing against knuckles. Gareth felt his opponent's joints shift and threaten to buckle as his did the same. But he willed them to hold firm and continue the fight. He matched his fiery opponent blow for blow, fists crashing against one another in almost perfect symmetry. But even as they fought, Gareth realized that he was being forced back. Each step in advance he made was met by two steps from his opponent, an Apollomon.

It was the Apollomon's momentum, he realized, that had put him on the back foot. The fiery digimon had struck with such drive behind him that even though Gareth was meeting him blow for blow, he just couldn't muster enough force to move the flow of the fighting the way he wanted it. If they fought like this for another few minutes, maybe Gareth could swing the fight and bring them to an even standing. But this Apollomon was fighting with a ferocity Gareth had only experienced a handful of times before; and it wasn't just savage force either. Each blow struck with precision, mirroring his own exactness almost perfectly. He couldn't afford to draw out this kind of fighting. He needed to break his opponent's momentum and restart the fighting on his terms.

"Tekken Seisai!" the Royal Knight called out. His fist swathed with energy and he drove it forward.

"Phoebus Blow!" the Apollomon answered.

Again, their fists collided, this time with a monstrous backlash of power. It sent a sphere of force rolling out, kicking up sand and displacing water all around them, and driving them apart. Gareth glanced towards his opponent: fuming, snarling, and angry. But still on his feet.

"You're still standing," Gareth said, nodding his approval. "Not bad. You're different from the rest of the rabble."

"You're not," the Apollomon snarled.

Gareth frowned. How rude.

"This is just a warm up."

"A warm up, eh?" Gareth smirked. He summoned his Hinukamuy dragon spirit around him, calling its ethereal form to swath him in fire. "Then let's start!" He thrust his hands forward, and the Hinukamuy's energy exploded from them. Fire streaked into the Apollomon with a bang. The water around them evaporated almost instantly, and the sand beneath their feet turned to glass. Gareth's fire blazed all around them, burning so hot that the waves and air caught fire.

"Nothin' to it," Gareth smirked, watching for the fire to die down. But it didn't die down. Instead it continued to billow, swirling faster and faster upon itself, condensing towards the center; towards a single figure in the midst of the conflagration.

It pooled into the Apollomon's hands.

"Damn," Gareth hissed.

"SOL BLASTER!" his opponent roared. Fire howled--no, it sang--from the Apollomon's outstretched hands. A shrieking cry, a chorus of song burning though the air. There was a terrifying beauty in it.

Gareth drove his foot into the ground, sending his energy flowing down into it. A wall of earth erupted in front of him and hardened. He threw his hand up to steady it against the blast. Now it made sense; why that Apollomon was able to match his power and technique. He was a god. Of course he was. A fire god, which made Gareth's previous attack devastatingly stupid. He wanted to hit himself for failing to see it.

The Knight's hardened wall weathered the Apollomon's attack, and then Gareth pushed it to the side. The god stood across from him, glaring angrily--was that his only expression?

"Warmed up yet?" the god taunted, his lips curling into a smirk.

Ah, so "smug" was also part of his facial repertoire.

"I suppose," Gareth said with a shrug. He reached back, grabbed his coat, and hurled it away. It dropped into the wet sand with a heavy thud, forming a deep impression. Gareth stretched his arms and rolled his shoulders. "Nice to get that weight off. Let's get serious, shall we?"

Before the Apollomon could answer, Gareth sprang forward. No longer encumbered by his weighted coat, he landed a ferocious uppercut to the god's jaw in the blink of an eye. It sent the fiery digimon tumbling over the waves.

Gareth smirked.
 

TheSequelReturns

Faithful Crusader
+ Frantz Stein +
- Fortress Camelot
- Dawn of the Assault


The first few Knightmon went down pretty easily. The soldiers were strong in their own right but Stein was a battering ram, a force of raw strength tearing a clear path through the front rank troops. Another pair of Veedramon were sent flying as the Boltmon shoulder charged them. The blue dragons tumbled head over tails into the dirt like a pair of discarded toys.

"HA!" Stein threw a heavy punch and held his fist out at arm's length. "Now you will learn the error of your ways."

Behind the Boltmon, trailing his path all the way from the drop-zone to his present location near the walls of the fortress itself, lay a collection of sprawling bodies trying to crawl themselves back to their feet. Not one Digimon that Stein had fought so far was dead. He hadn't lost control of his anger yet, and unless he did he wasn't about to add to today's body count. It was easy enough to kill. Walking the line and choosing not to was the hard choice, the choice Stein tried to live up to. But as the battle raged around him, as the sounds of clashing metal, energy attacks firing, and good Digimon dying filled the air, it became harder and harder to stay his hand.

There was no doubt in Stein's mind that he was on the right side here, that this battle needed to be fought, but he lamented the pain and agony of this day. Good Digimon were dying on both sides of this fight. It wasn't fair. But the only way to stop the pain was to stop the fighting, and the only way to do that was to force the enemies to surrender. Easy, right?

A pair of Coredramon, the Green kind that reminded Stein of the forests of his homeland, stood before him now, staring at the trail of destruction the Boltmon had left the wake of his initial charge. Everything Stein had done so far he had done with the momentum of his first charge into the battle. Now, that momentum was gone and Stein was alone deep in enemy territory. But the Boltmon was far from defenseless.

"Surrender this lost cause." Stein held up a hand, palm out. "Don't defend those who would embrace evil." He wanted to hold his ground and give the green dragons a chance to reply, but he saw the smirks on their faces too late. A flash of pain cut through his body as a Knightmon embedded his blade into Stein's shoulder. The soldier's aim was true. The sword missed the mess of wiring and bolts and cut deep into the flesh of his arm, tearing skin and ripping muscle until it stuck in the metal plating that lay beneath. Stein roared in pain. Red tinged the corners of his vision. With a sound like frying circuits, sparks flew from his wires as they danced like the death throes of so many snakes. The Knightmon's sword became a conductor, and the armor covered soldier was blasted off of Stein in a burst of sparks, steaming like he had been blasted by lightning.

Stein didn't have to try his left arm to know it was badly injured. With another roar, he pulled the Knightmon's blade from his shoulder with his good arm. The Boltmon's dark, oily blood stained the blade a deep scarlet. Red washed through his vision. All bets were off now.

A low growl escaped the Boltmon's throat. The cyborg monster lifted its right hand and gripped the handle of the huge tomahawk on his back, gripping the blade handle so tight his knuckles lost their color. "TOMAHAWK STIENER!" Despite the massive weight of the metal ax, Stein sent it flying towards the Coredramon like a spinning saw blade. It tore the wings clear off of both dramons, sending splashes of blood across their emerald scales. The force of the hit sent the two of them sprawling into a bloody pile. Like some sort of demonic boomerang, the giant battle ax curved around through the air and embedded itself into the dirt at Stein's feet with a thud.

His hand was trembling as he lifted the tomahawk back onto his back where it stuck with a metallic clang. His rage. His horrible burning rage. It had almost taken control of him again. The cyborg clenched his fists. Never again he had vowed. And now, here he was throwing himself into another fight. As if a part of him wanted to embrace the rage. To relish the slaying of those who raised weapons against him. It was wrong. It had to be wrong.

The GrapLeomon from earlier came running up towards Stein, no doubt having witnessed that display. Or maybe he was concerned about the oily blood that covered his left arm now. Stein turned towards him just in time to see something slam into the lion man with such force that it sent him barreling into the air. Before Stein could register what exactly it was, it hit him too. The strike hit him square in the neck, and by the gods it hurt. Whatever this new opponent was, it was strong. Stein stumbled back, hurt but not beaten and managed to right himself in time to get a brief look at the Gankoomon that stood before him before pain overwhelmed his systems again. The Gankoomon had struck his injured shoulder.

The Boltmon tried in vain to counter or block, but the Gankoomon was far too fast. Strike after strike pummeled into him, hitting his knees, his back, his ribs, any exposed weak point. Stein tried to roar out in defiance, but his opponent wouldn't even give him that pleasure as a swift blow to his throat made him gag on his own breath. He didn't even have a chance to double over before he was hit under the chin with such ferocity that he thought his neck might have snapped. His vision was blurry and he was dizzy from pain as he found himself flying through the air and towards the ocean below. The last thing Stein saw before his vision went black was the Gankoomon turning away from him, as though the Boltmon had been nothing more than an inconvenience.

---

~ Aria Morningsong ~
- Fortress Camelot
- Dawn of the Assault


Well, things were going swimmingly.

Since joining the air assault, Aria had managed to avoid a quick and probably fiery death at least three times. Dramon of all shapes and sizes roamed these skies, sending blasts at council fighters all over the battlefield. The sight of so many Digimon, in the skies above and on the ground below, all fighting it out with everything they had was awe-inspiring.

It was also terrifying. She was always up for a good friendly brawl. A great fight was a treasure. But something about this battle wasn't like her usual fights. There was desperation here. Fury. This wasn't a fight, this was war.

The Eaglemon from earlier, the one who looked like it was ready to hurl, came flying in beside a Parrotmon and together the two of them took out a Garudamon that was swooping down towards a target on the ground. They turned to each other, amazed at what they had just done, when the Eaglemon vanished in a blast of light from a nearby OwRyumon. Just like that, gone. And Aria's heart sank as she realized that the Eaglemon had been a Biomerge. Two lives had just been lost, a young Digimon and a human who owed this world nothing.

The Parrotmon cried out and charged in, but the OwRyumon was too strong for it to handle. The bird Digimon backed off, retreating as the mighty dragon gave a slow and confidant chase. Aria wanted to help, but what could she do against opponents such as these? She didn't want to die. Not like this.

Instead, she backed off, keeping to the fringes. Flying in to offer a quick distraction or assist to the other forces. It was cowardly. She could fight, and she should fight. She should be out there helping to win this battle. But she wasn't, instead she was looking out for herself while creatures who weren't even born in this world fought and died instead. And she hated herself for it.

She broke formation with the other fliers and tore off towards the edge of the ranks, closer to the front lines. She couldn't live with herself if she spent the battle cowering in fear. She was a fighter, and she was going to save as many council Digimon as she could. Up ahead, a BlackWarGreymon seemed to have gotten himself caught behind enemy lines. Surrounded and outnumbered, it looked like he was about to join the long list of casualties when a Slayerdramon approached him and called the others off. It didn't make his chances of survival go up any, but it bought the lizard man a few more seconds at least. Seconds she could use to help him.

She almost crushed that thought the moment it entered her head. She wasn't going to charge headlong into a group of enemies to take on a Mega. It was suicide. She shook her head. The Eaglemon's demise played back in her mind's eye. If she didn't get a grip and do something that BlackWarGreymon was going to wind up just like that Eaglemon. She would rather die than live knowing she left someone else to meet their end.

"You're a damn fool Aria, a damn fool." she said to herself as she charged away from the council fighters and into the enemy ranks.

This was it. No turning back now. She raised her hands as she neared the Slayerdramon. "Marvel Shot!" Round orbs of light fired out from her flowery hands, striking the dragon knight in the back where they burst like bombs and reduced his cape to shredded tatters. As the powerful Mega level turned to see who dared hit him from behind, Aria flew within inches of his face.

"Lila Needle!" A glowing needle charged with all sorts of fun nature energies flew straight up the dragon's nose sending him reeling and giving Aria enough time to get beside the BlackWarGreymon. She pressed up against his leg, very much aware that he was more than twice her size. A fact that conveniently made him a good shield. In front of them, the Slayerdramon roared with rage as he readied his wicked looking blades.

"We'll take him together, okay?" she said to the BlackWarGreymon.
 
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Solsabre

The Reforged Soul
Tessa Tesla
Wisemon
Camelot Shore


Wingblade!” A keening cry and a wave of heat came up behind the occupied Wisemon. Tessa glanced over her shoulder startled. She dropped to her knees in reflex. The covers of the Book closed with a THUMP like a protective shell. The Garudamon’s fiery attack struck the large floating Book. When the flames cleared, no visible sign of the Wisemon and her Book was to be seen.

The enemy Garudamon turned to find another opponent, when a scorched and singed Book appeared in the air. A peeved Tessa glared at the Garudamon with narrowed eyes. “You do not do that to my father’s Book.”

The Space/Time Orb glowed an eerie yellow. An image of a Hisyarumon manifested in the air above them. The sky dragon hovered there still for but a moment until Tessa called, “Pandora Dialogue!

The dragon digimon warped, changing its form into a giant sword and slashing downward at the mystified bird man. In a rapid sequence, the sword struck the Garudmon’s body multiple times, leaving deep cuts and cleaving through primary and secondary feathers. The Garudamon fell from the skies after the sword vanished, no longer able to maintain flight.

Tessa release a breath she didn’t release she was holding. She watched as her opponent fell to the waters below, only to witness an unconscious Boltmon strike the ocean’s surface at the sametime.

“Not again…” the wisemon bemoaned the idea of teleporting in water again. However, she took a deep breath and gathered the energies around her, teleporting her and the Book directly below the massive cyborg as he sank. Her Book rose to carry the Boltmon from the shallows, however, it struggled to breached the surface when the Boltmon’s weight settled on its pages. Running out of breath, Tessa gestured quickly with her right hand and transported them. The Book landed with a heavy crash onto dry ground a fair distance from the fighting.

“Ahek! Of course...” Tessa sputtered as she heaved between her knees to cough up water, “it had to have a weight limit.”

Catching her breath, the young Wisemon stumbled over to the Boltmon to examine his injuries. She started with the grisly gash on the left arm and carefully rested her clawed hands above the wound. Rather, than mumble the archaic words necessary for complex High Coding, Tessa grew from energies within herself and projected them over the injury like a light shield. The layers of binary revealed itself to her, allowing her see the damage deeper within the wound. Then in her mind’s eye, a blueprint overlay appeared of what the intact limb should look like.

Closing her orb-like eyes in concentration, Tessa visualized the overlay image over the wound. At first nothing happened, but after a few minutes the gash began close. The deeper torn muscle pulled together and then the ragged edges of green flesh knitted closed.

Tessa would normally be full of explanations on the intricate workings of Wisemon techniques, however, healing wasn’t one of them. Her father never mentioned it in his teachings and she’d found no references to it in her research. It was truly an infuriating mystery to her. However, with some practice, the Wisemon learned to utilize and apply the gift on rare occasions.

Whispering a soft prayer for safety from attackers, Tessa hummed the melody of ancient lullaby, which helped focus the energies over the wound and speed up the otherwise slow healing process.

____________________________________________________________
Theo Grayson
BlackWarGreymon
Skies above Camelot


“Tenryūzanha!”

The Slayerdramon’s Fragarach snaked through the air in a tight arch, descending upon the old dragon’s head. Theo crossed his Dramon Killers quickly, blocking the sword’s path and momentum. He grabbed the sword by its extensions between the blades and yanked hard to pull himself closer to the dragon knight. With a swift jab, Theo struck the Slayerdramon’s chest, leaving deep jagged lines in the armor with blood dripping through.

The armored dragon roared angrily, slamming a fist into the side of Theo’s helmet. Head swimming momentarily, he abruptly kicked the Slayerdramon in the side, pushing them apart. Two blasts battered the Slayerdramon, the second leaving him in a howling fury. A spry Lilamon zipped away, taking sheltered behind him.

"We'll take him together, okay?" she said. Theo glanced at the Lilamon from the edge of her vision, keeping his focus on the now charging Slayerdramon.

“We’ll need to act quickly,” he affirmed, swirls of fire began building in his palms. “The other warriors will not refrain from attacking if we’re both fighting.”

“Watch for an opportunity to strike,” Theo called out, rushing forward to meet the Slayerdramon. The dragon knight whipped his flexible sword upwards. Theo dodged out of the way, but the wicked blade curved sank its sharp edge into the exposed flesh just behind the shin guards. The old soldier grimaced from the searing pain when the blade was ripped out, but he pressed on and slammed directly into the Slayerdramon's midsection. The dragon knight drove an armored elbow into the Greymon's collar bone, just above the chest armor. Drifting apart, Theo thrusted the base of his palms together, the gathering fire forming a super heated sphere.

War Blaster!” He cried with pain, fireballs exploded outward from the sphere at point-blank range in the Slayerdramon’s face.


___________________________________________________________

If anyone's wondering, I'm using lesser known attacks listed for BlackWarGreymon on wikimon.net, since they fit Theo's fighting style better.
 
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TheCharredDragon

Tis the Hour to Reload
Shula Hernandez & Tyfrigo "Frost" Rex
Current Form: Biomerged Machinedramon -> BlackAgumon -> ExVeemon
Island of Avalon
Independent Nation of Logress


They bit off more than they could chew.

No...correction they chomped off more than could chew.

In their determination to take out as many Breakdramon as they could--which was so far three--they ended up behind enemy lines. Which was why they were running away from their opponents, something they, well, more like Shula rarely did. But she knew it was almost suicidal to take on an entire army by themself. For them, at least. She had a feeling that the Apollomon probably could one, maybe even ten of them, and still not feel satisfied with the fight. He was a god after all, they were not.

They sidestepped another Green Coredramon who took a swing at them. They shouldered it, making it stumble, before continuing their course. It was only a few more meters. They could make it.

And just as they thought that, they get blindsided from their right, jerking their head and stumbling. This led to another hit, this time to their torso. By this time, they realized it was the swings of swords and so used their hands and caught the third strike, revealing their attackers: two Grademon. Another hit to the back of their head, making them let go of the swords. Another correction, three Grademon.

They definitely took on more than they could.

The three swords...mon continued their assault on them, trading blow after blow and they were taking more than they blocked. A single one was fast, but add in the two others, and they were surprised they were able to block as many hits as they did. They were also too fast for them to use Giga Cannon without draining their energy too much. Sure, they could shoot a few, but they could only shoot so many times and with their speed, they were more likely to miss.

They gritted their teeth. At this rate, this would be about as bad as that Breakdramon nearly finishing them off with Infinity Boring. They had to do something... Another idea popped into her mind. Frost thought it was insane. Then Shula reminded him they were fighting the Royal Knights, an attempt that was more than just insane. It was deranged. Frost conceeded.

As one of the Grademon was about to attack once again with its sword, their body glowed and the swords-mon only hit air. All three looked around in confusion of the sudden disappearance. It wasn't like Machinedramon could teleport. But by their feet, Shula and Frost were already a fair distance from them, running as if their lives depended on it, which they did.

But Shula knew that they wouldn't be able to reach it on time. Digivice in hand, she activated it once again, causing Frost to glow. As soon as the glowing stopped, she stayed near Frost as he swung his new long tail. The sudden size increase meant that the golden warriors were easily pushed back by the giant's tail, as well as nearby Royal Knights soldiers. Digimon were scrambling everywhere, startled by his appearance and they used it to their advantage.

He whipped his tail around him, giving himself a wide berth. Then he scooped up Shula very carefully in his hand before flying back to their side of the fight. There were plenty Council soliders who were also surprised by the now ExVeemon flying their way, but many more merely just took notice and returned to their fights. But as they flew, with Frost occasionally hitting the backs of the heads of enemies he passed by, Shula saw the fight above.

There were a few gatherings in the sky, the largest one being around two of the Royal Knights. But there was one that made her grimace. They might've been close to the ground, she saw there was a fight above them when they were still behind enemies lines. And she couldn't faintly make out a single black dot surrounded by dragon Digimon. She knew it was ridiculous, stupid even seeing as their strongest flying form might not even stand a chance. And then there was the fact she could fall off, but she couldn't help it, she wanted to help. They barely made it out herself, how much more for the aerial forces?

Frost wasn't going to like this. "Frost!" she said loud enough for him to hear her. "Fly up and below the sky's enemy line! We got to help that guy up there!"

He groaned. She knew it. But he still listened anyway. She chuckled despite the situation. She couldn't help it. He did a hundred eighty degree turn, once again making a few of the nearby soldiers--friends and foes--pause at the unexpected action. Then he flapped his wings, speeding back to the way they came, but slowly climbing up and up until they were flying staight up, with Shula now riding on the back of his neck.

His lit his fist on fire and shouted, "Heart Breaker!"

From below, he threw a fireball at a Slayerdramon right at its back, then, using his momentum, uppercut it under its jaw just as it turned. Frost continued his course to avoid the attacks that the--now that they were nearby--BlackWargreymon and Lilamon were firing. He turned and then shouted, "Vee-Laser!" and fired an X shaped beam right at the dragon knight.

He wasn't planning on actually taking out the Mega. His power level wasn't on even grounds with it. He just needed to distract it for the BlackWargreymon to do his thing. Hopefully he didn't accidently hit either of his allies.
 
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TheSequelReturns

Faithful Crusader
+ Frantz Stein +
- Fortress Camelot
- Dawn of the Assault


Pain.

Pain, and cold.

Those two sensations were the only things Stein could feel as his battered form sank beneath the waves of the sea. His barely conscious mind drifted as he sank. Pictures swam before him. Memories. Like ripples in his circuitry, here one moment and gone the next. The Palmon he saved in the jungle. The village he had learned to call home. They seemed so far away now. Like a good dream that he had finally woken up from. All he could see now was his weakness. His failure. The torture he endured at The Factory was fresh and new again. His body stung from wounds long since healed. His mind reeled from feelings long since faded. He hurt. And it was his fault.

He wasn't strong enough. He hadn't been strong enough. He could have saved himself. Should have. But he could never muster the strength or the courage to do what needed to be done. Until something in him snapped and did it for him. That anger... the rage he had locked away in his heart so many years ago laughed at him now. It mocked his virtues. If only he had given in, if only he had bathed in the blood of his enemies, felt their bones snap in his hands, then maybe he would be stronger now. More brutal. Vicious, like the monster he should be but denied.

But that wasn't who he was, it was what they had tried to make him. And that he would deny until his joints rusted and his wires snapped and his body became a silent statue unable to move again.

The singing brought him back.

The melody was pure but old. Older than anything Stein had felt before. The weight of its legacy pressed down on him in such a way that he could swore he felt it, like an itching in his skin. With a start, he realized that he actually could feel his skin itching. His shoulder to be precise. The same shoulder that a Knightmon had nearly cleaved in two. Strange.

Stein opened his eyes to see a Wisemon standing over him, humming away. So this one had been singing the song that mended his shoulder. But how had he gotten up out of the water? Stein stirred and sat up, hearing the pages crease under him. He was on her book. By the code, this little one had saved his life. She had draged him right out of the briny deep and patched him back up. He tested his arm and found it to be good as new. He still hurt everywhere the Gankoomon had broken him, but his shoulder was okay, and that was enough. Nervously, he hopped off of the book and knelled before the Wisemon, no doubt surprising her.

"You saved me Wise one." Stein said in his usual deafeningly deep voice. "Kept me from rusting down there in that water."

He bowed his head. "You saved Stein's life, so Stein is at your service." He made a fist with both hands, his wires sparking back to life once again. "I shall use my strength to protect you from now on." He remained bowing, waiting for the Wisemon's blessing.

---

~ Aria Morningsong ~
- Fortress Camelot
- Dawn of the Assault


Maybe she was going to make it out of this mess alive after all.

An ExVeemon, who had to be insane by the way he was charging in, tore into the Slayerdramon with a savage blast to his back. The dragon knight turned to see another new threat, no doubt expecting another energy blast to fly up his nose, and got an uppercut to the jaw instead.

The Slayerdramon, who was now facing three-on-one odds after being surprised from behind twice, roared an understandably obscene series of curses as he swung in vain at the ExVeemon before taking his energy blast to the chest. Unfortunately, ExVeemon was a Champion level, and his attacks didn't do too much damage to old scaly sides. But they were a welcome distraction. It was only then that she spotted the human on his neck.

"I know that human!" Aria said aloud. That was the dancing couple that unwittingly sparked the bar brawl last night. Which meant that ExVeemon was actually that cute little BlackAgumon.

Guess I owe them one. Aria thought. If we all survive this, their next bar tab is on me.

Of course now that she was up close, she recognized the BlackWarGreymon too. He was the one that had gotten turned into a table sandwich and launched into the Apollomon. This whole great big army and here was was stuck with the odd couple that sparked the bar fight and the dimwit that brought the living fireball into it. Birds of a feather right?

"Yo, Gramps." she said to the BlackWarGreymon, "Follow my lead."

While the Slayerdramon was still trying to figure out if he should kill the ExVeemon or turn back around and deal with the two of them, Aria shot forward. The Lilamon twirled through the air like a petal in the wind before landing right on the Slayerdramon's head. Once again, Aria thanked whatever powers had coded her for making her small enough to pull these tricks off.

"Un Deux Pollen!" she called as a blast of golden pollen dust burst from her flowers and hid the Slaerdramon's head in a yellow cloud. The dragon reeled as the bewitching pollen worked its way into his eyes and his nose, numbing his senses and disorienting him. He couldn't hit her now if he tried.

With grace, the Lilamon flipped off of the Slayerdramon's head and towards the ExVeemon and his human partner. "Go Gramps, Go!" she called to Theo.
 
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Kamotz

God of Monsters
The sky exploded with light as the fiery draconic visage of Caradoc's Breath of Wyvern collided with Thor's Giga Crusher. The force of the blast ripped through the air, and Thor fought to remain upright. Below, Caradoc flared his wings and tore up through the smoke towards him. Thor struggled to catch his breath. In all his years, across centuries of life, he'd only been pushed to this extent a handful of times. But only by eternals and monsters. Never before by a mortal Digimon.

Caradoc was on him in an instant, and Thor felt his bones shake under the force of the Dynasmon's blows. In general, Dynasmon were among the strongest of Digimon species. But Caradoc was a Royal Knight. Everything about him was pushed past the brink of physical limitations by the power of his Knighthood. It was a digital programming, old code - older and more powerful than anything else in the world. And it made the Royal Knights more than a match for even an eternal like Thor.

Thor struck back against Caradoc's onslaught, forcing him back. He knew he couldn't win in a simple brawl; the Royal Knight was too strong. But if he could get Caradoc back, at a distance, where his strength meant nothing, and where Thor could summon the storm...

Even a Royal Knight could not withstand the lightning.

He fired several shots from his positron cannon, forcing Caradoc to pitch and swerve. Thor's focus turned inward, to the spark flashing within. He closed his eyes and breathed deep, let its essence fill him. And when his eyes opened the skies were dark and rumbled with thunder. Thor rushed Caradoc with the weight of the storm, and they collided, swathed in power, crackling and aflame. He was blind to everything else; the other Knights, his fellow warriors, the Council. All he knew was what was in front of him. All he knew was the thunder roaring in his ears and the lightning flashing in his blood.

==\=/==

Svarog doubled over as Gareth buried his fist in his stomach. His breath escaped him for a moment, but he struck back with equal resolve. It had been a long time since he'd had a fight this good, since he'd been pushed this far, by someone who understood the art of combat so perfectly that he could really cut loose.

Gareth left no openings in his attacks. He fought with dazzling precision; each strike was complemented by a defensive maneuver that protected what would have otherwise been an exposed weakness. That was what it meant to be a Royal Knight: martial perfection - a thousand years of experience passed down to each successor, boiled down to a single, perfect strike.

Svarog was envious.

He fought against perfection with sheer force of will and godly determination. Forcing openings in Gareth's stance where otherwise there would have been none. But for each blow he landed, the Royal Knight landed two. It was not a sustainable pattern. He needed to turn the tide; to land one attack and push back against the Knight's precision with overwhelming power. It was a daunting prospect, though slightly less-so for a god of war.

When Gareth struck next, it was with a heavy haymaker, impossibly fast. It drilled into Svarog's cheek and threatened to take his head clean off. And it might have, were he not prepared for it. He roared, half in agony and half in rage, as he fought through to endure the strike. He braced against it, refusing to let it throw him back. Gareth's perfect form faltered, shuttered by the unexpected development. And there Svarog found his opening.

Svarog countered, throwing his fist forward. He swathed it in flame and liquid sunlight, power condensed so tightly it sang as it flew through the air. A decisive blow if there was one.

But it never connected.

Something struck Svarog. Something so fast that he didn't even see it. So forceful that it stopped him in his tracks and left his attack to dissipate into the winds. He let out a breath as his vision blurred, and then it filled with the image of Gareth's own burning fist. Svarog's head snapped back, and the darkness consumed him.

==\=/==

Thor sent Caradoc tumbling back, seized with a burst of power. A blast of his positron cannon hurled Caradoc towards the waves. The Knight tumbled through the air, struggling to right himself, but Thor surged after him. He was nearly upon the Royal Knight when something struck him from the side. It slammed into his side, fiery red; burning so hot it blistered the skin beneath his black armor.

The thing - Odin's eye it was like a meteor - drove Thor through the air and sank him into the ground in a swath of fiery power. Thor fought against it, pushing through the pain and pushing the thing back. He coughed up sand and crawled to his feet among the glass-blasted beachhead.

"Bedivere!" Thor snarled. His chest heaved and he choked against the wall of heat and smoke that clawed at him. How had Bedivere attacked him? He'd been fighting Karametra! He couldn't have overcome her this quickly. Not without -

The Examon smirked and leaped away, spreading his huge wings and taking to the skies. Thor prepared to follow, but the twisting beams of Caradoc's Dragon Thrower tore into him and forced him back to the ground. Thor groaned, fighting through the pain as a figure stepped in front of him.

"You were warned, Odinson," said the figure. It raised its weapon. "And now. Fall. Extinction Wave!"

==\=/==

The Royal Knights watched Thor fall, beaten, to the ground. Across the beach the other god fell as well. Guinier landed, tossing Karametra and Kruphix to the sand in unconscious heaps. She, Bedivere, Caradoc, and Gareth turned to the new figure, who stood over Thor, and waited for his command. It had, of course, all gone according to his plan. Spreading false information, anticipating the Council's attack – across the world the other Knights would be turning back the Council as well. Perhaps not as...decisively as here at Camelot, but their victory over the Council was certain.

Gawain had seen to it. The Duftmon turned from Thor's fallen form and rejoined the other four Royal Knights. He'd sent a very convincing double to stand in for him with Sir Tristan at the Chess Kingdom, all for the element of surprise.

"Tell our forces to push the Council's warriors together and then pull back," he ordered. The other Knights nodded and signaled. Almost as one, the myriad soldiers of the Royal Knights pitched and turned, fighting in concert, forcing the disjointed warriors of the High Council into a smaller and smaller space over the beach.

"Knights. End this," Gawain said. The five gathered together and unleashed their attacks as one. The Council's warriors were consumed by the maelstrom of power.
 
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Solsabre

The Reforged Soul
Theo Grayson
BlackWarGreymon


"Go Gramps, Go!" The Lilamon’s shoutout spurred the black dragon into action. Using the opening provided by the flower pixie and daring EX-Veemon, Theo slammed his shoulder into the disoriented Slayerdramon. Pulling his right arm back, the old soldier drove the dramon killer into the dragon knight’s stomach, slicing through the armor with ease. The Slayerdramon’s eyes widen in shock from the pain and shock as data floated freely from the wound.

“Sorry, brother…” Theo whispered quietly to himself, as he watched the dramon fall from the sky, data disappearing before reaching the ground. Another life lost to war. The Royal Knight Aerial Forces closed in on him and the other two with furious roars.

“Hurry and flee back to our group!” The black dragon shouted to the other two digimon ahead of him, he hadn’t spotted the human yet on the EX-Veemon’s back in the commotion. He flew swiftly after them for a distance, when he turned back the Royal Knight’s forces to buy the others more time to get away.

Black and yellow flames gathered in his clawed hand above his head, “TERRA DESTRO-”

He was abruptly cut off mid attack as a coordinated effort of the Royal Knights’ dramon plowed and grabbed onto him and sent him flying into the jumbled and disjointed Council forces. Not far from him, a terribly beaten and bleeding Justimon fell through the air. The Justimon flashed in a blinding light as a stray attack hit it in the side, separating into a cloud of data and the limp form of young human male.

The BlackWarGreymon dove beneath their aggressors to catch the unconscious tamer in his arm, cradling the human close to his armored chest. He was pushed again until he was back to back with the rest of the Council’s forces. The old soldier held his passenger in a protective embrace.

"Knights. End this.”

Theo did a doubletake as he witness the five Royal Knights, not four, gathered and unleashed the full strength of Saga’s greatest guardians upon the hapless forces.

The old dragon closed his eyes in resignation of their fate.

____________________________________________________

Tessa Tesla
Wisemon


Tessa continued the healing process with eyes closed shut until she felt the draw of energy come to an end. Opening tired eyes, the young Wisemon surveyed her handy work to make sure all went correctly. As she did, the Boltmon woke up and tested his newly healed shoulder.

“Oh, be careful!” She said hastily, raising a robed arm to gesture for caution. Tes jumped back slightly as the Boltmon got off her Book and suddenly crouched before her while still towering over her lithe form.

"You saved me Wise one." Stein said in his usual deafeningly deep voice. "Kept me from rusting down there in that water."

Shyly, Tessa scratched at the back of her hands absently, “Your welcome, I’m just helping in any small way I can.”

The Boltmon bowed.

"You saved Stein's life, so Stein is at your service." Tessa gawked, she wasn’t expecting anything of the sort. "I shall use my strength to protect you from now on."

The Boltmon remained still bowed before her, expectant. “Uhhmmm,” speechless, Tessa stepped onto her damp Book and hovered upwards until she was at head level with him. Reaching slowly, she placed an uncertain clawed hand on the newly healed shoulder. “Well… if that’s what you wish...who am I to refuse?” She replied with warm smile hidden in her hood, though it carried in her tone. She glanced to the rest of his beaten form, “how are the rest of your-”

Tessa’s question was abruptly cut off by the commotion back the battlefield.

“No…” Tessa whispered in horror as the various gods on their side were defeated and the surviving Council warriors were forcibly corralled together. Tessa and the Boltmon went largily unnoticed due to the distance the Wisemon had teleported them from the battlefield.

“There’s gotta be something we can do…”

The Space/Time Orbs flashed in a brilliance, though they flickered weakly in reflection of the Wisemon’s building exhaustion. She cupped the Orbs with both hands uplifted. The Royal Knights gathered together standing triumphant over the fallen Imperialdramon. Redirecting their actions would be pointless, she found that out earlier in the battle.

Instead, she created a small rift in the space behind the cornered Council forces. Small and unnoticable at first, the portal grew slowly in size. Her arms and legs shook from the effort to create a sizeable passage of escape back to the airships.

She didn’t think she could make the portal large enough in time, but by all that was holy she was going to try.
 

TheCharredDragon

Tis the Hour to Reload
Shula Hernandez & Tyfrigo "Frost" Rex
Frost's Form: ExVeemon
Island of Avalon
Independant Nation of Logress


He could feel Shula frown behind him when the BlackWargreymon was able to land his blow...and kill the Slayerdramon. Frost never let such thoughts drift into his mind into a fight, but he knew very well Shula didn't like taking lives. The only reason she could was the endangerment of other lives, lives she believed were good or, at the very least, tolerate of humans. But that didn't lessen the guilt for her, he knew that. But that was how she was. She wouldn't be Shula if she didn't see the good, no matter how small, in anyone.

He did hear the Lilamon's exclamation of recognizing her and, he assumed, him. He knew Shula did as well as he felt a slight shuffling on the back of his neck. He guessed she was giving a thumbs up and a determined grin. It didn't last long though as he flapped his wings and followed the BlackWargreymon. He flew right passed him when he was going to give them a chance to get away.

"Wha--hey! Frost! We gotta--" she tried to say.

He interrupted her. "We did. Now we just have to let--" But he didn't get a chance to finish either.

As soon as the words left his mouth, he was hit. He screamed from the pain, being in Champion form making it worse. But that didn't compare to pain he felt in his chest when he heard the scream of Shula. Despite the throbbing on his back, he snapped his eyes open and frantically searched for her. His eyes locked on the familiar red vest and he sped right to her, grabbing her in his hands. With his momentum, he ended up heading straight for the ground and making a rough landing. He didn't have time to rest against the earth though, he could see more Royal Knights soldiers heading their way.

He stood up and continued to hold Shula protectively, almost like a parent would with a baby. He did his best to avoid and dodge their attacks as he headed towards their ranks. He needed to get a healer. He needed to get her a healer and he needed to do it fast. He had no idea how badly injured she was and who knew if she could die in minutes; seconds. But the crowd was getting more densely packed. He couldn't get through. But it was them he realized, as he turned around to confirm his theory, that the soldiers were coralling them.

His fears were only risen when he saw not four, but five Royal Knights.

"By the gods..." he said.

He felt Shula stir in his arms. He looked down and saw her barely open her eyes.

"Frost...? What..."

He gently hushed her and pulled her closer to his chest. But he couldn't get rid of the frown on his face. He knew she saw it from how worried she suddenly became. She tried to turn her head, to possibly see what was making him look grim. He wouldn't allow that and held her somewhat tighter, enough to get the point to not move.

Another hush before he said, "Let's just say that our luck has ran out."

"But...isn't there...?"

"Something we can do?" He finished for her. "Believe me, if there was, I would."

That seemed to be enough for her. Or perhaps it was her injuries. Either way, she didn't speak anymore and fell into the bliss of sleep. The feeling in his stomach only got worse at the thought. It was going to be a long rest.

"Knights," he heard one of the Royal Knights say.

He looked to them, glaring and snarling with what little strength he had after the attack on his back. He tried to cover Shula from their sight and block as much of her with his non-injured sections as he could. Seeing as they were going to die...he would at least die in defiance. They would know, he didn't believe in what the Knights were fighting for. And...at the very least...use his body as a shield to give Shula a chance to survive.

"End this."

A part of him wondered if the god that Shula believed was real as he felt the power numb his senses.
 
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Kamotz

God of Monsters
The wash of power slammed into the Council's forces and overcame them; the unleashed might of five Royal Knights and their legions of soldiers was far too much for the Council's motley crew to withstand. They fell, whether mortal, eternal, or something in between, the warriors of the Council fell. They tumbled and plummeted from the sky, landing amidst the waves and the sands of the beach. They faltered as the land beneath their feet twisted, buckled, and shattered. The blast atomized dozens and tore the limbs off dozens more.

"Send them scurrying back," said Bedivere, lowering his lance. "Let the names of their dead serve as punishment for this attack. Let the cries of the injured serve as our warning to the Council."

"No," Caradoc snarled, smoke rising from his clenched fists. "If we do, they'll only return in force! We have to teach them to respect us. As they once did." Power sparked from his eyes as his rage billowed around him. "We send them nothing. We leave them nothing. We simply wipe this away and let that be our warning."

"We cannot answer this with brutality, Caradoc," said Bedivere. "We are fighting to protect this world."

"Brutality is all the Council - and the humans - understand," Caradoc snapped back. "Galahad told us we would be forced to make difficult choices; that we would need conviction and force of will to see our quest through."

The remaining knights were stunned to silence at the implications. Only Guinier dared speak.

"Caradoc," she said, her voice a whisper. Caradoc growled, and she returned to silence.

"So be it," Gawain said. He turned his back to the remains of the battle. "Make it clear."

Caradoc bellowed, a rage that shook the earth beneath their feet. His power flared, spiraling around him, coiling upon itself; twisting and turning until it condensed so tightly it pulled matter towards it. The Royal Knight's howl echoed across the sky, so terrible and loud that those present could only just make out the words.

"Breath. Of. Wyvern."

And the beast that was Caradoc's power thundered forth, born of fire and anger and righteousness. Bigger than anything the mortal combatants had ever seen. It struck, and their world erupted with light. They welcomed the end.

But it never came.

Caradoc's power fractured and crumpled, collapsing upon a single point at the front of the Council's ranks. It folded and jerked and shattered as it fell upon that point, and the god that stood defiantly in its path.

Thor held fast, his arms shaking as the air around him caught fire; as the earth beneath his feet melted, as the waters behind him evaporated, all under the sheer pressure of Caradoc's attack. But it wasn't the knight's attack that shook Thor, rather it was the weapon in his hands. The White Sword. It trembled in his grip, vibrating along infinite cosmic wavelengths, flashing in and out of reality and taking Thor with it.

On a good day, with a rested body and a clear mind, Thor could barely stand to place his hand on its hilt. But then, with his body battered and his heart in turmoil, Thor had only just managed to call it to him. Holding it in place, between the Council's soldiers and Caradoc's attack, was taking everything he had. With reality distorting all around him, Thor feared what would happen if he lost control, if the blade flew from his grasp and set all that unmitigated cosmic power flaring into existence.

But for all that fear, Thor held. He held until Caradoc's attack crackled and burned out, until the warriors behind him could rise to their feet and defend themselves.

"Craven bastard," Thor snarled, his teeth gnashing as he shook. The Knights stepped forward to confront him. "I expected better from a Royal Knight."

"We are what we are asked to be, Odinson," Caradoc growled. He clenched his fist and readied to charge.

"Not another step," Thor warned, bringing the blade to bear between him and the Royal Knights. "You will allow these warriors to retreat, or I will bring ruination to your land."

"He bluffs," Gareth scoffed, stepping forward. "And he can barely hold the sword." But Gawain placed a hand on his shoulder and held him back.

"As the Council has forced our hand, so have we forced the Odinson's," he said, shaking his head.

"But he can barely-"

"He does not need to hold the sword," Gawain said, eyeing the thunder god warily. "Were he to release the weapon...it might destroy even us."

"So we just let them go?" Caradoc demanded, wheeling about angrily. He snarled at his fellow Royal Knights. "Just like that?"

"We allow them to retreat, as I suggested before," Gawain admonished.

"But-"

"This is a stalemate, Caradoc," Gawain hissed low, turning to his comrade. "We have held our stronghold against their invasion. We have repelled them. But further escalation of this will end uncertainly. I will not enter into reckless conflict with the White Sword until I can determine exactly the scope of the Odinson's control over it. I do not deal in uncertainty, Caradoc."

Caradoc snarled, but stepped back ever-so-slightly.

"Go then, Odinson," Gawain said, loud enough for Thor and all the Council's warriors to hear. "We'll allow you and these soldiers to take your leave unharmed. Even the humans are free to go; our gift to you." He turned to Karametra and Kruphix, still lying unconscious at their feet. "But the Council members will remain; our prisoners, and an assurance that Camelot - and all of Avalon - remains unmolested."

"No," Thor said through clenched teeth. He felt the data around the edges of his being begin to fray and unravel, but then the power of the White Sword seared him back together, like cauterizing a wound over and over again. It was agonizing, and it took all his willpower to stay standing.

"It is your choice, Son of Odin," Gawain said, almost-shrugging. "Agree to our terms and this battle is over. There need be no further bloodshed - for now, of course. Or we can continue. You can release the power of that weapon you hold and kill untold scores of humans and Digimon alike." Gawain's wariness had been replaced with pure confidence, and Thor could see now his mastery of tactics extended beyond the battlefield.

Gawain had given Thor an out. Had he pressed the attack Thor would have had no choice but to unleash the White Sword's power - and how many would die before it, himself included? Gawain knew this, and was offering him the chance not to. Two choices, retreat or ruin. One choice Thor detested, and the other he found unthinkable.

It was no real choice.

"This ends nothing," Thor said, lowering his sword just bit.

"Of course not," Gawain agreed, even as the other Royal Knights shouted their objections. "Our work has only just begun." He motioned for the Knights and their forces to stand down. Caradoc bent down and collected the two Council members. "Rest assured that Lords Kruphix and Karametra will be well taken care of until this unpleasantness is behind us."

"You think things can just go back to the way they were?" said the Slayerdramon, Drakn Stromheart. "You think that after all of this, after you betrayed the Council-"

"The Royal Knights addressed a threat to Saga, as we always have," Gawain interrupted, glaring at the dragon. "And the Council rejected this. They attacked us, unprovoked, in our very home. No, warrior, I do not think things will ever be the same. When the humans are gone - when this conflict ends - the Royal Knights will not be able to simply forget what the Council has done. Changes will be made. And should you live to see the end of it, you will see that the Royal Knights have acted justly."

"Go and be done with it," Bedivere said. The Examon waved his claws dismissively. "You won't get another opportunity like this one."

Behind Thor, the soldiers of the Council took off, leaving by air and sea towards the two remaining airships not destroyed in the battle. Only when everyone had left the battlefield did Thor lower his guard and allow the White Sword to dissipate back into the ether. He took to the air, flying backwards, never looking away from the Royal Knights.

When he at last stepped foot on the ship, he found Svarog waiting for him. The fiery god wore a glare to match his own, and sported even more injuries.

"Hell of a fight," Svarog said, though his usual jovial tone was absent.

"Let it go," Thor muttered, shaking his head. "We lost."

"For now," Svarog growled. "But I'm not through with them. Not by a long shot."

And so the Council's soldiers began the long flight home, aching and with the bitter taste of defeat still fresh. Some shook with fear, others wept with relief. A select few glowered silently at the indignity of their humiliation, while the humans wondered numbly just what was to come of them.

One thing was for certain: it wasn't over.
 
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TheCharredDragon

Tis the Hour to Reload
Shula Hernandez & Tyfrigo "Frost" Rex
Current Form: ExVeemon -> BlackAgumon
Island of Avalon -> Retreating Council Ship


For a long while, Frost felt almost nothing; not his wings, not his skin, not even his body within himself. There was only one thing he felt--warmth--and he knew whose it was. It was Shula's willpower and care, the same that allows his digivolution, that was holding his form together. That energy was what kept him there, battered and beaten, true, but alive. Frost mentally chuckled at that. Even when unconscious, she doing all she can to keep him alive. He was vaguely aware that the assault ended and then there was a great surge of energy and heat that wasn't Shula's that was heading their way. He guessed it was the finishing blow.

...

But it never came.

In moments, his senses returned and he found that he was on his side on the ground, Shula still held protectively in his arms. But now more aware of his surroundings, he knew it wasn't over just yet, especially considering Shula's condition. He stood up slowly but surely and found that Thor was standing his ground, placing himself between them and the Royal Knights, a white sword in his hands. Some of their ranks also made it and were ready to fight off any remaining Royal Knight soldiers after them. Shula wasn't safe yet. He was injured and in Champion form, there was no way he could survive for long.

He had to go find a healer.

He looked and moved between the ranks, ignoring the happenings between the god and the knights. At least until he heard the words,

"We allow them to retreat."

He stopped in his tracks. A part of him couldn't believe it while another--the one greatly influenced by Shula--reminded him of who they were. They were the Royal Knights. Even if they started this war, it wasn't entirely uncalled. They mean well and they would not resort to lower means. Well, he hoped it was the case. They were even allowing the humans to leave peacefully--as long as the Council members were held as prisoners for insurance. He was too relieved to care about their predicament. Soon, he flew straight to remaining airships along with the rest of the soldiers. He could feel his form was close to losing all of its energy.

As soon as he was inside, he carefully placed Shula on one of the seats. His assumption was correct and right after he did, his form glowed and he was back to his little BlackAgumon form. At this point, Shula eyes were starting to open. Frost watched her carefully and she slowly blinked, taking in her surroundings until they landed on him.

"Frost...? How... What..."

Once again, he hushed her, but more softly and warmly. "Rest. I'll explain, after I get a healer."

He didn't bother waiting for her reply, as rude as it was. Even if she seemed fine right now, he prefered sooner than later when dealing with battle wounds. Unfortunately, he couldn't get too far from her. His own wounds were starting to get to him. He needed someone else to get her one. He spoted a Wisemon who, surprisingly, wasn't hurt at all. He made his way to her and gently tugged on the Digimon's robe.

"Pardon me. But...could you get a healer?" he said. Then he looked back to Shula and pointed at her. "For my partner? I don't know how badly she's hurt and I can't push myself lest I aggravate my own injuries."
 

Solsabre

The Reforged Soul
Theo Grayson the BlackWargreymon
Camelot Shore to Airships

The energies of the Royal Knights' attacks consumed every bit of air around Theo, barely enduring the combined attacks better than many of the Council's warriors. He took short raspy breaths for the air was searing hot and his black scales turned a dusty coal from the embers and ashes all around him. All the while, the old dragon cocooned the precious cargo in his hands with his own body and the shield on his back taking the brunt of the onslaught.

He'd been on the retrieving end of Royal Knight attacks before for training purposes, but usually only one Knight at a time. Not this punishment.

Pressed into the savaged earth, Theo laid prone until a brief pause let up the power. He craned his armored head to the skies above in confusion but quickly received his answer from Caradoc's surekill.

“Breath of Wyvern!”

Resigned though he had been, a faint echo from the distant past stirred his core with encouragement. Theo rose trembling, the youth ever still in his arms. But the final attack never came.

Thor Odinson stood defiantly with The White Sword.

He watched passively as Thor and the Knights argue over the Council's warriors, powerless to do anything else. Finally, after an eternity, the defeated warriors rose to leave for the airships, some on their own power, others aided by those less injured. Theo limped back; his left leg bleeding slowly on the backside from the Slayerdramon's jagged sword.

On the airship, the BlackWargreymon leaned against a wall while seated, breathing slowly and deeply to mute out the pain in his body. The young man in his arms groaned, seizing in pain from choking on the clean cool air of the ship.

“Hush, easy now...” Theo soothed, adjusting the youth's position so his head leaned on the old dragon's shoulder for ease of breathing. The raven-haired lad open dim eyes, meeting Theo's yellow ones. “The battle...” a hoarse whisper escaped him.

“Lost,” Theo said softly, than sadly, “your partner...”

“I know...” the boy stuttered, a tear escaping a blood-shot eye. “I-I felt it...w-when our form broke.” A coughing fit wracked his beaten body, convulsing harshly. Flecks of blood covered ashen lips. Theo glanced knowingly at the young man's bloody side with a somber expression. It wouldn't be long now.

“Rest.” he spoke reassuringly, “You and your partner fought bravely today..”

The youth smiled weakly, then a flash of fear overtook him with shallow halting breaths. “S-stay w-w-with me?”

Theo nodded slowly, already intending to do so. Running his claws gently through the boy's raven hair to comfort him, the weary soldier told stories -happier ones- of his past to distract the youth until the final moment came.

*****************


Tessa Tesla the Wisemon
Aboard the Airships


Tessa stared out the window deflated. The escape portal she'd tried to create for the Council's Warriors had implored from sheer pressure of the Royal Knight's attacks contacting them. After the Odinson brought the battle to a stalemate, the Wisemon had teleported herself and company back to the main group, aiding those too injured to move back to the surviving airships.

A few disgusted looks were sent the sage's way as she was completely free of injury, but she took no heed of them. Rather, she surveyed the scene inside as the airship shook with take off to determine who to help first. At least that was until she felt a tug on her robes.

"Pardon me. But...could you get a healer?" A BlackAgumon said, pointing in the direction of the seats. "For my partner? I don't know how badly she's hurt and I can't push myself lest I aggravate my own injuries."

“Of course, I can take care of it myself,” Tessa said readily, nodding, until she realized the BlackAgumon was referring to the human female a short ways away. She hesitated. Tessa had never tried healing a human before. Shaking off the uncertainty, Tessa approached the BlackAgumon's partner to kneel alongside and raised clawed hands over the wounded form. The Wisemon concentrated and a bright blue glowed, engulfing the human. However, several minutes went by, but nothing changed. Tessa frowned, concentrating hard. Still nothing.

“I'm sorry,” Tessa said worrisome, “It's not working. I've never tried healing a human before.”

Tessa was at an uncharacteristic loss. Her knowledge of humans was terribly lacking to appropriately identify the severity and types of injuries. The Wisemon resolved to correct that problem at the first opportunity back at Axis Mundi. However, it didn't help the poor BlackAgumon's current situation now.

“What seems to be the problem?” A gruff voice asked from over head.

Tessa turned around. A haggard BlackWargreymon approached, various bandages covered his limbs and a shoulder under his armor. A very thick bandage bulged out on his left calf. Recognizing the injured female from the tavern the night before, the black dragon grimaced, the young man was still fresh on his mind.

“I see. Would you permit me to help your partner?” He addressed the BlackAgumon. The old dragon knelt and pulled off his Dramon Killers, setting the gauntlets aside. To Tessa he said, “I’ll need clean water, towels, and bandages. Can you take care of her partner?”

“Absolutely,” Tessa summoned a smaller book, reaching into the dimension pockets weaved into the digicode of the pages and withdrawing the requested items along with a bowl for the water. The Wisemon closed her eyes and bathed the BlackAgumon in a cool blue light, sealing open wounds, erasing aches, and soothing any burns. “How long have you two been partners?” she asked the BlackAgumon to fill the silence.

Meanwhile the older Greymon soaked a towel in the water, folding it, and placing it on warm forehead. He then gently took another damp towel to clean to wounds on her right arm and then applying dry bandages. Repeating the process, he carefully felt for deeper injuries like breaks, no doubt under the watchful gaze of her BlackAgumon partner. Tessa observed the warrior’s skill with battlefield first aid with keen interest.

“Thank you,” Tessa said grateful, watching intently at every gesture his claws made. “I'm Tessa.”

“Theo. Theo Grayson,” the old soldier responded shortly as he tied the last bandage snug on the female's forearm. He eyed Tessa’s glowing hands intrigued. “I didn’t know Wisemon could use healing auras.”

“Sorry, trade secret,” Tessa said cheekily, lightening the atmosphere. “We, Wisemon, have to maintain the shroud of mystery we stereotypically put out after all.”

“Indeed,” Theo chuckled deeply at the joke for what it was.

Tessa’s light faded, finished. She inhaled deeply, the endeavor always tiring, but she was getting better with practice. Nothing like a good meal to cure depleted energy reserves. “That should take care of the worst of your injuries.” She told the BlackAgumon. “I should see if anyone else needs treating,” Tessa said to each in the current company and dismissed herself.

Theo nodded to the Wisemon in farewell. He’d idly brushed a clawed hand through the female tamer’s hair and changed the cold compress on her forehead. A far off look of longing crossed his face. Grabbing a blanket from a nearby stack someone had kindly thought to leave out, the old dragon held it out to the BlackAgumon.

“She’ll be fine with time and rest. I couldn’t find anything serious deeper, though I would still suggest getting a specialist for humans to look her over back at Axis Mundi.” Theo said, leaning his own aching body more comfortably against the seats he was too big to fit in. “She’s got a strong spirit.” Remembering the female tamer’s defiant stance against the drunk digimon from the tavern.

*****************************

Sometime later in the journey back to Axis Mundi, after a quick snack from emergency rations being passed around, Tessa found herself approaching the two remaining gods aboard the airship. It seemed to her the other digimon and tamers were giving them a wide berth. The Wisemon shrugged, gods or mortals. It made little difference to her.

Stopping in front of the Imperialdramon, Tessa bowed with her hands clasped in front of her, “Thank you, Lord Odinson.” She hoped she remembered all of her etiquette cues. Her father, thorough in his lessons, tended to jump on several points in scatterbrain order.

“I came to see if any of your injuries still needed tending and offer my services.” The Wisemon offered to both gods. Tessa admitted to herself that while her offer was sincere, her ulterior motive was to learn more about them, particularly the fire god. Maybe she could pester him with a few questions later, if he didn’t burn her to a crisp first. Oh, the perils of pursuing knowledge.
 

TheSequelReturns

Faithful Crusader
~ Aria Morningsong & Frantz Stein +
- Airship -
- After the Battle -


She was alive. Somehow, someway, she was alive. Aria had to keep reminding herself of that ever since that Royal Knight had lit up the world and her life flashed before her eyes. Luck was on her side it seemed. Luck or a god. A lucky god perhaps? Either way, this airship was much roomier than it had been on the trip over here. The empty space was deafening. The Lilamon pinched her cheek again just to be sure. The pain helped too.

Aria hadn't stopped pacing since the airship took off. She was tired, exhausted both physically and mentally. Emotionally too she figured, otherwise she wouldn't be pacing. She just didn't know what to do. What did one even do after that? She wasn't a healer. But she had to do something. All these faces in here looked like death. Too many mons, and tamers too, all worn down and beaten half to death. Some more than half.

There was one thing she could do she supposed. It wouldn't be much, but maybe it could calm some nerves. Aria took a deep breath and tapped into what strength she had left. Her Lovely Cologne attack typically lulled her opponents into a hazy state of mind, but if she kept it to a small steady flow instead of a concentrated blast, the resulting aroma should act like aromatherapy. At least, if she remembered anything at all from her mother's teachings. Slowly a soothing pleasant aroma began to fill the airship, subtle enough that it couldn't quite be placed but strong enough to provide some measure of effect. If anyone traced the scent back to her, she'd deny it up and down.

A familiar looking BlackWarGreymon caught her eye. He was tending to one of the human tamers who looked worse for wear, the dancing girl with the BlackAgumon partner. The Lilamon was about to head over and check in on them when something spooked her.

"You smell nice." a voice said from behind her. Somehow, it was both booming and whispered.

Aria spun around to see a rather large Boltmon sitting on a metal box that itself was her height. "Excuse me?"

The Boltmon seemed embarrassed of all things. "Oh, Stein not mean to be creepy. Stein just thought nice smell was nice thing to do." The Boltmon rubbed the back of his head with a huge scarred hand. A puddle of water rested around his mud-covered shoes.

Aria blushed a little. "Oh, you see, I'm not the one who-"

"Its okay. Stein understands. I will keep nice smell a secret." The Boltmon cast a slow, lazy gaze across the cargo hold. "But Stein seems to have lost Wise One."

Wise One? No, nevermind, better not to ask. Aria sighed and leaned back against a support beam. Her back ached something fierce from the acrobatics she'd pulled out there. "Do you think... do you think we made a mistake in joining this attack?" The Lilamon shook her head. "I mean, we never stood a chance against the Royal Knights right?"

The Boltmon, Stein she supposed, he kept calling himself that, was quiet for a moment. A few sparks flew from his wires as he pondered her question. "It is never a mistake to protect people." Stein reached into one of his many pockets and produced a small beautifully carved wooden charm, the sort of thing most mons would wear on a string. It looked like a splinter in his massive hand. "Stein doesn't like to fight, but fighting is sometimes good. Bad digimon tried to hurt someone and I helped. They gave Stein this to say 'thanks' so I have kept it until the time to say 'thanks' to someone else."

"Its very pretty."

Stein nodded. "It is pretty because it means something special. Wise One saved Stein from rusting. She is good and nice. So I want to give Wise One this when I find where I have lost her."

Oh, so that's how it was. That's kinda cute. Aria allowed herself to grin a little at the thought of this big lug having a sweetie.

"Do you sing?" The big guy asked out of the blue. "Stein has met many flower mons. Heard lots of nice music."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Aria looked down. "I don't really sing. I just sorta... never really tried I guess? I was never any good at it."

Stein chuckled. "If you have not tried, how do you know?"

The Lilamon smiled softly. Well, this was a first. "No one has... no one has ever asked me to sing for them before. Not as a favor anyway. I don't know if I can."

"Stein believes in you." The Boltmon said calmly. There was none of the patronizing tones, no double meaning of hidden barb in his words that Aria had come to expect from everyone else. It was just simple, honest kindness. How could she refuse that?"

"Ok," Aria said, nervously brushing off her legs as she stood back up. "But I only know a few songs. And they're rather folksy, so you have to promise not to laugh."

The hulking Boltmon nodded excitedly, like a little kid expecting something sweet.

Aria cleared her throat and began to sing, a clear, cheerful melody that rang out in the cramped space of the cargo hold.

Come and walk with me by the riverside,
Where the grass is green and the skies are wide,
And the moon will share its sweet dreams tonight,
'Cause the sun's shining with a brand new light,

Say you'll stay with me by the riverside,
Where flowers bloom like a blushing bride,
We can hide away 'till the world's made right,
'Cause you're safe with me for another night,

Won't you marry me by the riverside,
Where we'll live in peace 'till the day we die,
Lay your heart to rest here safe and warm,
'Cause we found each other in the storm,
 
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Kamotz

God of Monsters
Council Airship

Thor shook his head, his brow furrowing. There were others injured worse than he and Svarog. They could still stand, could still glower and sulk in the corner without groaning in pain. Svarog could still gnash his teeth in frustration as he worked the kinks out of his joints and injured limbs. Thor could still run through, and analyze, and criticize his inability to bear the White Sword's power more completely.

"I appreciate your offer," Thor said, not wanting to appear too dismissive. "But my injuries are mostly limited to my pride." It was a half-truth. His pride had certainly taken some abuse, but his body ached more than that. He still felt frayed around the edges, as if his form was threatening to unravel. And for all her good intentions, Thor doubted the Wisemon had the knowledge or power to heal the sort of existential injury that comes from grabbing wildly at the beating heart of a cosmic constant.

"It was pitiful," Svarog muttered low. "We should not have lost so easily." The air around him steamed. "Three gods, an eternal, all these soldiers. Against four Royal Knights. We should have won."

"Five knights," Thor corrected his fellow god. "Gawain was among them. We fought them blindly, and on their terms." He stood and rolled his shoulders. "We're lucky this many survived."

"Is this...the end?" Drakn asked, walking over to the three. Their discussion, despite its hushed tones, had attracted the attention of many other warriors. "Can we rally back from this? How many of these fighters are done? How many humans will submit to the Knights' ruling? How many will refuse to fight again. And after this loss, who could blame them?"

"Are you done crying," Svarog snapped. "You may be done with this fight, but not all of us are."

"You believe in the humans that strongly?" Drakn asked, bewildered.

"No. But I have a score to settle. And I have my pride. And there is a fight," Svarog scoffed. "And I am not done fighting."

"We need to be smarter," Thor said, shaking his head. "We can't fight them like this again. They're well trained, they're coordinated. If we fight them with armies in pitched battle we will lose. Each and every time. We don't have a comparable force."

"Then we face the Royal Knights directly," Svarog declared, cracking his knuckles. "And we beat them into submission."

"Who, you and I, alone?" Thor almost-laughed. Svarog's enthusiasm was appreciated, but not the most practical or tactical solution.

"You and I, yes," Svarog answered, so bluntly that Thor nearly choked on his almost-laughter. "Maybe this one. too." Svarog gestured to Drakn. "Maybe more. Surely some of this rabble still have fight in them. But maybe not. Maybe the rabble won't join us. Maybe this one is too tired." He jabbed his thumb at Drakn again. "Maybe even Thor Odinson is done. I don't care. I have fight still in me."

Axis Mundi, the Free City
Temple of the High Council


The airship landed, and this time there was no great crowd of supporters cheering. Only an assembly of Council guards lined the exit from the airships. Most of the returning warriors simply disembarked and left the Temple without debriefing or speaking to the officers waiting for them. From the chatter and the security, Thor assumed that the other missions must have also gone poorly. Thor followed the few remaining warriors into the Council chambers and was met with the sight of greatly-reduced Council.

Thassa, Erebos, Keranos, Ephara, Xenagos, Nylea, and Phenax were all who stood before the warriors, looking worn and beaten. Even neary Loki wore his battle scars.

"Where is Heliod?" Thor demanded, glaring at Xenagos, who Heliod had traveled with to Greystone.

"Resting," Xenagos answered quietly. He and the rest of the Council remained seated. "Lancelot and Lamorak were too much, even for us and the warriors we brought. Heliod and Purphoros were injured during the fighting."

"As were Pharika and Mogis," said Ephara. "We all sorely underestimated the Knights' power. And how far they were willing to go."

"Your intelligence was incorrect," Drakn said, matter-of-factly. "Gawain was at Camelot, not at the Chess Kingdom like you told us."

"It was a shapeshifter," Erebos answered with a growl. "A Metamormon. Mogis got cocky and attacked, thinking it was Gawain. But it was ready for him and put him down. Wasn't long after that we were forced to retreat."

"We suffered the same at Greystone," said Xenagos. He folded his hands together and leaned forward. "We appealed to their government as Council members, as gods. In the end the Greystone Elders renounced the Knights' crusade and pledged their support to the Council and the humans. The Royal Knights were...unhappy with this turn. The three of us attempted to capture Lancelot and Lamorak, and bring them in, but we were overwhelmed. The city sustained significant damage, and we had no choice but to allow the Knights their leave."

"Kaldheim was much the same," said Keranos, somewhere between a snarl and a frown. "Galahad is powerful. More so than any of us anticipated. Kaldheim will likely lend their support to the Knights' cause."

"Well, luckily it wasn't a complete failure of a day," Loki mused, chuckling behind folded fingers. "Despite some initial stumbles," he glanced pointedly at Nylea and Phenax, "we managed to repel the Royal Knights at Valeron."

Thor didn't know why he was surprised. Loki was manipulative, petty, and arrogant. He was a trickster, not a warrior. But he was dangerous; as cunning as anyone Thor had ever known, and a master of arcane magics that few even knew of.

"Galahad will renew his campaign in force," Nylea said, ignoring Loki's verbal jabs. "After this...I don't see how any kingdom will resist for long. Greystone and Valeron will harbor the humans for now, but what happens when pressure from within and without mounts? The kingdoms of the world will not side with us if we cannot stop the Knights."

"Not all of us are done fighting," Svarog declared, loudly and for all to hear. "You failed. Whether because you lacked the will or your methods were flawed. You failed. But I will fight regardless. Not because I believe in you and them," he thrust his fingers towards a group of Tamers. "But because I believe in me. I have the will continue. Failed methods and all."

"Then perhaps we change those methods," said a voice, one that echoed through the Council chamber with a shimmering reverberation. A MagnaAngemon stepped through the crowd of warriors, glowing bright. Behind him, a Beelzemon leaned against the great doorway.

"Archangel Michael," Ephara acknowledged with a nod.

"You're late," Phenax said bluntly.

"I was assuming you'd wait. You called for me, specifically," Michael shot back.

"And you brought that," Keranos nodded towards the Beelzemon.

"Your mistake was engaging the Royal Knights on their terms," Michael said, ignoring the barbs and insults. Thor couldn't help but agree. "On a large scale, the Royal Knights will always prevail. One-on-One, they will always prevail."

"Wonderful," Loki drawled. "You've covered all our options and concluded failure for each one."

"There's a middle ground," Michael clarified, his voice barely holding back his impatience. "Not all the Knights are equipped to handle same types of combat. Assemble a team with varying skillsets, armaments, and abilities. Match them against the Royal Knights in a way that is tactically advantageous--we know their strengths. They do not know ours."

"Are you volunteering?" Amaterasu asked.

"I thought that much was obvious."

Thor frowned. The archangel was as arrogant and self-assured as any god he'd ever met, and seemed infinitely more self-righteous. Still, he wasn't wrong.

"Samael and I are here for that exact purpose," Michael said. He glanced over the room, his eyes settling on Thor and Svarog. "And you?"

"I thought that much was obvious," Svarog said with a grin.

Thor rolled his eyes, but nodded nonetheless.

"Who else?" Michael addressed the room. "Who stands with us?"
 
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TheCharredDragon

Tis the Hour to Reload
Shula Hernandez & Tyfrigo "Frost" Rex the BlackAgumon
Council Ship -> Temple of the High Council, Axis Mundi


"Of course, I can take care of it myself,” the female Wisemon said to his request.

He was at first confused. He didn't remember Wisemon were able to heal, but he decided to not question it. He was relieved that he didn't have to wait too long. Unfortunately, that relief was short lived. The Wisemon tried her best to heal her, but nothing came of it. She quickly explained that she never tried it on a human before. Frost held his sigh. He was about to speak, until another voice beat him to it.

"What seems to be the problem?" the gruff male said.

He was surprised to find it was the same BlackWargreymon they helped last night. How odd fate was.

"My partner is injured," he said.

The elder heard him as he flinched from the sight of his partner. He tried to ignore the sting in his own heart.

“I see," the elder dragon said. He knelt down near Shula and set aside his gauntlets nearby. "Would you permit me to help your partner?"

"Yes, it would be much appreciated," Frost said, relief very clear in his voice.

The BlackWargreymon turned his attention to the Wisemon and requested bandages, towels and water. Frost let himself watch in fascination as she pulled out what was asked from a small book. He always found it amazing to see such wonders. Shula even more so. She would've probably watched if she wasn't asleep.

The Wisemon then started to heal him. He stilled himself when she did, closing his eyes as he felt his body feel almost as if nothing had happened.

“How long have you two been partners?” she suddenly asked.

Frost couldn't help from opening his eyes and looking at her in mild surprise. He blinked before he closed his eyes again and stood still. A small smile started appearing on his toothy lips as he remembered.

"Nine years. Ten years by next month," he said.

He opened his eyes and then, like the Wisemon, turned his gaze to the BlackWargreymon. He tended to Shula with sure movements, cleaning the wounds and then bandaging them. He stopped worrying too much at this point. He also knew Shula would've joked about needing to get a new coat. A part of him was glad for Shula's sense of humor infecting him. It was easier to chuckle at the introduced Tessa's joke alongside the also just introduced Theo. By then, Tessa was done with Frost.

She quickly excused herself to do the same to others before leaving. Theo nodded when she did and Frost did the same. He also noted the look on the elder's face when he brushed Shula's hair with surprising gentleness. He found that curious. Did Shula remind him of a human he was good friends with? Perhaps he could ask one day. Right now, he just took the blanket the elder offered and had it cover Shula.

“She’ll be fine with time and rest. I couldn’t find anything serious deeper, though I would still suggest getting a specialist for humans to look her over back at Axis Mundi,” Theo said, to which Frost just nodded.

The elder leaned his body more comfortably against the seats he was too big to fit in. Frost would have an easier time at that considering his size, but he didn't want to stress Shula too much and decided to stay by her legs on the floor as she slept soundly on her back against the seat.

“She’s got a strong spirit,” Theo then said.

He looked to the dragon again, finding his position somewhat comical. He then looked back at Shula with an amused smile.

He let out a chuckle. "Indeed," he said. "You'd be surprised how many times she ended up in an inn to rest." He faced the elder dragon. "This one time, we going through a mountain pass and we came across some bandits attacking one of the villages there. One of the bandits was about to strike a young Digimon until she went straight at him and managed to hold her ground against him until I could help. Of course, she ended up having to stay at the inn there for about a month or so. She didn't like staying inside for so long but was happy that she saved the young one."

Unknowingly, he relaxed himself as he*duly noted there was a nice smell going around the hull.

"Again, you have my gratitude,*Theo Grayson," he said. He blinked as he realized something. "Ah, forgive me for forgetting to introduce myself. My name is Tyfrigo Rex, but my partner refers to me as Frost. My partner's name is Shula Hernandez."

...

She felt sore. That was what she noted when she first started to wake. But that wasn't what woke her. In her life, Shula had a love of music despite not having any talent in it, except for perhaps in song writing. She always liked music because they could easily change the moods of people and lift people's spirits. Or even their hopes. That was why, when a cheery song started ringing through the ship, she opened her eyes.

Come and walk with me by the riverside,
Where the grass is green and the skies are wide,


She blinked her eyes hazily though as her conscious mind made sense of where she was. She was lying down, a blanket over her. She felt some parts of her body were wrapped. Over her wounds, she guessed. She was inside the ship they used to get to Avalon. And there was a song being sung in the ship.

And the moon will share its sweet dreams tonight,
'Cause the sun's shining with a brand new light,


She tried moving her body but found it was still tired and refused to move beyond an inch. So she was left with turning her head to her right. Of course, she couldn't find the one who was singing, but she did see someone else. Two, actually. First was Frost, the second was the BlackWargreymon they had saved from earlier. With a closer look, it also appeared to be the same one from last night. What a coincidence.

The two seemed to be talking. Not that she minded. She was still busy listening to the song.

Say you'll stay with me by the riverside,
Where flowers bloom like a blushing bride,
We can hide away 'till the world's made right,
'Cause you're safe with me for another night,


Although she knew it was unlikely, she still searched around as best as she could with her eyes alone...

Won't you marry me by the riverside,
Where we'll live in peace 'till the day we die,
Lay your heart to rest here safe and warm,
'Cause we found each other in the storm.


...because she really liked the song. She wanted to learn how to sing it. And then her eyes landed on a familiar shape. It was that Lilamon that was with the BlackWargreymon during the battle. She smiled. Delirious and still tired, she numbly thought how appropriate that song was for her and Frost as her eyes slid shut again.

...

The second time she woke was when the ship landed and by that point, her body had rested enough that she could move. She sat on her seat for a while though to wait until the crowd was less dense to exit, even though, she sadly noted, it was considerably less dense than when they left. She still wanted to wait anyhow. In the meantime...

"How are you feeling?" her partner said.

Shula flashed a toothy and tired smile. "Like I've been hit by a powerful attack," she said with amusement.

Frost rolled his eyes. "It seems you're fine if you can joke about it."

She chuckled.

"We're still going to have you looked at by a human specialist."

Her smile turned warm. "Sure."

Then she noticed the BlackWargreymon was still nearby. Frost noticed her gaze.

"Ah, Shula, this is Theo Grayson," he said, gesturing to said Digimon. "He was the one who bandaged you and stablilize them."

"Really? Huh." She smiled brightly again. "Heh, thanks for that," she said. "Guess I owe you twice--one for last night and one for today, huh?" she then joked.

"Shall we head out?" Frost then asked.

Shula found that most had left and wasn't packed anymore. So, with a little help, she stood up and went out. But it was easy to see she was walking at the same pace as whatever Theo was going. Not that it was hard, considering she still felt sore all over and was slightly limping herself.

"Hey, maybe we can talk some more later?*You know, relax a little," she said.

"Even though we lost?" Frost said, a little confused.

Frost was a little surprised when Shula's smile faded, replaced with an solemn and rather grim expression.

"Exactly," she said.

...

Shula wasn't surprised at all to see the obviously less-than-usual-number-of Council members, nor their injuries. She was surprised by how many spots were lost, even with gods. She certainly didn't expect only two successful ones, and those had serious collateral damage and dead. Shula tried her best to keep her mind off of how many--or rather how little--Council soldiers were left and how many died.

Thankfully, it was easy as that same Apollomon from last night had his voice boom across the area. He still wanted to fight. Then Shula was met with another surprise, an angel--what's more an archangel--came into the room. She knew very well this place had many things and beings like those in human mythology, and she had heard such Digimon existed. But actaully seeing an angel...she couldn't help but stare. The angel looked and seemed a lot like those from her religion.

Even his name was the same.

"Archangel Michael," Amaterasu said.

Loki then said, "You're late."

"I was assuming you'd wait. You called for me, specifically," Michael then said with force.

Shula was snapped from her stare and frowned just a tiny bit. She had to remind herself to never judge a book by its cover. ...but it was a bit hard considering how many stories she'd been told since she young about angels.

"And you brought that," she heard Zeus suddenly said.

She blinked and then looked carefully behind Michael. As she guessed, there was someone there...and he looked a lot like a gangster biker, a lot. Black leather jacket, pants, guns at his side, even his boots were the same, it all reminded her of that. She wondered why Zeus didn't sound too happy to see him.

Michael kept speaking. It wasn't good, even if it was true.
*
"Your mistake was engaging the Royal Knights on their terms," he said. "On a large scale, the Royal Knights will always prevail. One-on-One, they will always prevail."

"Wonderful," Loki drawled. "You've covered all our options and concluded failure for each one."

Shula silently agreed.

"There's a middle ground," Michael then clarified, sounding close to snapping. "Not all the Knights are equipped to handle same types of combat. Assemble a team with varying skillsets, armaments, and abilities. Match them against the Royal Knights in a way that is tactically advantageous--we know their strengths. They do not know ours."

"Are you volunteering?" Amaterasu asked.

"I thought that much was obvious. Samael and I are here for that exact purpose," Michael said.

Shula felt herself nearly fall over in shock. Samael?! That would explain Zeus's behavior...and Frost's, now that she noticed he was looking at Samael warily. She had told him a bit about some of the religions on Analog when he told her about some of the gods on the council. She might've not heard what this Samael does, but if he's anything like what she knows, well...she won't hate the guy for being who he is. That doesn't mean she had to agree.

Michael glanced over the room, his eyes settling on Thor and the Apollomon. "And you?"

"I thought that much was obvious," Svarog said with a grin.

Frost rolled his eyes. Shula just snickered.

Then Michael's voice was sent across the room again. "Who else?" he said.

"Who stands with us?"

Her face set with determination, she slowly stood and moved through the crowd, her limp doing little to stop her. Frost, as always, was close by her, almost exactly mimicking her movements, sans her limp. When she was within the line of sight of Michael, she stopped, stood straight and her face a mirror of yesterday as she looked to him. Frost was exactly the same as her.

"We do," they said in synch, just as they did when they started. "We'll fight."
 

Solsabre

The Reforged Soul
Theo Grayson (BlackWarGreymon)
Council Airship--> Temple of the High Council


Theo chuckled softly after the BlackAgumon shared his partner's tenacity. The short story brought to mind the memories of a young teenager he always had to pull out of the proverbial -sometimes literal- fire.

"Again, you have my gratitude,*Theo Grayson," the BlackAgumon said. "Ah, forgive me for forgetting to introduce myself. My name is Tyfrigo Rex, but my partner refers to me as Frost. My partner's name is Shula Hernandez."

Theo nodded wearily in acknowledgment. “I simply do what needs to be done, Frost.” He rested his metal armored against the seats and looked to the ceiling muttering, “ what needs to be done...” The recent passing of the youth weighed heavily on his mind.

He closed his eyes, the events of the battle finally catching up to him. Theo dozed lightly, despite the awkwardness of his position. Many long years in the Royal Knight Army allowed him to fall asleep at the drop of a hat in any location or setting.

The landing of the airship jostled him awake instantly and stretched out his cramped arms and legs. The old soldier turned his attention to Frost introducing him to his now awake partner, Shula. Theo gave her a kind smile, though it was hidden beneath his helmet, after she voiced her heartfelt thanks.

Rising, Theo walked stiffly from the airship and followed the pitiful procession of remaining warriors to the Council's Temple. In the main chamber, he rest against the wall standing with his arms crossed. Eyes closed, he listened intently to the post-battle report of the other operations. He cringed slightly at the losses and highly injuries number even among the Council.

The old soldier raised his head to attention, when the chamber echoed with a clear voice interrupting the argument between the gods. Theo listened to Archangel Micheal's reasoning against the Council's initial attempts to confront the Knights on equal footing. He nodded knowing and in agreement with the Archangel's assessment of assembling a specialized team to engage each of the Knights. It was the one thing that bothered him the most at the onset when the Council summoned warriors from all over Saga.

"Who else?" Michael addressed the room. "Who stands with us?"

Images of Kyle flashed through his mind. The warmth of the youth in his arms turning cold, so still, so young. At Micheal's call to action, in a moment of deja vu, Theo strolled forward moments after Shula and Frost to the front.

“I served as a soldier for the Royal Knights for many years, sharing the same mission,” Theo spoke aloud, “however, I have also experience the kinship the humans have to offer.”

“I cannot go along with Galahad's Crusade against the Tamers.”

Unconsciously drawing from old habits, Theo knelt slowly down on one knee and crossed a clawed hand over his chest. He pledged resolutely. “I will fight.”
______________________________________________


Tessa Tesla (Wisemon)
Council Airship → Temple of the High Council


Tessa bowed respectfully, knowing she was being dismissed and not without a bit of disappointment. She turned to depart and look for a seat to nap in, when she tripped over the hem of her robes and landed flat on her face. The Wisemon squatted, rubbing her sore hidden nose in annoyance.

Shaking it off, Tessa flopped into the nearest seat. Even though she was tired, her hyper active mind wouldn't settle. Instead, she withdraw a journal from her loose sleeves and began to jot down the events of the battles as it played out in her mind. When she needed a reference, Tessa produced the Space Orbs to replay a scene or section of the battle and scribbled notes. At one point, the young Wisemon paused the small screened projection and did a double take. “You bloody bastard.” she muttered softly to herself. In the far background of the still image was the presence of Gawain right before he made his entrance onto the battle field. Tessa shook her hooded head and watched through the rest of the battle.

The Airship landed and Tessa left with the first wave of walking wounded, some departing for other destinations and a smaller number returning to the Temple of the High Council. Nose still in a book, Tessa crashed head long into a what felt like a brick wall and landed hard on her posterior.

“Wwwaahhh,!” Tessa yelped startled. She rubbed a sore spot on her head. “What is it now?” She demanded to no one in particular and looked up to a familiar digimon. The Wisemon's face lit up.

“Stein! How are you, you big lug? Is your shoulder still holding up?” She asked curiously.

***

During the debriefing, Tessa continued recording the accounts of the other battles, both failures and minor successes. However, when the god, Amaterasu, announced the arrival of Archangel Micheal, Tessa nearly dropped her book.

“Archangel Micheal?!?!” Tessa squeaked loudly, quickly clamping her hands over her mouth after many dirty looks were sent her way. Barely able to contain her excitement and not trusting herself to speak reasonably, Tessa merely waved her arm energetically to indicate her willingness to continue aiding in battle.

An angel. She finally met another angel. Tessa was one step closer to her mother.
 

TheSequelReturns

Faithful Crusader
~ Aria Morningsong & Frantz Stein +
- Temple of the High Council -
- Post-Battle Meeting -


"What do you suppose the Council does in their free time?" Aria quietly mused to her stoic companion. No sooner had the Council started drawling on than the Lilamon had completely lost her concentration on what was being said. Gods or not, they were dull.

The Boltmon shrugged. "Whatever it is gods do."

"That clears it right up." Aria rubbed her forehead with her long flowery fingers. "With this sort of efficiency its a wonder anything ever gets done. No wonder the angels do their own thing."

Stein was leaning against a pillar that that was more than big enough to support his massive weight and was rubbing his thumb on his chin like some sort of scholar pondering the meaning of life. If he heard her comments, he kept his response to himself. Aria couldn't help but wonder just what was rolling through Stein's head that had him so zoned out.

"There were more Council gods before, right?" Stein finally said.

Seriously, he was counting them? "If I had palms, my face would be in one of them right now." she mumbled.

Her friend chuckled. "Stein thinks it would be hard to put your face on your hand. You are a funny one."

"Well if that's not the spur calling out the thorn."

At that, the Boltmon started chuckling softly to himself for a few minutes, leaving Aria with nothing to do but shake her head in resignation. This one was probably hopeless, what was she to do with him? Better question: just what sort of crazy folks made up this crowd she was in? One thing was certain at least, she must be as crazy as the rest of them. The thought to leave hadn't even crossed her mind. Strange that, she rather liked being alive. But there was something in the air here, some strange sense of purpose that she couldn't shake. It was starting to eat away at her nerves.

A finger the size of her arm tapped her shoulder, but with such gentleness that it barely nudged her. Aria snapped out of her thoughts and glanced back up at Stein who was, and she had to guess here with the mask, but it looked like he was frowning. "What's up big guy?"

"Stein still hasn't found Wise One..." his voice trailed off sadly. "Did she leave?"

Aria felt a pit open up in her stomach. "Do you think... do you think she made it off the island?"

She immediately regretted asking as the Boltmon's whole posture slowly crumbled. "Wise One might not be okay?" he sniffed. "I never got to say thank you..." A small cry sounded from somewhere behind Stein's statuesque leg. "Stein can still hear her voice." he said sadly. "Almost like she's still here."

A Wisemon poked her head around Stein's leg and looked up at him. Aria's eyebrow rose. “Stein! How are you, you big lug? Is your shoulder still holding up?” the Wisemon asked curiously.

Stein looked down and when he saw the Wisemon he scooped her up in a massive hug. "Wise One! I am glad you're not dead!".

"Um, Stein, buddy, you might not want to kill her now." Aria said, smiling. So that was Stein's sweetie. They certainly made an odd pair.

Looking a bit scared that his hug may have been too powerful, Stein gingerly sat Tessa back on the floor. "Sorry Wise One, but Stein is very happy to see you unharmed. Stein wanted to say thank you. You saved my life." The hulking Boltmon, like a kid with his prom date, slowly turned so that he wasn't blocking Aria's view of Tessa or vice versa. "This is Wise One. She saved Stein from drowning. Wise One, this is Stein's friend. She can sing very nice."

"Aria Morningsong." the Lilamon said, extending her hand. "This guy's been looking for you ever since the airship. He's quite smitten I think."

Before the conversation could go any further, the room was silenced by to new arrivals. They were what appeared to be, unless Aria's eyes were deceiving her, a high ranking Angel and equally strong demon. When the MagnaAngemon introduced himself as Michael her suspicions were confirmed. What was an Archangel doing dragging a demon before the council? Why now of all times? Now, she was interested. From what she gathered, it seemed like the Angel was taking charge of the situation and reforging the army. But this time, with an actual plan! Imagine that, maybe they'd actually have a chance this time. Wait, was she feeling hopeful right now?

"Who else?" Michael addressed the room. "Who stands with us?"

Stein's hand was in the air almost before the Archangel had finished talking. "I will lend my strength. Stein can not stand by when good digimon and 'huemons' are getting hurt."

The Wisemon followed suit. As did several other familiar faces, like the BlackWarGreymon and the dancing couple she had become acquainted with. Aria couldn't help it. Despite it all, despite the loss and the danger and the very real chance of death. Despite the impossible odds of success and the carnage she had witnesses earlier, she just couldn't help it. Aria was trembling with excitement. And fear. And a dozen other emotions. But she knew what she was going to do before she even realized that her hand was in the air. "I will fight too!" she called. "I will do anything I can to help."

She only had to look up and see Stein's simple foolhardy grin to know she had made the right call.
 
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